During a recent reflective and in-depth chat on The Zach Sang Show, Zayn Malik discussed a multitude of topics, like his new music, and major regret from his time in One Direction, among many other things.
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While speaking to Zach about his upcoming album, Room Under The Stairs, due to arrive on May 17, Malik took some time to ponder about his past with One Direction. Looking back on his departure from the mega successful boy band, Zayn expressed his regret for taking things “too seriously” and not “enjoying” the band before leaving.
“The main thing that I always feel bad about when I look back over my life is not enjoying the band enough,” Zayn said. “I feel like I just took things too seriously, you know?”
“I’m grateful that I’m able to be happier now,” he continued. “I can actually enjoy things and own my own perspective a bit, you know? Like, glass half full versus it being half empty. That’s my choice.” Adding that at that age, he “didn’t understand the importance of just trying to be happy.”
Malik was the first to depart One Direction, quitting One Direction in 2015. The rest of the band — Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, and Louis Tomlinson continued on as a foursome, releasing their final album Made in the A.M., before going on an indefinite hiatus the following year, and all five going on to pursue solo careers.
“I had this teen angst thing going on — chip on my shoulder. I’m like, ‘It’s really cool to be moody as f*** all the time.’ It’s not. You’re just a loser. Let’s be honest, you know what I mean?”
“You should be a nice person,” Malik noted. “You should be somebody that people want to be around and enjoy being in your presence, and you should bring light to peoples’ day instead of being this f***ing negative cloud of energy.”
Much “happier” now, Zayn admitted much of that is due to becoming a father to his 3-year-old daughter Khai, whom he shares with his ex Gigi Hadid.
“I have so much love in me that I didn’t have before she was born,” Malik said. “She laughs all day. She wants to do the silliest things, and she gains so much excitement from it, you know? She just has a whole fresh perspective on life.”
Listen to the full interview above, or for you visual folks you can watch the entire sit-down here.
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