An attempt at a Harry Styles look-alike contest turned into a listening party

Collage by Easton Clark, Photo Editor

With no one dressing up at this event, Chapman may not have any Harry Styles doppelgängers; but the campus is definitely home to many devoted Harries. 

The Argyros Forum Student Union hosted a Harry Styles look-alike contest alongside a listening party, to celebrate the release of his new album “Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally.” that dropped on the evening of March 5. 

Chapman’s event was modeled off of many other successful look-alike contests around the world. New York City had hosted a Timothée Chalamet look-alike contest, where Chalamet himself attended alongside thousands of potential doppelgängers and fans. Another contest in the 1980s, at a Hollywood bar, is where Dolly Parton entered for her own look-alike contest and ended up losing to a man. 

However, Chapman’s event ended up entailing more of old Harry Styles songs playing and tables of refreshments and cookies being grabbed by the students who arrived timely in preparation for the listening party instead. 

Freshman theatre major, Emily Wysong-Rasmussen, has long been a part of the Styles fandom. 

“I saw the poster on campus and I had to come to this event because it is so fun to listen to it with everyone,” said Wysong-Rasmussen. “I met two of my best friends at home from his fandom during the pandemic.” 

Sophomore graphic design majors, Sophia Lopez and Melissa Munoz, both attended with intentions of just listening to the new music. 

“I came to listen, to be with people and get familiar with the events Chapman has to offer,” said Munoz. 

But for Lopez, it is more than just a fan-driven event. 

“I’ve been a big fan of Harry Styles,” said Lopez. “I thought this was a good opportunity to get close to the community.” 

Though there were unfortunately no Harry look-alikes at the event, a strong community of Styles’ listeners still took over the newly refurbished Great Room for a simple listening session. 

With it being four years since Harry Styles released new music, his fans at Chapman have eagerly awaited the album. 

Styles rose to fame as a member of the boy band One Direction before launching a prospering solo career. His solo career debuted in 2017 with his self-titled album, featuring “Sign of the Times.” He later broke records with his third album “Harry’s House,” with the song “As It Was” taking over the internet. 

He has cemented an image as a genre-blending artist who exemplifies self-expression and fosters a tight-knit fandom, including the fans who attended this event. 

“He is just someone who wants to create community and puts his full passion into the music he makes,” Lopez said.

Munoz shared this same sentiment with Lopez.

“I respect what he stands for and the community that he has built,” Munoz said. 

While waiting for the new music to drop and for everyone to listen together, these fans spoke on Styles’ other music, noting their favorite songs and what they were hoping for in his new releases. 

Munoz’s favorite album is a tie between “Harry Styles” and “Harry's House,” while Wysong-Rasmussen’s favorite is either “Harry Styles” or “Fine Line.” 

Freshman screen acting major Kendall Henderson expressed she loved the song “Lights Up,” noting it to be her favorite. Wysong-Rasmussen’s favorite song is “Woman.” 

The sneak peak song “Aperture” from the new album was also a topic of discussion.

“Aperture” was released on Jan. 22, far before the album. To these fans’ surprise, it was different than what they were expecting. 

Lopez said, “it is definitely something new,” and Wysong-Rasmussen said, “it caught me off guard.”  

A number of Styles’ songs from the new album are already filtering through social media apps and hitting the charts with many streams on different platforms. 

As for the event, students excitedly came to listen, sing along and, most importantly, get to know those around them and share what his music really means to one another. 

And though no one notably resembled Harry Styles for the look-alike contest — and maybe no one at Chapman does — at least students still got to listen and party to “Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally.”