Zayn Malik Breaks Silence After Quitting One Direction
Zayn Malik, 22, now officially a former member of the boy band One Direction, in an exclusive interview with the British entertainment site The Sun shared his thoughts on why he had to leave, and what the future holds for him.
Malik signed off from the group during the Asian leg of their "On the Road Again" concert tour. The last time he performed with One Direction was at their March 18 show at the AsiaWorld Arena in Hong Kong. He was no longer with them when they left for Manila for their scheduled concert at the SM Mall of Asia. Instead, he enplaned back to the UK in an effort to save his long-running relationship with his fiancee, Perrie Edwards, after photos of him apparently getting intimate with another woman in a Thailand nightclub surfaced on the tabloids and the Internet.
In his talk with Dan Wooton of The Sun, Malik said that his decision to quit the group was "crazy and wild and a bit mad. But at the same time I've never felt more in control in my life. I feel like I'm doing what's right -- right by myself and right by the boys, so I feel good. I did try to do something that I wasn't happy doing for a while, for the sake of maybe other's people's happiness. And that was mainly the fans. I only ever tried to do it for the fans. I'm only upset [because] I feel like I may have let them down in some sort of way. That's the main thing that I don't want to happen. It's not that I've turned my back on them or anything. It's just that I can't do that anymore because it's not real to me."
In a heartfelt statement apologizing to his fans, Malik said he was doing "what feels right in my heart." In a previous public press statement, he wrote: "My life with One Direction has been more than I could ever have imagined. But, after five years, I feel like it is now the right time for me to leave the band. I'd like to apologise to the fans if I've let anyone down, but I have to do what feels right. I am leaving because I want to be a normal 22-year-old who is able to relax and have some private time out of the spotlight. I know I have four friends for life in Louis, Liam, Harry and Niall. I know they will continue to be the best band in the world."
In a public statement of their own, One Direction as a group said: "We're really sad to see Zayn go, but we totally respect his decision and send him all our love for the future. The past five years have been beyond amazing, we've gone through so much together, so we will always be friends. The four of us will now continue. We're looking forward to recording the new album and seeing all the fans on the next stage of the world tour."
Malik told The Sun: "My band has been really supportive. They've been cool about it. And they understand that, you know, it's not real to me anymore. [But for them,] They still want to do it for a while. They'll carry on doing what they want to do and I think they're going to do okay for a while. I think they're going to be cool." As for him, Malik said he is currently working in a London recording studio with British producer Naughty Boy on his solo debut.