The lead single from his third album Harry’s House, “As It Was” sees Styles singing in a somewhat sorrowful voice about his bittersweet feelings of loneliness and the past, masking it with synths and an upbeat sound reminiscent of music from the ‘80s.

In an interview, Styles describes the song as about “metamorphosis, embracing change and former self, perspective shift and all that kind of stuff.”

It just felt like the thing I wanted to say, the thing I wanted to be doing and the kind of music I wanted to make coming back.

It was followed by several teasers through the You Are Home campaign and was formally announced on March 28, 2022 with the song title, release date, and several visual shots from the music video.