Zayn Malik
Zain Javadd Malik (/ˈmælɪk/ MAL-ik; born 12 January 1993), known professionally as Zayn Malik or simply Zayn, is a British singer and songwriter. Malik auditioned as a solo contestant for the British music competition television series The X Factor in 2010. After being eliminated, he was brought back to the competition to form the five-piece boy band One Direction, which went on to become one of the best-selling boy bands of all time. He left the group in March 2015 and signed a solo recording contract with RCA Records.
"Zayn (singer)" redirects here. For other uses, see Zayn (disambiguation).
Zayn Malik
Adopting a more alternative R&B music style on his first solo studio album, Mind of Mine (2016), and its lead single, "Pillowtalk", he became the first British male artist to debut at number one in both the UK and US with his debut single and album. His subsequent collaborative singles "I Don't Wanna Live Forever" with Taylor Swift and "Dusk Till Dawn" featuring Sia were met with international success. He released his second studio album, Icarus Falls, in 2018, followed by his third album, Nobody Is Listening, in 2021.
Malik has received several accolades, including an American Music Award and a MTV Video Music Award. He is the only artist to have won the Billboard Music Award for New Artist of the Year twice, receiving it once as a member of One Direction in 2013 and again in 2017 as a soloist.
Early life
Zayn Malik was born Zain Javadd Malik on 12 January 1993 in Bradford, West Yorkshire,[3][4][5] to an immigrant Pakistani Muslim father, Yaser Malik, and a White British mother of English and Irish descent, Trisha Malik (née Brannan), who converted to Islam upon marriage.[6][7][8] Malik has one older sister, Doniya, and two younger sisters, Waliyha and Safaa.[9]
Malik grew up in East Bowling, Bradford, in a working-class family[7] and neighbourhood.[10] He attended Lower Fields Primary School and Tong High School (now Tong Leadership Academy) in Bradford.[11] As a teenager, he took performing arts courses and appeared in school productions.[12] He grew up listening to his father's urban music records, primarily R&B, hip hop, and reggae.[10] He wrote raps when he was at school[13] and sang on stage for the first time when singer Jay Sean visited his school.[14] Malik also boxed for two years, from ages 15 to 17.[15] Before beginning his music career, he intended to pursue an academic degree in English in hopes of becoming an English teacher.[16]
Other ventures
Fashion
In 2016, Malik made his debut on The Business of Fashion's annual BoF500 index, which profiles the most influential people in fashion.[123] In January 2017, he released a shoe line with Italian footwear designer Giuseppe Zanotti.[124] The Giuseppe for Zayn capsule collection featured four shoe styles: two boots and two sneakers. In February 2017, the Versus (Versace) Spring Summer 2017 campaign featuring Malik and model Adwoah Aboah was released.[125] In the same month, he co-hosted the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund's Americans in Paris annual cocktail during Paris Fashion Week.[126] Donatella Versace, chief designer of Versace, appointed Malik as the creative director for a men's and women's capsule collection called Zayn x Versus, which was made available in May 2017.[127]
In September 2018, Malik designed a backpack line for The Kooples.[128] He modeled for Penshoppe in their Spring 2018 and 2019 campaigns.[129][130] He also modeled for Martyre, which was founded by Anwar Hadid, the brother of Malik's then-girlfriend Gigi.[131]
Philanthropy and activism
Malik is an official ambassador of the British Asian Trust charity group, which aims to improve the lives of disadvantaged people in South Asia.[132] With his former group One Direction, he contributed to African fundraising events with Comic Relief.[133] In April 2014, Malik donated his guitar to the Kean's Children Fund in Dundee, Scotland; the charity's founder, Charlie Kean, organised an online auction for the guitar and used the money raised to buy iPads for the children's ward at Ninewells.[134] In 2016, Malik sponsored a box at Bradford City for underprivileged children to watch football.[135] In January 2020, Malik donated £10,000 toward a five-year-old girl's medical treatment through GoFundMe page her mother made to raise money.[136]
In May and June 2020, Malik expressed support for the Black Lives Matter movement by sharing links to petitions and donating to the George Floyd memorial fund.[137] During the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict, Malik posted the message "#FreePalestine" on Twitter, causing him to receive angry responses and death threats online.[138]
In November 2022 in support of an initiative by The Food Foundation, Malik wrote a public letter to British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak urging him to widen the access to free school meals during the cost of living crisis.[139]
In December 2023, Malik became an official ambassador of the Hopefield Animal Sanctuary, an organization providing shelter to hurt or unwanted animals. Malik states that he wished to partner with the organization to "spread their message and save animals in need."[140]
Public image
Malik was known as the "Bradford Bad Boy" of One Direction due to his mischievous behaviour, scandals, tattoos, graffiti art, and rock star hairstyles.[190][191][192] Malik had been a fan of tattoos since before X Factor, stating that he likes getting them and enjoys "the whole culture behind them".[12] He revealed his first tattoo on his Twitter account, his maternal grandfather's name in Arabic: والتر (Walter). Since then, Malik has gotten several more tattoos.[193] Discussing his possible solo career after leaving the band, Billboard editor Joe Lynch described him as "the quiet one in the group ... never the one to grab the spotlight during interviews. He typically saved his words for the songs, not for media soundbytes."[194]
In Pakistan, Malik is often listed among notable Pakistanis of the diaspora.[195] In 2011, he was ranked number 27 on Glamour's "World's Sexiest Men" list.[196] In 2014, Malik was voted British GQ's best dressed male.[197] In 2015, he was voted the "Sexiest Male in Pop" in a poll by British radio network Capital,[198] voted as the "World's Sexiest Asian Man" based on a worldwide poll by the British newspaper Eastern Eye,[199] voted second place in a poll of the "World's top ten bachelors" by Manchester's Crown Clinic,[200] and ranked number six on MTV's "50 sexiest men alive" list.[201] In 2016, he ranked fifth on Glamour magazine's "100 Sexiest Men" list.[202]