David Bowie’s producer slams claims Harry Styles is the new Bowie

David Bowie’s producer has come out swinging after people claimed that Harry Styles is the new Bowie.

Shortly after winning his Grammy for Album of the Year, many began to compare the former One Directioner to the pop icon.

However, the Bowie producer, Tony Visconti, wasn’t having a bar of it.

The 78-year-old American record producer, musician and singer, who had worked with Bowie countless times, took to his Facebook to slam the 29-year-old.

According to the Daily Mail, he wrote: “Someone just told me that Harry Styles is the new Bowie?

“From what I saw tonight, he's not worthy of shining his shoes.”

And just to twist the knife, the producer added: “There will NEVER be anyone that's the new David Bowie. He is in a class of his own [and] will always be unique.”

On Monday night (February 6), Styles graced the stage at the Crypto.com Arena to accept his award for Harry’s House.

In his speech, he said before the crowd: "I think on nights like tonight, it’s obviously so important for us to remember there’s no such thing as best in music.

"I don’t think any of us sit in the studio making decisions based on what is gonna get us one of these.

"This is really, really kind. I’m so, so grateful."

However, one part of his speech had social media in an uproar.

Styles said: "This doesn’t happen to people like me very often and this is so, so nice. Thank you very much."

God, it’s like the most popular boy in school surprised for winning prom king at the winter formal.

One person on Twitter wrote: “Doesn’t matter. There’s other minorities who things like that never happen to even though they have worked above and beyond and done the same things as him or even more."

While another shared: “Harry Styles saying, ‘This doesn’t happen to people like me very often’ after he's never claimed the LGBT community and had a gf for the better part of a decade, and it feels like just profiting off looking queer but not actually coming out really rubs me the wrong way.”

Perhaps the singer can read the room a little better next time? Especially when the likes of Lizzo, Beyoncé and Adele are also nominated.