Zayn Malik (born Zain Javadd Malik in Bradford, England on January 12, 1993) is a British singer and former member of One Direction. He auditioned for seventh season of The X Factor in 2010 as a solo artist and was almost eliminated because he refused to dance. When Zayn failed to qualify individually on the show, Simon Cowelladded him to One Direction, which he formed with other X Factor contestants, Liam Payne, Niall Horan, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson. One Direction announced Zayn’s departure from the band on March 25, 2015, and on Jan. 29, 2016, Zayn released his first solo single, “Pillowtalk.” His debut album, Mind Of Mine, will be released on the one year anniversary of him leaving 1D — March 25, 2016.
Best Known For:
Zayn and the rest of One Direction made history in March 2012 when their debut album, Up All Night, hit #1 on the U.S. Billboard charts, a first for a British group.
Personal Life:
In his personal life, he has dated fellow X Factorcontestant Rebecca Ferguson and Geneva Lane of the girl group Belle Amie. Zayn started dating Perrie Edwards of the girl group Little Mixin Dec. 2011, and the couple got engaged in Aug. 2013. Sadly, Zayn broke off the engagement in Aug. 2015. In Nov. 2015, Zayn was reportedly dating Gigi Hadid, who also appeared in his music video for “Pillowtalk.”
