Here’s Why Ashton Kutcher Is Apologizing to Harry Styles

It’s hard to imagine anyone not knowing who Harry Styles is nowadays, but when the 29-year-old singer first met Ashton Kutcher, the No Strings Attached star thought the pop star was just another guy at a house party.

In a Tuesday (Jan. 31) video interview with Esquire, Kutcher was asked about his favorite karaoke song — Zac Brown Band’s “Chicken Fried” — something that prompted him to recall the time he and wife actress Mila Kunis obliviously met the “As It Was” singer for the first time at a karaoke bash.

“There’s an extraordinarily well-known singer, that is maybe the best singer today, that we happen to be neighbors with,” Kutcher began without naming this famous neighbor. “She was throwing a karaoke party. She gets up and gives this, like, out of this world, bananas [performance], and I’m like, ‘This is so unfair.'”

“Then this other kid gets up and he does this ABBA song. I’m like, ‘Oh my god, this is bananas,'” the 44-year-old actor continued. “So the kid gets offstage, and Mila and I go up to him and we’re like, ‘Man, I gotta tell you something — you’re a ringer. You’re really good. He was like, ‘Thank you, I really appreciate that.'”

When the That ’70s Show costars-turned-couple later raved about the performance to a friend at the party, they realized that the ABBA singer wasn’t just any ordinary karaoke connoisseur. “They’re like, ‘It’s Harry Styles.’ And I’m like, ‘Who’s that?'”

After the friend filled him in on the former boyband star’s claim to fame, Kutcher said he felt “like a jerk.” “He’s a professional singer and we’re trying to tell him he’s a good singer,” he laughed. “And I feel so dumb, so I just really want to say I’m sorry Harry Styles, but you’re really good at karaoke, man. Seriously. Like, really good!”

The singer’s millions of fans would definitely agree with Kutcher’s rave review of Styles, who was just recently honored with a custom banner at Los Angeles’ Kia Forum for his string of 15 sold-out concerts at the venue. One day after Kutcher’s interview was published, the pop star celebrated his 29th birthday.

Kutcher, meanwhile, is gearing up for the Feb. 10 premiere of his and Reese Witherspoon’s new Netflix romcom, Your Place or Mine. He and Kunis also recently returned to their roots and guest-starred on the streaming platform’s ‘70s Show spin-off, That ’90s Show, reprising their respective breakthrough roles of Kelso and Jackie.

Watch Ashton Kutcher talk about the time he unknowingly met Harry Styles at a chance karaoke party above.