Zayn: For the First Time in 6 Years (REVISIT) [VIDEO] 01:09:03

What is up, Daddy Gang? It is your founding father, Alex Cooper, with Call Her Daddy. Hey, Zane, welcome to Call Her Daddy. Hey. I'm so happy that you're here. We have to preface this with my fans are watching this like, where the fuck are you guys? I'm so happy that you're here.

We are in my childhood home, Daddy Gang, okay? Zayn and I are in my living room that I grew up in. Zayn got here and has had to look at all the embarrassing childhood photos of me. Thank you so much for coming. I've never done an interview. There was no embarrassing photos, just for the record. What did you say? I didn't see any embarrassing photos. I think you hid them all. Actually, there's a couple. You'll see them on your way out and then you'll never look at me the same. I have never done a podcast in my childhood home.

So this feels like a little sentimental. Also, you never really do interviews. I don't. When is the last time you did something like this? I think I did an interview like six years ago was the last time I did one. So we're kind of like popping the cherry back off. I think so, yeah. You were getting back. Something like that. Yeah.

So you're living in Pennsylvania and I obviously grew up here. I loved it growing up. It's very family oriented, very suburban. But I'm curious to know like of all the trendy spots that you could have picked, why Pennsylvania? Yeah, it's interesting. A lot of people ask me that like they always think it's super random that I live out here. I ended up coming out here with my ex a bit like and I fell in love with it. Like it was just super like...

calm and chill like you said suburban um and I just wanted to like take a break from like the busy city because like I was living in New York for three years at the time and um it just got a bit overwhelming you know like going out of your door to like just craziness all the time so I just wanted a bit more like um of a surrounding that like I'm used to like where I grew up um in Bradford like in in the UK it's it's a lot more this kind of pace and vibe so um

I feel like I just fit in better around here than I do in the trendy spots as it were. Yeah, you give trendy vibes. But I think I totally relate to that of like sometimes when you get to... I'll take that. Yeah, yeah. I give trendy vibes. You give trendy vibes. Like look at your outfit. It's like pretty swaggy. But then you're also like hanging with the Amish folk. So it's like a good little juxtaposition, Zane. But what I find interesting is...

I love that you said like you would be in New York City and I'm assuming you would be going out and there's paparazzi everywhere taking photos of you Pennsylvania there ain't no paparazzi yeah that's a great thing are they finding you or no no no there's none out yeah I think there's like laws and stuff they're not allowed to even take photos in certain places oh that's amazing okay the most important question have you gone to Wawa yet I have

- Wawa's a nighttime lifesaver out here. - I was like, how am I gonna get along with Zane if he hasn't had a love for Wawa yet? So you love it. - Yeah, like late night studio sessions, there's nothing else open. You have to go to Wawa, get the meatball sub. - It is so fucking superior. I remember growing up and my excuse whenever I would wanna go meet up with boys would be like, "Mom, I just wanna go get a Wawa sub." And she'd be like, "You're not getting a- - She's using Wawa as your cover up, yeah.

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Okay, so I feel like, again, you're kind of this mysterious guy, Zane. We don't really know too much about you. You're kind of under the radar. So can you take me through a typical day in the life of Zane in Pennsylvania? Like, what are we doing? Make us feel like we're a part of your life. A typical day for me is... It kind of varies. It depends, you know, like, what kind of mood I work up in. But I take it pretty easy. Like, I just...

either now because obviously I've got my daughter like 50% of the time it's it's a balance between the two things but when I'm by myself a typical day is I'll probably wake up around like midday have a shower eat some food and then like figure out if I'm going to go to the studio do some writing because I've been in like writing mode for a long time just like working on my records and stuff so

Just getting into the studio pretty much and then I'll be there all day until I go to sleep. Then you go to Wawa. And then I go to Wawa, yeah. Of course, of course. And stop off for a sandwich. Are you someone that likes to be alone?

I like my own space. I like to collect my thoughts in a more quiet environment. I feel like when there's a lot of people around, it kind of just gets a bit hectic for me. I like to chill by myself from time to time, but I don't mind hanging out with people now on occasion. You know what I'm saying? It has to be the right kind of environment and I have to...

want to be there, you know? No, I get that. I feel like that's also growing up. Like I was recently talking to some of my audience. I was meeting them in person and we're like, it's kind of weird when you just start to grow up, you just get more specific with who you want to spend your time with. I think that's a healthy thing. Obviously you're on a even bigger stage because you were around millions of people in stadiums and tours and everything. But I also think that's kind of relatable. It's like, you know what? Sometimes I want to be alone

and then also hang with people but like you got to be good company yeah I've always thought like it would be you know a pretty normal reaction to feel that way around so many people I think anybody

who was like overwhelmed in that manner would feel you know a certain type of aware about it but um I'm definitely learning to manage it a lot better like um as I'm getting older like it's it's more of a choice you know rather than a than a hindrance it's not like I can't do that it's like I'd rather prefer not to yeah that makes sense I own it a bit more yeah

You obviously love music, but can you share with us, like, what are some of your other hobbies? What are you passionate about? What's other than music? Um...

Like my main passion, I think outside of music is art. I love to paint and I love to draw. I do a bit of cooking. Okay, tell me one of your dishes. Come on, I can't cook for shit. I can cook a lot of different things. But I like to cook meat, like specifically, like I have a smoker outside and I like to smoke like lamb and...

I cook like my, like I'll do like grilled vegetables with it and stuff. Is this like new or were you always good at cooking? I wasn't always good at cooking, unfortunately for me. My mum kind of spoiled me as a kid. So when I was living by myself, like at 17, there was some botched jobs done for some meals. Yeah, it wasn't great. Some disgusting stuff was going down for sure. Like mac and cheese.

Yeah, horrible. Yeah, just sandwiches, you know, out of like crisps. That's kind of nice to be able to know like you can cook, you're over there painting, you can sing. Okay, no big deal. Don't keep bragging over there. Wow, making us all look bad. Do you have animals? I do, yeah. I've got a lot of animals. I have three cats.

Three dogs. Do they get along? They're kind of like in different places. I have some dogs at one part of my house and the cats in the other. We have three turtles, six chickens. Do you name them all? No, I haven't. Not this time. I got too attached last time and it made me really sad. Did the chickens die? Yeah. I took my chicken to the vet.

to get a scan because something was wrong with her and the vet laughed at me and said people don't bring chickens here and then they still charged me for an x-ray and then I took my chicken all the way home and cried and she died in my arms what are you saying I'm like not laughing

because it's funny it is kind of funny but not because the chicken died but it's just funny seeing me take a chicken to the vet and when you say you're holding your chicken like are you holding your chicken like this yeah fully on my lap yeah

- She died in my lap. - So you weren't crazy for going to the vet? - No, yeah, she had something wrong with her. We tried to rescue them. They were gonna be slaughtered, I think. And they had all kinds of things wrong with them, yeah. But I've got new chickens now and they're all healthy and stuff, but I didn't name them for that reason. - Okay, and what are the names of the cats? - Salem, Dobby, and Vito.

Dobby, is that from Harry Potter? It's from Harry Potter. He's a Sphinx. He's a pink Sphinx. So he looks a little bit like Dobby. Dobby! That's so good. You're a Harry Potter fan. I'm a big Harry Potter fan. Zane, I didn't know that about you. I wouldn't have pegged you as like a Harry Potter guy. This is like really good vibes. It was my thing as a kid. That's really good. Okay, and what are the dogs' names? Zion, Zeus, and Thumper.

thumper with an f yeah thumper thumper like thumper but with an f how did you come up with that uh bambi thumper the rabbit but you wanted an f yeah thumper thought sounded better yeah it's better in my accent thumper yeah it does sound pretty good um something i love to do on call her daddy is like

The reason we all are the way that we are is because of our childhood, where we came from, who we were raised by, our environment growing up. Obviously, you living in Pennsylvania right now is so different from where you grew up in the UK in Bradford, like you described. Can you explain to people that may not be familiar with Bradford, like what was your upbringing like and what was that environment like?

Um, where do you want me to start? Just wherever it feels right. Go ahead. Uh, yeah. Bradford's not obviously like Pennsylvania in terms of, you know, like the wealth and the way that it's like, you know, looked after, taken care of. It's, um, it's, uh, impoverished community. You know, there's people below working class there that, um,

that have, you know, a hard environment that they're growing up in. You know, everyone's kind of got some issues going on at home or something's happening, you know, even if it's on the street or whatever, wherever you go, there's a lot of...

So it was very different to here in that sense, for sure. But I'm very grateful for where I grew up because it definitely, like you said, shaped and molded a lot of identity for me. Early on, I was questioned,

you know, like interrogate about my identity because of my environment. Like it's just the way it is. Like you have to have a good understanding of who you are. And I'm really grateful for that. You know, it helped cement my own identity myself, I think. When you talk about like people would question your identity. I know your family is not from the UK. Your family is Pakistani. And

I'm curious, is that what you're... My father is. My mum's English. Okay. So are you saying like, is that how that was influenced? No, not necessarily. Just in every sense of the word. Like even like your fashion, the clothes you want to wear, the way you want to cut your hair. It was always... Something was...

You know, if you weren't doing the norm that was like that everybody was doing or everyone was following, you know, everyone would wear a certain type of pant or a certain type of shoe. And if you weren't dressed that way, you would get questioned about it. You know, like people would be very like in your face and be like, give you shit. So you had to like have a bit about you so that you could,

you know, know who you were and have a conversation back. Have a bit of wits about you as it is, you know, street smarts, for sure. You got to be able to like hold your own. Exactly, yeah. And when you say people are coming at you, is it more like peer dynamics of...

of or is it more like authoritative figures yeah there's a a balance a mix sorry of everything it's um it depends you know there's there's the peer pressure in schools and stuff but then it's on the street if you go out there and stuff if you're just trying to have a good time you know like it's not um as friendly fun you know it's a bit more like um irate there's there's a bit of

bit of aggression going on you know what I mean talk to me about where you grew up like are you in an apartment are you in a condo are you in a home oh no I grew up in a terraced house I

in a rented property and we never owned our own house so yeah it was it was a small house there was like three bedrooms kitchen living room but the streets like are all like every house is like stuck next to the one next to it you know I'm saying there's no space you have a garden that's like

like enough for maybe a dog to sit in. So yeah, it's a bit different for sure, yeah. - So you have three sisters? - Mm-hmm. - Okay, and so you are the one boy and three sisters. - I do have three sisters, yeah. - What was it like growing up with all mostly women around you? Like how do you think that shaped you?

I feel like I learned a lot of things early on. My sisters are very opinionated. They're very strong characters. Yeah, I love them. They're great. They were a lot of fun. It was always entertaining in our house, for sure. I love...

I really love when I meet a guy and I'm you can just tell that he has sisters because you can just tell the way they move around women you guys learn what a fucking tampon is earlier I had to go to the store and buy them wow so you were like really supporting that time of the month yeah terrified yeah but supportive for sure okay were you reluctant to go to the store and

buy anything? Definitely not. It was just kind of weird like when the shopkeeper would ask me like why I was buying them and I'm like obviously I'm not buying them for myself you know like do you have to ask me that like just let me buy this. You wouldn't stick like a couple extra like snacks around it you're just like tampons. We didn't have money for extra snacks it was just needs to remain yeah.

Zayn's like I'll take the supers these bitches are on it the other way around but yeah exactly it was always an awkward conversation but yeah I didn't mind it I respect it I really do okay to people obviously that weren't there in your childhood how would you describe your personality as a kid my personality as a kid I think I was a bit of a cheeky cheeky chappy yeah I used to mischievous used to get into all kinds of just childish stuff you know like

climbing in places I shouldn't have been and falling out of trees and smashing windows and stupid things. Oh. With a football. Accidentally, of course, you know. Right, right, right. For sure, for sure. So you were getting in trouble a little bit. Yeah, just like childish stuff though, you know, nothing too serious. Yeah, like climbing trees. Exactly, yeah. Exciting shit. Okay, so you were kind of just like doing your thing as a kid, but I also think the way that you're describing the environment that you grew up, was there...

a way that you could have gone down the wrong path easily because of that environment. It was easy to get wrapped up in the wrong crowd. Oh, definitely. Yeah. I think there was always an opportunity to go and do something that, you know, would have got you in like serious trouble. I was really lucky in a sense that like my mother and father, like,

were super protective of that environment. My dad was always aware of, you know, the things that were out there and he always explained stuff to me from a young age and kind of kept me away from that, if I'm being honest. And that's where, like, I developed into being a person that likes to be by myself and, like, in my room, like...

singing, recording, writing. I got into, you know, poetry and things like that because I was in my room a lot. Like, and I didn't like to be in them kind of environments. It was just a bit too much, you know. I was always a bit more of a reserved kind of guy, a bit, you know, artistic, wanted to do my own thing. I didn't really want to be in that. So my parents...

did a good job of keeping me away from it I think yeah did you get along with kids in school were you like the cool kid were you bullied like what was the vibe yeah I think I got on with with pretty much everyone but I wasn't like I was the type of person who only ever had like two three close friends I didn't have like a

a big group. Like I knew people, people knew of me. I don't think I was the cool kid, but I wasn't bullied either. Yeah. Like if, if people knew me, they were friendly with me. Yeah. Yeah. I feel like a lot of kids, we always have that like memory thing.

Maybe it's financial. Maybe it's something with the parents or the siblings or extended family like of like a childhood memory that you remember your family kind of just being like stressed or going through something difficult kind of like if you could remember kind of a childhood memory that you remember just being like stressed about something in your life.

like looking back at like childhood stresses, like I feel like a lot of them were so like finicky that it was just probably just some teenage shit. You know what I mean? It wasn't anything important. Um, so I don't really look back at things like that and,

in my personality the way I am like I've never really like looked back and been like oh yeah this is one thing that like kind of was you know a stressful thing I think life is interesting like that I think you know it depends on what you're going through at that time and how you feel and then you can reflect on it at a different point and feel completely differently about it

It's so interesting. I have a lot of respect even for you answering it like that because I know that you've been open about, like, at one point your family being on food stamps. And I feel like a lot of people would sit here and that may have been the answer, right? Yeah, yeah. That would have been like, well, fuck. Like, I couldn't even – I didn't know where my next meal was. Mm-hmm.

And you're like, oh, you know, maybe it was childish shit, like no big deal. And it's like, that's interesting if you... Yeah, no, and obviously there is, there was some serious things like that for sure too, but I don't look back at it in terms of a negative light, you know, it all helped to like shape and mold who I am and make me grateful for the things that I have now, you know? Yeah. Yeah.

So we are here because you can sing. When did you first realize you were passionate about singing and you could sing? I think I was about 11, 12. I'd sung a little bit before, like I'd done a bit in like school choir and stuff. Funny story, I actually fancied like these three girls that were in choir and they were triplets. And that's why I just was like, I'm going to be in choir just so I can hang around these girls.

And then it developed from there when I went into high school, I went to a performing arts college, like specifically like majored in sports and performing arts. And they were doing the school production that year for Greets and I auditioned.

And nobody could sing like at all, like in our whole school. And I went and did this like singing audition. Everyone was like, whoa, you can sing. And then my music teacher like recommended that I get like a couple of singing lessons and stuff. And then she said, I think you should go on X Factor. I think you've got a good chance. Like, and it just kind of went from there. I love that the story started with, you know, there were these three triplets.

And it just felt right to join choir. I was like eight as well, by the way. So swaggy. You're like, I got to get in that class. I need to just, yeah, spend this time here. Right. So like your natural, just like boy interest ended up, you realized something that you had a true talent from the triplets to X Factor. You made it.

So it's so funny too, because you say you wouldn't be where you are without your mom because you didn't want to get out of bed the morning that you had the X Factor audition and your mom made you go. Why did you also not want to go initially? I think it was just nerves.

I built it up in my head and I was like, yo, this is a massive thing. And yeah, I was like, I don't think I'm going to go today. And my mom's like, you are going. You're going right now. You're going to go see what happens. So yeah, definitely owe it to her for that, for sure. Oh my God. And so did you like practice? You were practicing for it. Yeah. But I had no idea, no clue. Like they told us like we had to have like a backing track, like a...

a karaoke version and like I was so like inexperienced at that time that I didn't even know what that was so like I was just planning on singing acapella so I was just gonna do it like without anything

And it was so weird for me to adjust to singing on a backing track. I was like, this is such a weird experience. I think even Simon looked at me a little bit weird, like when I did the acapella because everybody had backing tracks and stuff. But yeah. So that probably made you stand out though. I don't know. It could have worked either way. Maybe it made me sound really bad too. Well, obviously.

- Obviously not, look where you're fucking sitting. - Yeah, true. - Do you remember what you sang? - Yeah, I do, "Mario, Let Me Love You." And the reason I said that is 'cause I've seen that performance back a few times and cringed every time I watched it. So yeah, it's not my best vocal performance. There's a lot of nerves involved there for sure. - But clearly there was something in there, Zayn. - There's some talent, yeah, there's some potential. - Wow, acapella and he just nails it. When you look back at that moment, obviously,

Is it like surreal? Like if you even had to like watch it back, like is it, does it even feel like a lifetime ago? Yeah, it does. It feels like so much longer than it actually was. Cause so much stuff's happened in that time.

Yeah, it's very interesting, very surreal. And I feel all them nerves again, like when I watch it, like I feel like I could like give myself a hook, you know, and be like, it's okay, bro. Cause I literally, I'm like holding onto the mic for dear life. Please, nobody hurt me. It's so good. It's so good. So obviously then X Factor, everyone, Simon, everyone came to you guys and they had this idea to invent One Direction.

And then I think people don't, I don't even know, like, did you even meet anyone before they put you guys together? Yeah, we knew each other, like, just from around. Okay. Because we were, like, a similar age and stuff. So naturally you speak to people who are, like, a similar age to you around there and stuff. And we were at boot camp together and we'd, I met Harry on my audition day because we both auditioned in Manchester. Okay.

And we were literally sat next to each other in the audition. Oh, so it was like fucking meant to be. He was sat right next to me. We spoke and I went in and did like a producing audition round. And then he went in straight after me.

And we spoke a little bit there, yeah. - So you weren't complete strangers. That's good to know. - No, yeah. - 'Cause I didn't know if they just threw you all together and then you were like, "Hey, what's up?" - It's edited very well, obviously. You don't see all the behind the scenes and stuff. But yeah, you spend a lot of time with the contestants. - Okay, got it. Once you started, obviously, One Direction and you joined One Direction, how quickly did your actual life change?

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Once you started, obviously, One Direction and you joined One Direction, like, how quickly did your actual life change? Was it overnight immediate or was it a little bit gradual? It was kind of strange. The, like, visual evidence of life changing, like people being outside of the studio and stuff was like,

um when we were on the live shows um we started to get like a fan base and an audience and you could see that people were paying interest in us um so yeah from that point on like it was kind of a bit crazy like what were you even able to comprehend it uh not really I don't think uh comprehended it at all like I think it's just a rush you know it was like just fun um and then

the repetitive fun over and over again eventually is going to take its toll, you know what I mean? So then you look at it a certain way when you're in that and like it feels overbearing. Now I look back at it like it was a rush, you know, it was fun and it was something that was...

amazing like so of course I wasn't going to understand it it's not something I expected in my life but it was definitely fun for sure yeah because it is so interesting I think people forget like you were 17 at the time yeah 17 yeah like my brother lived in this house at 17 and was like picking his nose and going to Wawa and like trying to fucking get girls to pay attention to him and you are like

all of a sudden overnight become one of the biggest stars in the world. Can you help us commoners over here, Zane? Commoners. Commoners. Can you help us understand like what skyrocketing to that level of fame can do to you as an individual when you're like by yourself at night laying in bed trying to understand like what is happening to you in your life?

Yeah, you can definitely get into deep places of thought if you really reflect on it in that kind of manner. To be honest with you, I don't think I was even intellectually capable to do that at that age. I think it took time for me to process them things. I think I've had to process it with an older mind and look at it backwards and be like, yo, this was...

Why this happened. And this is what happened. And you know. We took off at this point. And this interview made this happen. And then this song made this happen. And just decipher it. You know. As like. Facts. Rather than like. In an emotional manner. Because. You know.

um emotion like just seems to just blur things you know so i i try not to think about them things on that kind of level like oh i'm super famous like i just make music you know i love singing and people seem to have an interest in it so yeah a little bit just a little bit no i almost get what you're saying like

You kind of have to black it out and just be present because if you stop to think about all of it, then it's all going to come. Exactly. Yeah. And that's how I deal with, I don't black it out so much, but I just don't overthink, you know, um,

it works for me that way I think yeah you just almost have to stay present because it's like what else in the moment yeah just enjoy it and then like in you know 10 years time you can look back and be like this is what happened like now you can look at it in hindsight and be like if you have 10 years time but right right yeah but you've had time probably now to be like whoa in your quiet moments now in life where you can actually sit and dissect things that at 17 18 years old you're

Again, like you said, I was just having fun. I was just going with it. And also, it's not like you were just on this solo tour, like you were a part of something. So that also probably affected of like, be a good team player, like go with the flow, like do what you got to do.

Obviously, your guys' fans are insane. They're obsessed. They're still obsessed. They're everywhere. They love you guys. Can you share any memorable fan moments that you remember to this day that have stuck with you of just anything that happened that you're like, damn, I'm going to miss?

I've probably said this a lot of times, but honestly, it was one of the craziest and most bizarre moments ever. I remember coming out of a studio once in Sweden when we were recording What Makes You Beautiful. And this is before even we dropped our first single. And there was like a row of like maybe five, six bins, like trash cans, like outside of the studio.

the studio and I came out and like every single one of the trash cans opens and there's like three people inside of each trash can and they tried to like grab me and it was it was a very memorable moment that was for sure yeah I think I had a mini heart attack humans

out of the garbage cans and tried to grab you it's like a fucking video game like swallow you into the fucking what yeah oh wow do you think that in any way that's dedication though right to get into a trash can like zane they were willing to get in the trash bucket for you okay well

Motherfuckers, they are loyal. They are. Do you think that those kind of moments, though, not that we don't love the fans, we're obsessed, but like people being so obsessed with you, like, is there any lingering paranoia from people constantly staring at you and following you?

No. No, not really. I don't have paranoia in that sense, no. That's good. You sleep well. Yeah, I do. I sleep in Pennsylvania. Yeah, look, it's raining. I can hear the crickets. It's amazing. There's no crazy people out there. No one crazy in Pennsylvania. Oh, that's debatable. You're performing in front of massive crowds and...

I know you're kind of saying like you were in the moment, but like, were you able to just easily get in front of all these people? Was there no fear or anxiety that came with like standing in front of thousands and hundreds of thousands of people when you're on stage? I think there was, but I don't think we had time for it. Like there was no, like you have time to have anxiety or be nervous. You're just kind of going to go do it, you know, like get on with it. So yeah, we just,

we can't, I think we just got thrown into the deep end and we kind of just have to swim, you know, like, um, and I feel like we did a good job, like in terms of like, you know, the, the keeping it together and, and making the music that we were meant to make. I think I got out at the right time. I think if it had done it any longer, it might've affected me a bit more, but, um, I think, uh, we did the right amount, you know? I think it's interesting too, because when you look at

Or even just like any brand that has like multiple people attached to it. Like everyone loves to put archetypes with people. Like the Spice Girls, for example. Perfect example. You have to label everyone. And so for a boy band, it would be like the boy next door. Like the bad boy. Like the brooding one or the funny one. Like what persona do you think you played? There's a make out that I was like the brooding serious one. Yeah.

But that wasn't necessarily my personality type. I think it's just a marketing scheme. You've got the Teletubbies, you've got Spice Girls, you've got whatever. It's just a marketing scheme. Like, oh, this is this one. So I get it. But I don't think you can define...

an entire person to one personality trait you know we're a little bit more complex than that yeah I don't know what my trait would have been if I'd have given myself one it might have took a long time to come up with one if I was going to do that so I could see why they just said oh yeah you can be the mysterious one yeah it's interesting I love the Teletubby reference you're like the Teletubbies the Spice Girls One Direction I'm like the fucking Teletubbies yeah I think Simon was behind the Teletubbies too what?

stop yeah and the Power Rangers yeah

It's so fucking crazy. It's all coming full circle. It's all making sense. Fuck. No, but it's interesting. So I was going to ask, like, I agree. You kind of had this like brooding, mysterious personality. And that's why I'm excited to sit down with you today. Because again, those stereotypes that were put onto people. I'm curious if, first of all, who comes up with that? Marketing people, I guess. I'm guessing so. Yeah. It's not like the fans. It kind of just happens. Well, yeah. And maybe some of the fans kind of like...

say this to, you know what I mean? From like pictures and things like that. So you, did you agree? So you didn't agree with it, but do you think you leaned into it more or do you think I just had one face to pull, you know, in my, I was doing the Zoolander. Like that was it. You know what I mean? I was only a young kid. I didn't know what else to do. I get it. If anything, maybe it made it easier. Cause you're like, this is just my lane. This is me. Just stick with this. They won't ask me too many questions. Do you think you're mysterious? Um,

Not really. I just like to just chill. I like to be in the back a little bit. Yeah, I'm a bit more relaxed. I'm not trying to be in your face. You're not trying to jump in front. Yeah, exactly. Okay, well now you're solo, so you've got to jump in front, Zane. Okay, we're going to get there. Take the reins. Okay.

I love how you kind of mentioned, you know, you got out at the right time. And I think that you leaving the band obviously shook the fucking world and everyone was like, Zayn, like, no, like, keep it together. But I think what, again, we forget is you're a human being and you clearly had to take care of your mental health and do what was best for you. Can you, I know you've lightly talked about this, but just so we get a full circle moment, can you just take us back to that moment of like,

actually sitting with yourself and knowing it was time to leave uh yeah i think i'd known for a minute there was a lot of look i don't want to go into too much detail but there was a lot of politics going on um certain people were doing certain things certain people didn't want to sign contracts so i knew something was happening um so i just got ahead of the curve if i'm being honest with you i was like i'm just gonna get out of here i think this is done and i just seen it um and i i

completely selfishly wanted to be the first person to go and make my own record if I'm being completely honest with you I was like I'm gonna jump the gun here for the first time I'm a passive dude but when it comes to my music and my business I'm serious about it and I'm competitive so I wanted to be the first to go and do my own thing that was the reason and then there was obviously underlying issues like

within our friendships too we'd been together every day for five years and we'd got sick of each other if I'm being completely honest we were close you know we'd done crazy things with each other that nobody else in the world will ever understand or have them experiences that we've shared with each other and I look back on it now in a much fonder light than I would have you know as I'd just left

There were great experiences, had great times with them. But yeah, we just run our course. I love that you're saying that too because I think people can relate to that of like, if you're with the same people 24-7, no shit. And I think I can imagine as you guys were younger, everyone was so idealizing this band that you couldn't say that back in the day of like, yeah, we got fucking sick of

of each other it was time to like do our own things and I think that's so okay but because there was this obsession obviously I get it there's the nostalgia for sure yeah it's an idea innit it's like when you watch Friends you don't want Joey cussing off Chandler you know what I mean you want these people to be best friends like it's an idea yeah you want them to stay together forever but I also think it's so healthy because imagine if you hadn't ended it then you really would have fucking hated each other and being able to go on your own way also someone always has to be the first one to leave

Exactly. And maybe it's the best thing for it. But in the time, I can imagine there's hurt feelings. Were you afraid of what the world was going to think of you when you made that decision? I don't think I was afraid. No. I just, the first thing I wanted to do was call my mom, as cheesy as that sounds. I just wanted to call her and be like,

Is it okay if I come home? Is this good? And she was like, yeah. So as soon as she said that, I was like, yeah, I'm good. I'm done. Like,

I'm over this. I didn't really care about what anybody else thought. That's the type of person I am. Like we were talking about earlier, I try to close them opinions off. I'm not really the type of person who defines myself on other people's opinions of myself. If people know me and know me well, they know who I am. And I spend that time on them people and make sure that they're looked after and they get that time with me rather than the people that I'm never necessarily even going to see or have a conversation with. Especially if it's a negative...

You know, positive remarks are always nice. I don't really pay attention to either of them, if I'm being completely honest with you. Just don't let it get in my head. I think that's so smart because I think social media, even if you're not famous, like everyone is famous.

feeding themselves and their worth by what other people are saying about them and it's like you good with your family and like I don't mean family by blood like you may not be good with who are your family yeah your circle yeah and as long as they're good then that's all that matters to me but did you not tell your mom you were doing it

Did I not tell my mum I was leaving? Yeah. No, it was like kind of spur of the moment. Like I'd not told her beforehand, like, oh, I'm thinking of leaving. I just called her on that day that I was leaving and said, I'm coming home. Is it okay? Have you still got a bed for me? And she was like, yeah. Gene, stop.

Yeah, man. She's like, can't come back. My dad wasn't so cool about it. He was like, nah, nah, you got to stay with Simon. Simon's going to stay. You're right. Like, don't come home. Stay there. But my mom was like, yeah, you can come home. Please, son, come home. You know? Oh, my God. That's actually really cute that the first person was like, mom, do you have a bed for me? She's like, let's go. Because didn't you also buy your mom? One of the first things you did with your success is you bought her a home. I did, yeah.

How cool was that to be able to buy your mom something after everything she's done? It was amazing. Yeah. It was a great feeling. Wild. Okay, so you leave the band. And take me to when you're laying in your mom's home, you're in bed. What were those next couple weeks like for you, like mentally and emotionally? Yeah.

it was interesting. I was just trying to get stuff together. Like I wanted to get like a plan of action, you know what I mean? So I was like on a bit of a mission. I wasn't there too long. I went home for a little bit and then I went back to London and started working and stuff. That must've been so stressful too, because I feel like, I guess we see it in various different forms, but like, if you make a jump, even if someone like quits their job, right. They're like, I need to prove to myself and other people that like,

I now can do it. And so did you put pressure on yourself when obviously you came out being solo? Like, were you fucking nervous? Yeah, for sure. It's a very different experience standing on stage by yourself too. Like, it's a whole different workload as well, singing three and a half minutes of a song completely by yourself. Like, when you've got a song divvied between five people, you're singing a little bit of a verse, maybe some ad-libs, you know. I preferred the workload, I'm going to be honest. You're like taking a nap

Barry's like, dang, it's your part. Yeah, oh yeah, nice one. But yeah, I just kind of had to like make an adjustment. I started practicing a lot more, singing a lot more and just like making sure I could sing for three minutes. Right, you had to be like, I need to get back to my let me love you days where I'm like,

back on x factor it's just me i'm curious and i don't know because i know you were saying and i i totally respected of like you were kind of just in this phase of going going going and you didn't have time to stop but when you did go solo and you left did you have to take any moment to be like who the fuck am i independent of now not being a part of something that i was identified as in media um

Yeah, definitely. I think that's why I've took the time I have to not even necessarily do interviews and do too much press exposure because I feel like we were so overexposed in the band that it takes a bit of time for you naturally to progress as a human and give something else that is interesting that you have to say. You don't want to be sat there just...

saying the same shit on repeat, you know what I mean? Day in, day out. Like, I think there should be a good, healthy break in between. And that was my approach to it for sure. So I feel like in terms of, you know, figuring out what your identity is as an artist, the only way you're going to do that is by living, you know, you can't just be on the conveyor belt and expect to have any sort of experience that's new that you're going to give people. I love that too. Cause I feel like people, especially creators, there's such a,

about taking a break and it doesn't mean you're actually taking a break you could be working still working yeah you're just but like popping out of not doing it in the spotlight yeah and you did were you able to just not have anxiety about it because you're like i know i'm coming back but it's like i gotta just be good on my own shit and not be fulfilling the tabloids and everyone else like how am i on my own right exactly yeah that's that was all thought behind it for sure you start doing your

own solo music and i remember when you came out pillow talk all the good stuff you popped off and it's like really dope to see you coming out with your own sound and creative and it's you and that's exciting to know like you are producing this and it's not obviously a no shade to one direction but like you're one of five like you can't really have a full say in shit now this is you when you started on your solo

career, like was there anything that you really wanted to make sure that you could bring to life that maybe you weren't able to when you were in a band? Like creatively. Creatively, I just wanted to talk about things, you know, that were a bit more real, like an authentic to situations I was going through in my life. Like obviously certain things that we would talk about in the band was always very, you know, clean,

cut like just glazing over the top not really any depth or any stories to what's going on um and that was always a big thing for me obviously I understand again from a marketing scheme that like the the audience and the fan base we were appealing to at that point was that kind of vibe so it was never going to work um for that kind of audience but yeah I just wanted to show people that had a bit more depth yeah yeah I get that because like

Even earlier you said like you like to write poetry and I'm like I can only imagine how much the writing process is therapeutic and you get to infuse parts of yourself and your identity whereas that just like wasn't in the past which it shouldn't have been like it was a band it was great whatever but now you can actually artistically exercise that part of yourself which must be.

I think it's difficult for people to write songs even from one perspective, you know, like there was five of us in the room when we used to write sometimes and it was so hard to get us all to like have the same viewpoint and want to talk about the same thing. So in that sense, from a creative point, it is a lot more freeing for me. Like I can fully get to grips with every part of it, you know, the melody, the story, the production, the

the emotion, the feeling that I'm trying to convey in each song. So in that sense, it's super liberating. It's cool because I think you're getting now, we're getting to know you a little bit better now that you are doing solo music. But do you think, do you think that the world even like slightly knows Zayn yet? I don't know.

I try to like move in a certain way that, you know, hopefully I will still have some juice, you know, I don't want to give everything all it will go. So if they don't know everything yet, that's okay. But hopefully they get to know me a bit better in this interview, you know. They get to see my thought patterns. Still a little mistaken.

I'm trying, I'm trying, I'm trying to be an open book. Okay, how about this? Describe yourself in three words. Describe myself in three words? Well, I'm definitely not going to use mysterious as one of them. I would say I'm a chill, funny, loving guy.

All the girls watching this are like, ah, so nice. That's so nice. What's your favorite thing about yourself? I don't know. I think I like the fact that I'm pretty witty. Like, I'm pretty smart. And I enjoy that about myself, I think. You're in good company with yourself. Yeah, yeah. I enjoy that I'm pretty smart. I have little laughs to myself, you know, about that. What's your least favorite thing about yourself? Um...

I'm a bit sensitive sometimes. Yeah. Not in a bad way. Yeah. Yeah. I can take things the wrong way sometimes. I'm definitely working on that. Like, give me an example. Like, I just like tend to like, if somebody says something to me, like I'll take it the wrong way. If I can't really care about their opinion, what they're saying to me. Got it. Yeah. Then you'll get upset. Yeah. I think that's good though. That means you care. Right? Yeah. Like I said, with the people that are close to me. Right. Yeah.

Do you think you at times can be too caring in moments that you need to learn to like... I'm learning to be a bit more tame with it. Yeah, for sure. Little boundaries. Yeah. No, not boundaries. Just like I'm just learning not to...

like get in my head about certain things you know um across the board like i i exercise that well in terms of like dealing with the media and things like that but i don't necessarily do that too well in my personal life sometimes i take things out yeah

that's good though again it does mean you care but i get then you're like yeah but then i'm over here like dying inside i gotta like muster up the courage then i go write a song yeah yeah put that into a song okay give us one that's like really sad so we can i've got a few i've got a few really sad ones yeah see this is what we need okay we need some criers we've got some cry moments what do you think is the biggest misunderstanding about you

That I'm, like, super serious. Like, that I, like, just... I'm, like, super stern and serious, yeah, all the time. When I'm not, like, I'm just chill. I know that, like, a lot of people have, like,

um high energy personalities and it's just not the way i am it's you know i'm saying i'm just a bit more relaxed about things it's actually nice to be in person with you because i could see in media it could come off i get it like serious you're literally just chilling yeah you're relaxed i'm just relaxed you're cozy in your sweater there's thunder there's rain we're just Pennsylvania didn't even have to drive too far came to your mom's house

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Let's talk about anxiety. I know that you have lightly talked about it in times, and I just want to talk to you about like how anxiety affects your life. What has it

done in terms of playing a part in your personal life and your career like just talk to me about what you're comfortable with uh yeah so I think we kind of touched on it a bit earlier like um when we're talking about you know like the the the the nature of our job you know like what we were doing in the band and the situation being on stage in front of thousands of people um I think it's a really normal place to experience anxiety you know like you're gonna go and perform in front of

you know, a lot of different people that you don't know who they are. And it's not a natural thing to do, you know, in terms of everyday life. You don't just talk to thousands of people, you know. So it was something that I had to, you know, learn to adjust. Anxiety, for me, I've learned is a feeling that now has a word, you know. And I feel like for...

generations, human beings have felt it and not really even been able to put their finger on what it is. But we overcome it, you know? And certain things in life can change your perspective on them things. And I think for me, like, since I've had my daughter and since she was born, like,

The main thing in my mind is trying to be a good example to her in terms of I can do things and I can achieve things and I can overcome things and you can do this too. And to let things like a feeling stop you from doing that after having a child feels like a really small thing. I feel like I've had to step up as a man or just as a person.

and be this example to her that doesn't succumb to these feelings. That's why I'm even doing this interview. I used to get a lot of anxiety around having a conversation like this, just in this kind of environment. And I want her to be able to look at me and be like, yo, my dad's doing this. He's the man. He's cool. He is cool. He's a cool guy. So that's helped me a lot, for sure. That is...

fucking cool to obviously my mom's a psychologist so I grew up in I think mental health was not a conversation for most families and hopefully it will be but like I've watched so my mom talked to so many people and talk them through how to get over a panic attack how to get over anxiety how to not get over it but like manage it live with it be

okay to go about your everyday life I think sometimes if you don't have anxiety people look at people with anxiety like just get the fuck over it and I think it shows up in everyone's lives in such different ways and I don't think that's the way you can look at it you know I think everybody's situation is individual I think it takes an individual experience then to happen for somebody to overcome that too you know totally if you think about the first time you can recall in your life experiencing anxiety

Did you experience anxiety prior to fame? For sure. Like take me to like a moment in your life where you remember being like, wow, I didn't know that was anxiety, but now I do. I enjoyed it. That was the thing. Yeah. Like I enjoyed being in that feeling and they got to a certain point, I think where it just became too much. Like I just was, was weighing on me that feeling of, um, like anticipation and then getting the adrenaline and then the,

the after feeling of that, you know? As a young kid, I loved it. Like, I loved being on stage and I loved performing. It was like a free space for me to go and be a character because it was, you know, I was playing a role in some little school performance. It was nothing serious. When it became a thing that had a lot of weight behind it in terms of, you know, people watching and stuff, then you're going to have...

You're gonna have natural feelings of anxiety. - Yeah, people staring at you, judging you, writing about you, following you, taking pictures of you, that's a lot. Can you share with us like in the heyday of paparazzi and insanity, like what would be something that would really trigger your anxiety in those days?

Just the idea of, like, not being able to just do normal things, like, to just go outside and, like, walk out onto the street, you know? Like, because where we lived, it was kind of a bit crazy. And there's just people always there, like, waiting to take a photo and stuff. And obviously, thinking about having a child and, like, raising her in that environment, it was just very claustrophobic for me. I didn't want her to have to...

be like exposed to that because she didn't choose it you know like it was a choice that I made so I was like we need to get out of here so that she can have some chance of like a normal childhood you know where there's not cameras flashing in her face constantly let's talk about you being a father because it's really cool to see you talk about anxiety which again I have so much respect for even you being able to talk about it because I know it's like you're not that

about your life and that's something that you live with every day and to say like having a child has helped you overcome something that is like in your day to day that's like pretty debilitating in moments. Yeah, but you being famous and having a child like deciding to move here I can imagine you're trying to shield her from this life that you also are still trying to figure out. Like is it a lot? I feel like...

there's a healthy way to do it, you know? I'm not necessarily trying to shield her from it, because she's going to know, you know? She's going to get to a certain point, she's going to have a certain level of awareness, she's going to know what's going on. I'm just trying to give her an option, you know? So it's like a choice for her. Like, if she wants to be away from it, she can be out here, like, because...

I am a famous person and I get sanctuary here, you know what I'm saying? So I feel like she is going to have a lot of options and whatever she wants to do in her life, obviously I'll support her. For sure. So good.

Okay, how has becoming a dad shifted your priorities in life? The crazy thing is, obviously, I have a 50% of the time. So that time I have with her is so important because I feel like she's growing up so fast. So when I'm with her, I don't work at all. I just...

spend a full day with her doing things that she wants to do like painting play-doh this that go to the park go to the theme park go to the zoo like we just have fun like and i feel like i've like re being uh rekindled my own childhood like through her you know i'm saying like i feel like we get to a certain point in in adult life where everything's kind of vague and gray and boring and she's brought that color back for me for sure yeah

What is a dad quality that you've proudly taken on that makes you laugh a little when you think about it of like, oh my gosh, I can't believe I'm doing this. I keep being told I'm telling dad jokes. Oh.

and I'm leaning into it I'm just like it's okay it's cool like I'm using like Christmas cracker jokes and stuff and it's really funny like people just look at me like I'm a weirdo I'm like yeah I'm a dad now I'm allowed to tell these jokes you have to give me a pass wow Zane I didn't expect that I'm not gonna lie I love a dad joke you're like full dad vibe that's it yeah I'm going I love it you're like I'm fully leaning in there is no stopping

Okay, well, you haven't cracked one here. So if you want to, you can always give us your best. But, you know, when it feels down. We'll save that for another time. Okay. What is your favorite thing to do with your daughter? My favorite thing to do with her is she shows a lot of signs of, like, musical intelligence already. So I just love, like, playing instruments with her and singing with her. Like, I'll sing and she sings along and she can do, like, guttural.

good harmonies and stuff already and she's only two and a half like and she harmonizes with me well and like finishes notes and she can hold them for a long time I'm like you might have a bit of ability you um I'm picturing the two of you playing with Plato and you start singing and then your daughter starts singing and you can hit these high notes like falsetto like yeah it's crazy I'm like yo like whoa you're good I couldn't do this I didn't speak till I was three I

do you sing? Whoa. And she remembers like full lyrics to songs as well. Like every word. It's mad. Wow. We got a superstar in our hands. Okay. Okay. Okay. It's interesting to hear you say like you're singing to her, which like, uh, would have loved if my dad could have sang. He can't. Um, what are you singing to her? And like, what are her favorite songs that you sing? She loves Disney movies. So we sing a lot of Disney songs together and sing.

like you've got a friend in me and stuff. She thinks it really cute. Honestly, that's really cute thinking about you guys singing that. Um, what qualities of yourself aside from like having that musical aspect, more like personality, like what qualities do you see from yourself and your daughter? I think she's, she's, she's funny. Like she, she's a bit of a cheeky one day. She likes to have a bit of a joke and stuff and like laugh a lot. Um,

she's chilled though, but she loves reading as well, which is something I think she definitely took from me. Like, she just has an affinity for words. Like, she remembers everything. Has becoming a parent changed your relationship with your parents? Definitely. Yeah, in a, like, respect way, you know? Like, you just have so much respect for the things that they've put aside for you, you know? Like, when you...

realize all the sacrifices that you make as a parent like just to be there and be present with your child like you can't have nothing but respect for that for sure I know you said like obviously you have her 50% of the time you want to make the most of these moments like what's something that you guys have done together recently that made you so happy and you had like such a great time we went to Nickelodeon

in New Jersey. Oh my God, it's so fun. It was really good. I enjoyed it. I know it's like super childish, but like I had a lot of fun. Yeah, I think I had more fun than that. It was good. That is so good. How is co-parenting going? Co-parenting is good. Yeah. We have a really good relationship for Kai. She's the, you know, the main importance. Yeah. So yeah, it's going well. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. I think. Yeah.

Zane's like, uh, from me. From me, yeah. Okay, so I want to ask you if I can ask one question just about, like, as delicately as I can go about it. I feel like I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't ask about the 2021 incident. I know you can't really speak on it. I think, obviously, as a man...

you like there was a lot out there said about you and you basically took the high road and didn't say anything and you kind of put out that like blanket statement of just like I want to respect my daughter and not say anything exactly yeah and I can imagine how difficult it is kind of like almost a culmination of everything we're talking about today of like how do you balance when something is out there about you about your character that is

people are reading and speculating and saying things about you and how do you decide when you when to speak up and when to like be silent and like chill on it and not really go there yeah so for me like we were talking about earlier I don't tend to get involved when people um say things online whether it's got something to do with me or whether it doesn't um because for me my most

valuable thing that I have in life is time. And that takes so much time in, in, in a toxic environment to like explain yourself to people and justify this. And so I just kind of keep to myself. I knew what the situation was. I knew what happened. Um, and the people involved knew what happened too. Um, and that's all I really cared about. Um, if anybody, um,

you know of of a sane mind would look at the situation i believe that you could respect that like i just didn't want to bring attention to anything you know i just wasn't trying to get into a negative back and forth with her any sort of narrative online where my daughter was going to look back and read that and be able to read into it and it would just be something that was there was no point um i

I believe I dealt with it in the best way, like in an amicable, respectful way. And that's all that needs to be said, you know? Yeah, I just, I feel like it's a lot of negativity, you know? - I can only imagine, like, first of all,

No fucking family is perfect. And so to be on the stage that you guys are on, I... And like you said, your family issues, you know? Like if something happens in the family, like I'd rather keep that between the family, you know? Totally. We don't need a whole audience of people and opinions because it's hard enough to manage between two. I more so just also wanted to give you the chance because I think you obviously handled it so amicably. I also think in doing my job, like this is a podcast where...

I'm trying to support women, right? And like reading headlines, like I wanted to hear from you obviously because hearing you even today, I don't know if, like I'm just going to say what it is. Like you have said you have 50% custody. And so anything that we've all read online, like, well, if that was true, then that would have affected that. So I think it's important to just say like,

me doing my job i just wanted to clarify like it's not like unless you can correct me like you don't have to have people with you while you're with your daughter and like visitation rights like you have custody of your child yeah so i think it's just important to say because people are reading this shit being like oh yeah no for sure yeah i'm super full-on yeah like hands-on with my child every chance i can be if i could get 60 i would have it yeah okay let's talk about your music you're coming back

We're getting a song. Tell me what inspired the song. What can we expect? Give it to us. Yeah, so I'm working. Well, I've been working on my record for a minute. And I have a single for the summer coming out called Love Like This. That's like a standalone song. Just a summer jam. It's a good vibe. Like, yeah, it just feels like summer.

That's what I think we need. We do need a good summer tune. We just need a bop. Someone asked me recently, oh, what's the song of summer? And I actually said, you know what? I'm interviewing someone and I know they have a single coming out and I have a feeling that could be the song of summer. Are you nervous to go on stage alone? I was, yeah. When I first started performing by myself, I was nervous and I'm still nervous now because it's been a few years that I've been on stage, but...

I have this, like, energy too. Like, I feel like I have something to give and I want to get on stage and be there again and feel that. That's one thing I can say, you know, like, my fan base has always been supportive in that manner. They're always just like, we're here, we've got you. Like, when you're ready, we've got you, you know? Like, come... We're going to come and listen to your tunes. So, yeah, no, I've got to be super thankful for that and I'm super grateful and I feel that love for sure. So, I'm ready to...

to prove these people right, you know? - Can we expect any music inspired by your daughter on your records? - Yeah, definitely. Yeah, I'm doing a record that I don't think people are really gonna expect. Like it's a different sound for me and it's got some,

more narrative going on, like real life experiences and stuff. So yeah, my daughter's mentioned in there a couple of times. Wow. I think that's going to be so fucking dope to actually hear from you in long form, essentially, because an album is in long form. Like we're going to get to know you more, which is exciting again, because Mr. Mysterious over there, we're still trying to understand things.

say um okay what is something that you want your fans to take away from this interview I'd like my fans to feel like they got to know me a bit because you keep saying I'm Mr. Mysterious yeah no so I'm hoping they got to know me a little bit and they feel like they've seen me and caught up with me a bit and you know they're gonna see me a lot more like and I want them to know that like

across the board like i've kind of had a full like mental rehaul and in the best way thanks to my my child and you know being able to see things in a different light and um i'm going to be a lot more present and hopefully people are going to see me a lot more i love it yeah zane thank you so much for coming on call her daddy this was truly a pleasure thank you for having me

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