Zayn Malik recently opened up about his time in One Direction, and co-parenting his daughter Khai with former partner Gigi Hadid.
Photo: Instagram.com
In one of the promotional interviews for his new album Room Under the Stairs, Zayn Malik appeared on the Zach Sang Show where he reflected on his time in One Direction, and co-parenting with Gigi Hadid. Speaking about his experience in the group that dominated the charts after its formation in 2010, the British-Pakistani singer said that he regrets “not enjoying the band enough,” and wishes he took things less seriously.
Malik added that his outlook on life has since changed, and that he recognizes the importance of being happy now that he’s older. “I’m grateful that I’m able to be happier now and actually enjoy things, and own my own perspective,” he told Sang. “That’s my choice. I get to decide what it is. If I frame everything in a negative manner, I’m not going to gain satisfaction from it, but if I move with happiness, I can gain so much more and have a good time.” The 31-year-old also got candid about what he thinks of his younger self, which made him want to be a “nice person” and a more positive presence around people. “I had this teen angst thing going on—chip on my shoulder—’It’s really cool to be just moody all the time.’ It’s not, you’re just a loser, let’s be honest,” he said. “You should be a nice person, you should be somebody that people want to be around, and enjoy being in your presence, and you should bring light to people’s day instead of being this negative cloud of energy.” When asked how he finds peace with his past experiences, Malik replied that his daughter Khai “brought that color back in my life.”
@zachsangshow @Zayn says his daughter got her musical talent from her mom 😂 #zayn #zaynmalik #daughter #garageband #rockband #drums #zachsangshow #zachsang #fyp #foryou @Amazon Music @Zach Sang
On a lighter note, Malik went on to reveal an unexpected skill his former partner Gigi Hadid may have passed on to their toddler. While one would think that the three-year-old gets her musical talent from Malik, the singer believes that she gets her natural rhythm from Hadid, who used to beat him at playing drums during the game Guitar Hero. “[Khai] can play a little bit. She’s not expert level and stuff but she’s got a bit of rhythm when she’s hitting the drums, you can tell that she could definitely develop that into something,” he said. “Her mum was actually really good at Guitar Hero on the drums, so I was like, maybe she got that from her mum because I was diabolical at it.”
Malik and Hadid welcomed Khai, their first child together, in September 2020, and reportedly ended their on-and-off relationship of nearly five years in October 2021.
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