Harry Styles might want to take his own advice and treat people with kindness.
In a recent interview with the L.A. Times, the female indie duo Lucius revealed that they previously asked for credit as a featured artist on Harry Styles‘ hit song “Treat People With Kindness” and were flat-out denied.
For those who haven’t heard the song, Lucius sings the chorus on the song (without Harry) as well as background vocals throughout the song.
So how did this happen?
According to the indie duo, the women had been working on another of Harry’s songs (which never ended up coming to fruition) when he asked for them to sing on “Kindness”.
Jess Wolfe, one half of Lucius, explained,
“We were like, ‘Yeah, of course.’ If it’s just ‘oohs’ and ‘aaahs,’ it’s not a big deal. And it’s a good opportunity for us.”
Instead, the duo ended up singing the entire chorus.
Their initial assumption was that Harry would layer his vocals on top of theirs. So imagine their surprise when they found out that their vocals weren’t purely used in the background, but for the actual chorus itself — sans Harry.
Jess said,
“They sent us the track and it was literally us. We start the song, we sing every chorus, just us. We trade off the bridge. It is us and Harry Styles. Harry Styles and us.”
In most cases like this, the group would be given a featured credit. But not only did Harry Styles refuse to do that, but he didn’t even include the group in his Spotify song credits under the “Performed by” section. If you didn’t know better, you wouldn’t even know they existed.
Jess admitted,
“It just hurt. Here was an opportunity to spread the love a little bit, which he purports to do all the time. And it could’ve really helped us.”
Harry Styles has a following of 52.4M on Spotify compared to Lucius’ 1.2M so failing to give them credit is a big deal. Having someone like Harry tag them on Spotify would be a huge get for Lucius and, if you’ve heard the song, it’s clear they deserve it. Failing to credit the group, even in the liner notes, is disrespectful and just plain wrong. Considering Lucius’ contribution to the song, credit is the absolute least Harry could do.
According to the L.A. Times, a representative for Harry Styles declined to comment on the situation.
Harry Styles isn’t the first big artist that Lucius has sung with, but it sounds like he is the first to snub them like this. Lucius has previously sung with the likes of Sheryl Crow, Brandi Carlile, and The Killers — all of whom adequately credited them on the music streaming platform.
In addition to performing with other musicians, Lucius has also been featured on a number of TV shows and movies including New Girl, Girls, iZombie, The Vampire Diaries, and more.
To support Lucius, check out their music on Spotify here.
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