THE RUNDOWNHarry Styles reflected on how fame affected his everyday life during his One Direction years.The singer revealed that a past relationship helped change his perspective on going out in public.He discussed how his approach to spending time outside has evolved since then.Harry Styles has spent much of his adult life in the public eye, but for a while, he wasn’t particularly comfortable being in the spotlight.In a new Rolling Stone conversation with Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke, published on October 8, the singer reflected on how his experience with fame has changed since his One Direction days. He also revealed that a former girlfriend helped him become more comfortable spending time in public.The subject came up when Yorke recalled running into Styles on a street in Rome in 2024. “I was also impressed that you were just walking down the street,” Yorke told him. “I was like, ‘Where’s his security?’ Because I mean, I know I can do it, but I didn’t know you could do it.”Styles explained that it hadn’t always been so easy for him.“I think in the early days, when I was in the band [One Direction], so much of the hotel experience felt very locked-in,” he said. “When I’d be home, it felt like, ‘Oh, it’s not safe for me to be out.’ Then I had a girlfriend who was very outgoing, and she was coming to London and I was like, ‘Oh, if we just sit in my house for three days, she’s gonna think I’m nuts.’ So we walked everywhere, and it was this realization for me: ‘Oh, it’s fine to be outside.’ It kind of broke that thing. Now, it’s changed my life in such a big way, because it’s how you stay connected to the world.”Styles didn’t identify the girlfriend or specify when the relationship took place. He is currently engaged to actress Zoë Kravitz, whom he began dating in 2025.His newfound appreciation for walking has also influenced how he approaches his work. “I read something about walking being the artist’s kind of perspective, because you’re at ground level and you see things that you just don’t see if you’re driving everywhere,” he told Yorke.Later in the conversation, Styles spoke about the challenges of making music that reflects ordinary experiences while living an extraordinary life.“It’s an interesting cycle, I think,” he said. “You make something that connects with people, because you’ve captured something about the human experience, whether it’s a vulnerability or a sensitivity that comes with being human. And then any kind of success around that thing makes it take on this life of its own. Then everything around you makes your experience incredibly not human.”