Harry Daniels Sang 'Badly' for A-Listers and Went Viral. Now, He Reveals Surprising Twist to His Notoriety (Exclusive)

'It was my dream to sing for people, just not in that capacity. But I mean, it got me somewhere,' the TikTok star tells PEOPLE of capitalizing on his viral fame

Harry Daniels has reached a fever pitch.

Stage fright is an unimaginable thought for the 20-year-old TikToker who went viral for singing "badly" in front of A-list musicians — yes, even the President of the United States — but despite what it may sound like in his videos, it was all part of his "concise plan" towards musical success.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Daniels reflects on the untraditional trajectory his career has taken since begging Sabrina Carpenter to let him sing for her two years ago with the intent to "embarrass" himself so she'd remember him — a concept that soon after became his identity.

"Can I sing for you?" is the question synonymous with Daniels, who amassed a million-plus followers across his social media platforms for asking celebrities and prominent figures to spontaneously perform for them to get a reaction for "entertainment purposes."

That's exactly what he did with Carpenter at her meet-and-greet in 2022, a spur-of-the-moment idea he came up with "on a whim" because he had met her before and "had nothing to say to her" at the time. "I was literally learning the lyrics to 'Skin' on the line," he recalls.

Related: Homeless Musician’s Performance Goes Viral — and Leads to Thousands in Donations: ‘Restored My Faith’ (Exclusive)

Daniels had his friends record his performance at the meet-and-greet, he uploaded it to TikTok and the clip instantly racked up a couple hundred thousand views. "I got people to respond," he says of his first post (which now has 1.9 million views to date). Ultimately, this became his formula for future videos.

"Megan Thee Stallion came to town the next month. I did it again and it got an even bigger response... And so I just kept doing it," says Daniels, who's gone on to sing for the likes of Doja Cat, Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish and former president Barack Obama.

Meanwhile, these interactions aren't necessarily planned. In fact, they could be comparable to that of a jump scare as he often approaches the unexpected celebrities with uninhibited confidence in varying locations ranging from the streets to restaurants to random stores.

"I think every reaction's a little bit awkward. I think that's some of the initial charm and appeal of some of the videos," admits Daniels. "I'd say 98% of the time they're very positive or neutral at the very least."

Related: Haliey Welch Tells All About 'Nasty' Question That Made Her the 'Hawk Tuah Girl' — and Forced Her into Hiding (Exclusive)

He continues, "I think Dua Lipa was just so sweet, so incredible. Doja Cat was one of my favorite artists, too... Charli XCX is another." He adds, "And she was so sweet and she gave me such a big 'hello' the first time we met."

Daniels, meanwhile, debunked the conspiracy theory online that "he's stalking these celebrities" to sing for them and film their reaction. In reality, he explains the interactions were "always at a meet-and-greet" or "at a Broadway stage door," for example.

Since skyrocketing to viral fame online, though, locating his serenade subjects has become easier. Now, he receives personal invites to major Hollywood red carpets and music festivals like Coachella on behalf of major brands to film and produce his videos.

"It definitely was a f--ing breeding ground for content," Daniels says of his experience at Lollapalooza, where he sang "Your Love is My Drug" to Kesha and comedically freestyled to Chappell Roan and belted "Nobody Gets Me" to headliner SZA. "It's just one of the coolest parts of my job."

And while his "job" may be untraditional in comparison to the music career he had envisioned since he "came out of the womb" singing, Daniels tells PEOPLE he's had an "eye-on-the-prize" mentality this entire time. "The prize is a successful career in music," he says.

"I understand that the only real way to make yourself stand out is via social media. It's like a democracy in that way," says Daniels when reflecting on his "concise plan to get where [he] wanted to be."

In fact, social media savvy Daniels cracked the code to online success in middle school way before TikTok entered the chat. "I've always been such a massive fan of everything pop culture and music related," he says, noting he created "fan accounts" on X (formerly Twitter) as a kid.

"Probably every artist I ever liked I had a fan page for," Daniels admits. He was successful with his accounts, though not each one hit.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

"Sometimes they wouldn't gain a following because I would get on there and I would just retweet things, like 'Vote Demi for the Teen Choice Awards!' And then in between I'd be like, 'Ugh, I hate middle school.'"

That statement rang true for Daniels, who said he found ways to skip lunch, save time and graduate high school early so that he could produce tracks and write songs, a passion he has pursued ever since he "discovered music and the internet" in his childhood home in Long Island, New York.

"I remember I literally sat and I begged my school's guidance department to let me leave early every day so that way I could just go home and work on music," he recalls. "By the time I graduated, I had been writing and producing my own music since I was 13."

Daniels went to college for one year before dropping out because he didn't "need a degree" to land a career in the music or entertainment industry, he thought. "Either you're going to entertain people or you're not. You can't really be taught that in school," he says.

Related: No, 'Hawk Tuah' Girl Didn't Get Fired from Her Job for Viral NSFW Video — She Quit!

Fast forward seven years later, Daniels has not only performed for his musical idols, but he's ready to drop music of his own with the anticipated release of his debut single, "I'm Him," on Oct. 17.

"I started making songs for this momentous occasion," Daniels tells PEOPLE of the track that he's been "fine-tuning" since last month. "I want everything to be perfect so bad. I really wanted to make something that I was proud of," he says.

Transitioning his music career from the comedic "Can I Sing for You" videos that built his following to being respected as a serious artist by his fans is something that Daniels can't predict. "I don't have a crystal ball, so I don't know," he says.

"I think the intention with this one is to show that I'm capable and that I have some sort of musical prowess, some sort of musical capabilities and that I know what I'm doing more than anything," he explains. "I definitely want it to just be something fun that people can really just have a good time and that'll break the ice for future releases."

Related: Just Like Justin: 10 Times Musicians Danced with Fans in Their Music Videos

As for whether the "Can I Sing for You" videos will come to an end as his new music trajectory begins? Daniels is confident his "brand" is "part of the world now," he says.

"The logic when I started was I'd be better off coming across as very entertaining than necessarily showing off my prowess because that's what people want to see and that'll get people to stick around a little bit longer," he explains.

"And then I can leverage that a little bit more and flex off some different skills," the singer continues. "It'll evolve and it'll take multiple shapes and multiple forms. I feel like it won't end."

He concludes, "I'm doing a concert or something, then that's 'Can I Sing For You' to the highest degree ... I don't think it'll ever stop."

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.