daisiesonafield-blog:

Full article. March 17 2025.

The full article is behind The Sun’s paid subscription but can be viewed Here. Original link here.

They’re sitting by the window, what kind of “intimate” night is that? 😂 LOL. I don’t think this has anything to do with LT3 or promo, though. This is the girl they’ve been hinting at already, right? Let’s see if it goes anywhere and fails miserably, or if it’s just this picture and nothing else.

ALT

Oh, that I agree.

I get why some fans get overly caught up in this and get dramatic about it—I can’t stand when people baby him, he’s fine. But at the same time, he does lean into this overly immature image himself. Now that I think about it, maybe he deserves this sort of fans lol

I think it was BAD for everyone involved—he didn’t get anything good from it. Even the songs supposedly “about her” that he added to HSH didn’t really make an impact on his fans, the movie obviously failed.

Obviously, we don’t know the full story behind the scenes, and we’re definitely biased in wanting to protect him. But still, it was clearly a bad PR move from every angle, though maybe for them, the reasons were different from what we can easily see. And honestly, things have been pretty rough since then for him in that sense. That’s why I’m really glad he’s taking time off work (meaning stunting).

apparentlybychance:

Is Louis’ antihero post-FITF era persona working for him?

I’ve sat with the ES interview with Louis for a week now trying to understand why it bothers me so much (besides the obvious chip on his shoulder the journo went in with) and I think I’ve figured it out.

Snarky remarks from the journo aside, I think we can all agree that Louis didn’t do himself any favors in that interview.

Let’s start by saying that the persona they’re leaning into for this “post FITF era” (pre-LT3 promo?) is not just an intentional departure from “Walls era Louis” but has aggressively veered into an clear antihero characterization.

As any good marketer/ PR person will tell you, if you’re going to try to sell an antihero to your audience, you’d better have a plan for showcasing their appealing traits before their unlikeable traits spin too far off and you lose control of the narrative.

I think we are dangerously close to this unrecoverable spin off happening for Louis’ post-FIFT era and the problem started during the FITF-promo era. The focus on Louis being a “dad’ was a tactic used to humanize him and add likability to his "anarchist, weed smoking,water is the enemy, vodka red bull for life, nothing in his past matters to him very much because his memory is shit due to drug brain” chauv persona. But, I’m going to assume that his team read the campaign’s metrics which showed that the “dad” focus wasn’t received well by his fandom and was driving fans away. So they’ve backed off from that tactic, are now giving Freddie his “privacy” and the emphasis on the devoted, kite-flying single dad has been shelved.

The love interest (female, of course) tactic hasn’t been used since the Eleanor storyline ended and the Danish girlfriend narrative was sunk at the first sip of coffee in their matching vintage band tees. They’ve tried the leaked dating site profiles and liking attractive women’s posts on social (ad nauseum, I might add, but I digress) but that tactic adds to the bad boy (read: fuck boy) persona and is not tracking as a likeable attribute to his current fan base. It may fall in the category of the ways they are trying to attract a new male audience, but again, I think the reporting is showing that the drive for more male fans is struggling.

So his team is doubling down on the bad boy / antihero persona in the post_FITF era but they haven’t found a way to soften him that his current fandom will accept. This constant backtracking of tactics along with the distaste that an antihero characterization inherently brings with it (oh, and the bold face LIES that everyone knows are lies, but again, I digress) makes everything he says these days come off as rehearsed, stand-off-ish, and insincere and he/his team can’t find a narrative to change that.

And THIS is the exact thing about the ES article that bothered me the most. And THAT is why, IMO, this interview failed. Not because the journo had it in for musical artists that fancy themselves fashion designers. But because they went into this HUGE opportunity for good press for both Louis as a solo musical artist and for 28 clothing, without a clear plan to address his missing likeable qualities.

Final thought: If you can’t create a compelling, loveable antihero, it’s best to steer clear of that characterization because it can quickly fall off the cliff into the realm of the strongly disliked villain. And for real-life public personalities, that is VERY hard to recover from.

*PS: It’s not that I think Louis doesn’t posses lovable qualities in who he is inherently. I think Louis Tomlinson over the years has shown himself to be articulate, intelligent, romantic, caring, and deeply invested in the world around him. It’s that for some reason, his team feels those particular likeable qualities are detrimental to his goals as a solo music artist. Frankly, I think that is a shame.

Totally, anon. And also the same fans need to recognize when something feels off and walk away. Stop insisting on being a fan of someone you don’t even like.

Uhmm, totally. Honestly, I have no empathy for most of Harry’s friends, and I think Louis is also surrounded by some people in his family who seem problematic, but I think this leads us nowhere because at the end of the day, like you said, this happens in real life too.

I also think this discussion goes way beyond just who their friends are, and I think that was the intention behind that ask. Honestly, we have to remember that we don’t know these people fully and personally. So here’s the deal, we either choose to admire them for their art and have empathy for them as human beings, or we don’t. Expecting to agree with every single part of someone’s life—especially when we’re not personally involved—is unrealistic. It’s honestly crazy talk. Artists are complex, and yes, they can be problematic at times, because everyone is. So you choose where you’re going to draw the line. We’re not choosing to marry them; we’re just engaging with their work. And if you see any red flags that affect you personally, then just step back and find another artist to connect with. That’s okay.

Yeah, I get that. I’m not sure if that’s the case for this situation but I do agree it’s an issue that comes up sometimes and it’s pretty annoying.

It can be harder for newer fans to fully grasp the context behind certain things and understand why they were such a big deal in the first place. Sometimes, it’s just better to tone things down because we get so much hate, especially now that everything is so fragmented around here.

Honestly, I don’t care about either of their friendships. It’s their lives, and we have no clue what goes on behind the scenes. People can criticize them if they want, but why does any of this even matter to fans? I mean, I do have opinions of some of their friends, but we don’t know these people personally, yet fans feel the need to act like they know better or can control who they should be friends with.

I’m not sure if this is the same person as in my last ask, but these kinds of discussions go way beyond what we as fans should have an opinion on. It’s none of our business, it’s their personal lives. They have their own reasons for the people they choose to spend time with, and unless they choose to share those reasons with us, it’s really not for us to judge. If I don’t like someone, I just ignore it.

I get that this is coming from a place of concern, but honestly, it feels really overly dramatic. It’s not your place to assume what Louis’ health or personal struggles are like based on what we see from the outside. He’s a grown man, not a fragile baby who needs to be “saved.” Yeah, he smokes a lot and drinks at some of his shows, but how does that automatically mean he’s in some kind of downward spiral? He just seems like a normal guy who isn’t overly focused on his health, but that doesn’t mean he’s in trouble. I’ve never seen Louis associated with any sort of substance abuse, nor has he ever looked like he was struggling with that. In fact, he actually looks pretty healthy and extremely grounded

Bringing up the losses he’s experienced and also comparing them to his lifestyle choices feels extremely unfair—and honestly, pretty rude. Grief affects people in different ways, and assuming how he should react isn’t right. At the end of the day, we have no real insight into his personal life or well-being beyond what he chooses to share. If you’re feeling this strongly about it, maybe it’s best to take a step back from following him so closely, because carrying this much worry over something you don’t even know is happening isn’t healthy for you either.

Hi, dear! I’m really out of the loop on this, so I don’t think I’m the best person to answer. Can anyone give me more context? I honestly have no idea what this is about—I haven’t seen anything on my dash.

I mean, yeah… exactly. That’s literally what Larry is about, it’s all about the signaling and the patterns, right? There are just too many coincidences to completely brush off. This is what they do.

I do think some things are purely coincidental, and we sometimes pick up on them just because we’ve been conditioned to look for clues. But at the same time, they clearly know exactly how to navigate all these theories. And honestly, they seem to enjoy keeping us engaged in this sort of scavenger hunt. It definitely feels like a form of self-expression for them… whatever their reasons may be.

It could be. Honestly, I think this break is really good for him—not just in terms of his image and the stunts, but also because his branding as a solo artist hasn’t taken any major turns since he started eight years ago. His performances and music have obviously elevated him to a new level, but he kind of has been doing the same things he always did since the band, to be honest. I mean, same patterns, same sort of winter girlfriends.

After three albums, this might be the right time for him to take a step back, reevaluate, and recalibrate where he’s going. I’m not saying I suddenly see things in a much brighter light or that the stunts will take a drastically different turn, but I do think it’s a good thing that he’s finally taking a longer break (something he’s never really done before). So yeah hopefully, when he comes back, he’ll be more fully aligned with what he wants moving forward. Honestly, I think Holivia hit him just as hard as it hit us, so maybe everything that’s happened will push him to make better, more intentional choices this time around. Fingers crossed!

hoovesandfloorpaws:

🌈 Harry&Louis and rings 🌹🗡

This post by @cosmicleeds from Nov 2022 sent me on a little Harry&Louis and The Rings deep dive.

[❗️edited/corrected and extended on March 2, 2025 ]

Let’s start with the first ring Louis got Harry:
the dark metal/silver (what we believe to be a) Promise Ring.

“The first ring that Harry was ever spotted in was a simple dark silver band (which sometimes appeared black) worn [either] on his right middle finger or left index finger” [x < timeline by @bulletprooflarry from 2015, incl. lots of pictures].

Louis gifted it to Harry either late on Feb 12, 2012 or early on Feb 13, 2012 in the UK (the day Louis returned from a 5-day ski trip with his beard El).
On that day (Feb 13), Harry exited the plane in Stockholm with the ring and wore it the entire day there.

(for app users, the ring can be clearly seen starting from 0:34)

(for app users, the ring can be clearly seen starting from 0:45)

The next day, Feb 14, 2012 (Valentine’s Day) in Paris, Harry didn’t wear his ring during the long press day, but then wore it again to the steakhouse restaurant in the evening, where 1D went for dinner with their team. (click to enlarge)

I always felt that the dark metal/silver band was very personal to Harry and he might have been hesitant to wear it or maybe was “advised” not to in public (just my personal interpretations). We only saw it pop up very few times, considering how much of Harry we saw every single week; he never wore it to awards shows and only once on stage, as well as only once during an interview.

❗️In retrospect it’s important to note that the dark metal/silver ring sometimes appeared almost black and sometimes silver, depending on the lighting. During the few instances in which we could see Harry wearing it, it was sometimes hard to tell if what we saw was all the same ring. But I personally think it was. In the pictures and video from Sweden and Paris, this becomes even clearer. In the video it looks silver, in the pictures it looks almost black. The plain design is the same.

“[Harry] wore the ring on stage and off on his left index finger. He was not wearing it when he arrived in LA on [April 23, 2012], which marked the beginning of the Kim Stewart stunt (Louis went to Oman with El the same week).” (source incl. more photos, timeline by @bulletprooflarry)

Sightings in total:
• Feb 13, 2012 in Stockholm, Sweden (all day, before and during interview)
• Feb 14, 2012 in Paris, France (in the evening, after press day was done)
• April 19 - 20, 2013 in Manchester, UK (on & off stage)
• April 27, 2013 at LA Airport, US (first time together with the Peace Ring)
• June 13, 2013 in Miami, US (at the making of Best Song Ever music video)
• Dec 2, 2015 in San Francisco, US (during the meet & greet after their Triple Ho Show radio concert - during the show and interview, he wore all 3 of his staple rings: Peace Ring, Turquoise Ring and Dancing Rainbow Bears ring, but before the Meet & Greet, he additionally slipped on the dark metal/silver ring.)

Enter the One Ring… Harry’s Peace Ring:

“The dark metal/silver ring […] was spotted […] while stunting was at its peak, until it was replaced with the Peace Ring […in April 2013].” - via this article from NoStuntsMagazine from July 2022 + this short timeline post from 2021 by @onlyforthekings

(It was always rumoured Louis gave the Peace Ring to Harry during a dinner at a restaurant called Rosso in Manchester, as Louis had tweeted about the restaurant, and Rosso Manchester had tweeted to Harry and Louis multiple times, but to this day it was never even confirmed they were actually at that restaurant during that month.)

The Peace Ring was first spotted at Los Angeles Airport on April 27, 2013 on Harry’s right index finger. He also still wore the dark metal/silver ring on his left middle finger. (left picture)
The next day, on April 28, 2013 in Paris, Harry wore the Peace Ring again, on the same finger. (right picture)

The Dancing Rainbow Bears Ring
Harry got it around mid 2013 and it is a ring that is tightly linked to the general theme of Gay/Queer Pride, since it closely resembles a rainbow bear design by The Grateful Dead.
Harry wore that ring pretty consistently up until 2019. (image source)

The Grateful Dead rainbow bears🌈🧸 design compared to Harry’s ring. It’s the exact same! (x)

September 23, 2013 in Adelaide, Australia. Harry wore the Peace Ring and the Dancing Rainbow Bears Ring. (source)

Differently from the dark metal/silver ring in early 2013, Harry did wear his Peace Ring and Dancing Rainbow Bears Ring to award shows, i.e. the American Music Awards in November 2013. (source)

Back to the Peace Ring – Harry wore that ring (and that ring only!) consistently for 8 years (‘till 2021) and since then wore it on tour and special occasions, like movie premieres, as well as showing it in his Tour Highlight videos on IG.
Meaning: in April 2025 he’ll have worn his Peace Ring since 12 years.

For the first time since he had gotten his Peace Ring 8 years prior, at the Grammy’s on March 14, 2021 Harry did not wear it, but wore a Bird Ring in its stead. Same at the Brit Awards on May 11, 2021.

4 months later, “[in] Denver on September 7, 2021, […] he wore the Peace Ring [again]. […] After that night, another 8 months passed.
Finally on May 19, 2022 the Peace Ring was back […] during one performance in New York, US.”
Harry wore the ring for 17 public appearances in 2022, including the My Policeman premiere on Sep 9, 2022. - All this comes from this awesome post with photos made by @ishipmutualrespect. Definitely check it out, especially about very recent ring sightings.

Lastly, the Peace Ring made an appearance in his IG video recap for the Love On Tour tour 2023, where he shows his rings for a few seconds.

(gif credit, made by @delicatepointofview)

The Turquoise Ring
“Harry [started wearing] the Turquoise Ring in 2014 and wore it consistently for a while until, I believe, it broke. […] it’s Louis’ birthstone (December birthstone is turquoise) and […] turquoise is a blue/green stone (and, as you know, blue & green are Larry colours).” - via this post from 2017 by the wonderful @twopoppies

“The Turquoise Ring […] is also the birthstone for December— who do we know born in December? Turquoise is also a literal mix of blue and green..” 💙💚 (x)

The Rose Ring
Another ring was added to his collection – one that again is tied to Louis’ and his relationship. The Rose Ring that Louis bought for Harry in early 2017 at Dover street market.

“The rose ring popped up […] in London […] in March 2017. It also has a caterpillar inside. And Louis probably definitely* bought it for him. There’s also a lot of speculation about this being connected to Harry’s rose tattoo which is, of course, connected to Louis’ dagger tattoo.” - (x) *content linked to is unfortunately no longer available

Harry sadly lost his Rose Ring at an Ariana Grande concert in August 2019. There’s even a video of him searching for it with a flashlight in the crowd, poor bub 😔 You can hear him saying “I’ve lost my ring.”🥀

The Red Stone/Ruby Ring
“I’ve seen talk about it being Louis’ birthstone (he’s a Capricorn and the Capricorn birthstone is a garnet) and that it’s possibly also another engagement ring.” (x)

It’s also important to note that during the 1D era, Harry often obviously messed and fiddled with all these rings that are tied to Louis whenever they were asked about marriage, kids, etc. And he did it very obviously so. I always thought that very meaningful and symbolistic.

This was while Louis said “Sometimes people get engaged for years…” (Harry plays with his Turquoise Ring)

Ring fam is all together 🌈 (RIP Turquoise Ring and Rose Ring, you are missed)

My personal thoughts
Harry’s bought and got gifted a lot more rings over time, of course; especially after 2018, and I’m sure that i.e. the Pearl Ring might also be a Louis-ring, but I haven’t had the spoons to extend this post, yet. Given Louis&Harry’s history of gift-giving and Harry’s obvious joy of wearing/styling with rings, I can honestly imagine the majority of his collection was gifted to Harry by his Lou.

The mentioned rings are the ones I personally find most significant, because they so clearly & right from the start tie to Louis’ and his relationship, as well as to Harry’s sense of self (Dancing Rainbow Bears Ring as a Pride ring) and he was wearing them during Louis’ and his tightest closeting & stunting years. They’re all such Harry Staple rings.

I really loved the Rose Ring that Louis got Harry in 2017 🌹🗡, it was so significantly tied to their matching tattoos and was so Harry. Classic, striking, delicately detailed, with big personal meaning referencing their shared history, and with a little secret stashed inside of it. The sad loss of the ring in 2019 could also possibly mean Harry has become more cautious about when to wear certain rings in general (not to mention 2020 - 2022 during the pandemic, where he’d have had to constantly take off his rings to wash & sanitise his hands and every time he’d take them off, he’d risk losing a precious ring.)

I could imagine that the Turquoise Ring and the Red Stone/Ruby Ring Harry got himself to remind himself of Louis, but honestly, who knows? Maybe Louis got him those, too. These two have always loved to spoil each other right from the start, haha ("Wrapped it myself. It even has a bow on it.”)

And in the special case of the Peace Ring – I never had any doubt that it’s a promise/engagement/wedding ring, in whatever sense they wanted it to be. Let’s not forget that same sex marriage wasn’t even legal in the UK until March 2014. I once wrote “It clearly shows what a beautiful and powerful way to express themselves to the world it was for them; as individuals, but also deeply bonded and visually belonging together. A quiet, visual rebellion; […] constantly speaking the words they couldn’t say.” about their matching tattoos (complete H&L tattoo timeline) and I believe with Harry’s rings it was quite similar, especially during 2012 - 2015.
Louis didn’t wear a ring publicly, but he got his middle and ring finger tattooed instead, often fiddles with that tattoo like he’d spin a ring around it and proudly shows the tattoo off like one would with a wedding band. There’s also the New Zealand receipt that he wore/wears a wedding ring in private when he’s not working. (both sources from @twopoppies)

In conclusion, I have no doubt that Harry’s Peace Ring stood and stands for their commitment to each other; for Harry belonging to Louis. We all know how possessive they were of each other from day 1, heavily enhanced by how much they had to constantly watch each other publicly (fake-)dating someone else; how hard they were pressured to break up and/or pretend they weren’t in love with each other.
Harry’s expression of style and self has evolved and keeps evolving still (and from day 1, he’s always had Louis’ unwavering, nurturing love & support for it) and compared to the rings Harry wears nowadays, the Peace Ring’s design seems quite plain, but that is also a sign of the times - and Harry’s held on to it. And I find it such a beautiful fact that he’s been proudly wearing it for over 10 years now. I mean, gosh, Louis and him will have their 15th anniversary in 2025! That’s huge! :’)

And I think the ring stands for all that – for the essence of their relationship; that they are forever each other’s ultimate peace, love, and home.

•

RESOURCES 💍
☮ Harry’s Rings tag by @daisiesonafield-blog
☮ A timeline from 2021 of Harry’s rings on Twitter
☮ Peace Ring Masterpost/timeline posts by @ishipmutualrespect
☮ extensive Rings on Tour post by @ishipmutualrespect
☮ dedicated tumblr to when the Peace Ring appears: @thepeaceringtimeline
☮ Peace Ring Pride - NoStuntsMagazine from July 2022
☮ Peace Ring tag by @daisiesonafield-blog

☮ Twitter account for the Peace Ring that is funny and cute

Stage presence, vocal growth, and ability to connect with an audience aren’t things you can manufacture. You don’t sell out stadiums worldwide just because of connections.

Plenty of people have industry backing and go nowhere. His connections didn’t fall from the sky, he earned it by showing how incredibly talented he is. Success isn’t handed to you; you have to earn it. And Harry did. Crying about it won’t make him less talented and successful, sorry.