Zayn Malik Speaks After One Direction Departure: “I Can’t Do This Anymore”

Robbie Daw | March 27, 2015 7:02 am
Liam's Statement About Zayn
Liam Payne made an official statement about Zayn Malik's departure.

After officially announcing that he’d left One Direction earlier this week, Zayn Malik chose to give an interview to The Sun. He told the paper, according to the BBC, that his decision was “crazy and wild and a bit mad. But 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.”

One Direction initially formed on The X Factor during the seventh season, in 2010. (That year’s winner was Matt Cardle.) But after half a decade of touring, album releases, award wins and hit singles around the globe, Zayn finally called it quits on March 25, after first quitting 1D’s current tour due to “stress.”

“I can’t do this anymore,” Malik told The Sun, while also pointing out that rumors of in-fighting amongst the One Direction band members “couldn’t be more wrong.”

Regarding the band’s loyal legion of fans, the Directioners, Zayn had this to say:

“You know, I did try to do something that I wasn’t happy doing for a while, for the sake of maybe other people. Basically, I’m only upset [because] I feel like I may have let them down. It’s not that I’ve turned my back on them [the fans] or anything, it’s just that I just can’t do that anymore because it’s not real to me.”

Meanwhile, not to point out a contradiction with Zayn’s desire to avoid the spotlight, there are now reports that he’s already begun working on solo material with producer Naughty Boy.

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