Harry Styles revisited the beginning of his music career during the first of two Halloween-themed Harryween concerts at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Friday, October 30. The singer recreated the outfit he wore during his 2010 audition for The X Factor and performed Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t She Lovely,” the song that helped him advance in the competition.
The performance took place during the penultimate night of Styles’ 30-show “Together, Together” residency at the venue. Styles appeared in a grey cardigan, white T-shirt, yellow scarf and brown trousers, with his original audition number pinned to his clothing. The look brought back memories of the 16-year-old singer who first introduced himself to television audiences.
Styles also repeated a line from his audition, telling the Madison Square Garden crowd, “I work in a bakery.” The remark referenced his part-time job at a bakery in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, before his appearance on the ITV singing competition.
During his original audition, Styles initially sang Train’s “Hey, Soul Sister.” After judge Simon Cowell asked him to perform without the backing track, he sang “Isn’t She Lovely” a cappella. His performance earned him a place in the next stage of the competition, where he was eventually grouped with Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson to form One Direction.
The group finished third on The X Factor but went on to become one of the most successful boy bands of their generation. Styles later established a solo career, releasing four studio albums and earning multiple chart-topping singles.
Before changing into his audition outfit, Styles opened the Harryween show dressed as Elvis Presley. He wore a white, embellished jumpsuit, a blue cape and gold sunglasses, while his band and dancers appeared in costumes inspired by different stages of his career, including looks associated with the Grammys, Coachella and the Met Gala.
The Halloween performance revived Styles’ Harryween tradition, which began with two Madison Square Garden concerts in 2021. He dressed as Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz for the first show and performed “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” before appearing in a clown costume for the second night and covering Britney Spears’ “Toxic.” In 2022, he brought the concept to Los Angeles, dressing as Danny Zuko from Grease to sing “Hopelessly Devoted to You.”
The October 30 concert also featured actress Riley Keough, Elvis Presley’s granddaughter, in the audience alongside Styles’ partner Zoë Kravitz. The two-night Harryween celebration concludes on October 31, bringing Styles’ Madison Square Garden residency to a close before his upcoming international tour dates.
