- Harry Styles seemingly debuted a new “Slinky” tattoo in Rome last summer.
- He also showed off the ink during his ‘Saturday Night Live’ cameo on March 7.
- Fans are convinced it might be a tribute to his late bandmate, Liam Payne, who tragically passed away in Sept. 2024.
Harry Styles is making his rounds as he dropped his highly anticipated fourth album, Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally on Friday, March 6. But before he even laid down tracks in the studio, he took a few years off to chill and travel once he wrapped his historic Love On Tour in 2023.
The Grammy winner also took the time to hit up a tattoo parlor and get some new ink during his break, as he seemingly debuted some new ink last September.
The new piece reads “Slinky,” and fans have been reading into its potential meaning since some close-up pics dropped in the fall.
Of course, there’s the surface-level interpretation of the word itself, which could mean sensual, attractive, or provocative. This totally falls in line with the vibes on Harry’s new album, so perhaps that was his inspo.
The “American Girls” hitmaker also showed off the tat when he made a cameo during Ryan Gosling’s Saturday Night Live monologue on March 7, a week before he’s set to hit Studio 8H for double duty as SNL’s host and musical guest.
Once fans caught a closer look at the ink, they shared more theories online. Fans pointed out that “Slinky” might represent the beloved character from Disney Pixar’s Toy Story, which was the favorite movie of his late One Direction bandmate, Liam Payne. (Crying if this is true…)
Others pointed to KATTDO’s aesthetic and sound as a possible source of inspiration for Harry’s “Slinky” ink.
A fan named Lee (known as @passionatelou online) theorized that it may have ties to the late George Michael, a major English pop icon and one of Harry’s main musical influences. Several news outlets and critics described George’s 1998 track, “Outside,” as a “slinky disco track,” which can also be said about some of Harry’s KATTDO songs.
It’s not entirely far-fetched, especially because the “Aperture” singer has lyrics from George’s song “Careless Whisper” (“Never gonna dance again”) tattooed on his ankles, per E! News.
Harry has yet to reveal the meaning behind the tattoo—but both of these theories have potential, if you ask me.
