By Molly Hulligan | Staff Writer

I’m writing this article the most authentic way I know how: directly after seeing Harry Styles in a plain white “Sex” T-shirt.

Styles acted as both host and musical guest on Saturday Night Live (SNL) this past weekend. The singer-songwriter has appeared on SNL before, but never as a host. In his words, he and SNL have “taken things to the next level.”

Although he had never hosted the show before, Styles fit right in with the SNL crew. Had he not mentioned it in his introduction, the fact that he’d never done comedy before never would have crossed your mind. He rarely, if ever, broke character to laugh, which is impressive, considering the comedic quality of the skits he played a part in.

For reference, Styles appeared on the show as a pilot, a dog named Doug, a 5-year-old newsboy, an intern, an Icelandic father-to-be and a mobster. If you’re confused…same. I guess the writers of SNL are doing their job.

As if Harry Styles’ acting on SNL wasn’t iconic enough, he also debuted his new song, “Watermelon Sugar.”

Styles has already stated his opinion on the song in a previous tweet saying “Kiwi walked so Watermelon Sugar could run.”

For those of you who are not so hip with Twitter lingo, Styles is saying that “Watermelon Sugar” goes harder than “Kiwi,” a song off his 2017 debut album. It’s a hot take, but that’s beside the point.

The point is: “Watermelon Sugar” slaps.

Styles has been open about his creative process in the making of his sophomore album Fine Line.

In an interview with Rolling Stone, Styles admitted to excessive use of psychedelics while making the upcoming album. I’d be lying if I said I thought “Watermelon Sugar” was excluded from the list of songs Harry wrote while extraordinarily high. I have absolutely no evidence to back that up, but just listen to it — you’ll see what I mean.

Although he dropped a new song, my favorite part of Styles’ appearance on SNL was, by far, his monologue introduction. From the self-deprecating jokes to the One Direction tease and obvious knock at former band member Zayn Malik, the introduction was a brilliant way to make sure both Styles’ fans and casual viewers kept watching.

One of my favorite parts of the monologue, though, was Styles’ reference to himself as a serious musician. Of course, the reference was a joke — it is SNL, after all.

However, the reference was funny because anyone who has heard Styles’ music since the commencement of his solo career knows he is, in fact, a distinguished artist. Styles has reinvented his brand from the type of music he produced with One Direction, yet many still refuse to acknowledge him as a serious musician.

Both Styles and his fans know, as he put it in his monologue, he’s all about “the art and the music, and the music and the art.”

At the end of the day (1D pun intended), there’s a reason Harry Styles is the most well-known and successful member of One Direction since the split in 2015. I might start something, but I said what I said.