In Nov. 2023, the entertainment world was shocked to hear the news that one of their very best had been lost. Millennials still harbouring crushes from their teen years and diehard fans alike were devastated when they discovered what happened to Harry Styles. No, the man himself isn’t dead—but his hair, along with some desirability, sure is.
Beauty isn’t everything, but Styles’ most recent move to get a buzz cut remains questionable, to say the least. From the boyish curls in 2011 to his lion’s mane in 2015, one of the singer’s most defining features has always been his hair. After all, his name is Harry Styles, so what is he without hair to style? Baldy Unstylish simply does not have the same ring to it.
This move cannot be attributed to an impending midlife crisis. There’s speculation of reasonable rationalities, such as wanting to be more anonymous in public. The singer-songwriter is a mere 29 years old and has produced numerous chart-toppers in the past few years, including ‘As It Was’ and ‘Watermelon Sugar.’ The star won Album of the Year at the 2023 Grammy Awards for his work on Harry’s House, and he even debuted his role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe at the end of Eternals. There is no shortage of success in Styles’ life. Who knows—maybe the stress of making another album is getting to him, or perhaps this is his response to Taylor Swift’s recent re-release of 1989 (Taylor’s Version), whose romantic tracks about Styles do not paint him in the best light. Regardless of the reason, there is no true way to justify this tremendous loss. Maybe Taylor Swift was wrong; he may finally be going out of style.
I am not the only fan to be outraged by this move. Members of the public have taken to X, formerly Twitter, to comment on how the new ‘do has affected them. “To everyone posting the pic of Harry Styles with his shaved head please stop it’s hurting me emotionally, mentally and physically,” one X user stated. Meanwhile, another fan noted the gravity of the situation, asking, “you’re laughing? harry styles got a buzz cut and you’re laughing?”
His hair was an inspiration to us all. He proved to the world that not only is there merit to the man bun, but that the slick-backed look is more than a cautionary tale against the excessive-hair-gel look that John Travolta popularized in Grease.
Every generation has its turning point. Between the World Wars and Y2K, previous generations have had their fair share of drastic events. Who’s to say that this isn’t ours? The trauma of this hairdo is already affecting the McGill population.
“When I woke up to see that the rumours were true, I didn’t know how to go on with my day,” Sophia Longo, U2 Science, said in an interview with The Tribune.
The extent of the damage this haircut has incurred is not yet known; we cannot imagine the havoc this could wreak on students’ performances on final exams.
In the end, it’s what’s on the inside that matters—haircuts cannot determine a person’s worth. That is, for everyone except Harry Styles. Even a casual observer could tell that half of the artist’s magic is hidden in his hair. Shaving his head is an act tantamount to removing a unicorn’s horn or stripping a tiger of its stripes. No matter how many of his songs top the charts, they will never be enough to sit atop his head. So Harry, if you’re reading this, then I beg of you—be hairy again.
