Harry Styles is coming clean. In a recent chat with Rolling Stone, the Watermelon Sugar singer talked about being accused of using his sense of fashion and support for the LGBTQ community as “queerbaiting.” For those unfamiliar with the term, queerbaiting refers to moments when the mainstream media or celebs use LGBTQ topics to reel in views and likes on the internet.
Harry replied to the outlet’s question when they asked what he thought about being accused of using the Queer community as an “aesthetic” yet never identifying with it for profit, “Sometimes people say, ‘You’ve only publicly been with women,’ and I don’t think I’ve publicly been with anyone.” He added, “If someone takes a picture of you with someone, it doesn’t mean you’re choosing to have a public relationship or something.” The former member of One Direction, who is infamous for keeping his romantic life quiet, recently admitted that he found it “outdated” to identify his sexuality.
In a previous interview, via Page Six, Styles shared, “I’ve been really open with it with my friends, but that’s my personal experience; it’s mine.” He then noted, “The whole point of where we should be heading, which is toward accepting everybody and being more open, is that it doesn’t matter, and it’s about not having to label everything, not having to clarify what boxes you’re checking.”
For now, Styles is in a relationship that has been public for a while. Following their encounter on the set of Don’t Worry Darling, which Olivia Wilde directed and in which Styles stars as the main lead opposite Florence Pugh, the two have been publicly dating since January 2021.
