Singer Harry Styles says he previously felt ‘ashamed’ of his sex life

In a new interview, the former One Direction singer also reacts to ‘outdated’ speculation of his sexuality. Photo: AFP

In a sign of the times, Harry Styles doesn’t feel the need to let fans know everything about him.

The As It Was and Sign Of The Times singer is responding to the world’s ardent — and, in his words, “outdated” — speculation about his sexuality, while promoting his “most intimate” album, Harry’s House, out next month.

“I’ve been really open with it with my friends, but that’s my personal experience; it’s mine,” Styles, 28, told Better Homes And Gardens in the magazine’s June cover story, out Tuesday (April 26).

“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.”

Not only has Styles’ sexuality been much talked about and dissected by onlookers, but so has his relationship status — since well before the One Direction alum embarked on a solo career.

Styles has long been believed to be the subject of several songs by Taylor Swift, including the aptly titled, Style. The two shared a brief romance from late 2012 to early the following year.

Starting in late 2020, the Dunkirk actor was reported to be dating Olivia Wilde, who directed him in her upcoming film, Don’t Worry Darling. The singer was also reportedly the reason behind Wilde’s split from Ted Lasso star Jason Sudeikis, to whom she’d been engaged for seven years. The former couple shares two children.

That Styles in the new interview didn’t speak about Wilde was likely intentional.

“For a long time, it felt like the only thing that was mine was my sex life. I felt so ashamed about it, ashamed at the idea of people even knowing that I was having sex, let alone with,” said Styles, of skyrocketing to fame in the bubble of a boy band.

“At the time, there were still the kiss-and-tell things ... But I think I got to a place where I was like, why do I feel ashamed? I’m a 26-year-old man who’s single; it’s like, yes, I have sex.” – New York Daily News/Tribune News Service