OuchAre Zayn Malik and One Direction Still Friends? All the Shade They Threw After He Left the Band

Zayn Malik

2015

Months after Zayn left the band, he opened up about his decision to Fader Magazine.

“I think the boys kind of knew in terms of the music, that wasn’t my cup of tea. They knew that, they were aware of that, always,” he said. “They would try to facilitate certain things for me so I could sing R&B ad-libs here or there and that was nice but obviously I think they always knew. When I was leaving the band, they obviously didn’t want me to leave, but they couldn’t talk me out of it at that point. I had already made up my mind so I just left.”

“[Liam and I] spoke about two weeks ago. It was the first time I’d spoken to him since I left the band. I rang him, and he wanted to talk. He said he didn’t understand it at the time, but he now fully gets why I had to do what I did. He understands that it’s my thing, that I had to do that, and that basically he wants to meet up and have a good chat in person. And he wants to do some music and work on some stuff aside from being in the band, which we always wanted to do anyway,” he also told the outlet.

2016.

During a 2016 interview, Zayn claimed that he never wanted to be in the band at all.

“I think I always kind of wanted to go. From like the first year really, I never really wanted to be there in the band,” the singer admitted. “I just gave it a go because it was there at the time and then when I realized the direction we were going in with the music, I instantly realized it wasn’t for me because I realized I couldn’t put any input in. I couldn’t give my opinion on this or that because it didn’t fit the grain of what we were as a band or what we represented. So that’s when it became frustrating for me, that’s when I had to be like, ‘I’ve got to start thinking about myself.'”

“In terms of me being described as the mysterious one, that was put on me as a stigma because I didn’t get the chance to speak as much. The other boys’ personalities were much more forward. They would answer the questions. I would let that happen because, like I said, I didn’t have any creative input there. I didn’t feel like I was going to say anything about it anyway. Now I get to talk about what I’m passionate about—it’s nice to have the chance to speak,” Zayn also said to Complex. “No one can ever say I was ungrateful, even though it sort of comes across that way when I mention that I was frustrated with the band. That’s not the case at all. That was just an experience that had to be dealt with at the time. With the music that I’m doing now, I get to express myself, and that creative tension is gone.”

He also explained that out of all the guys in the band, he was still closest with Liam.

“I’m still probably the closest to Liam. We talk on the phone. He congratulated me on my single. Which was nice. I congratulated him on his Brit Award,” Zayn said back in March of 2016. “It was a good chat. We hadn’t met in a long time so we want to meet up.”

2017

In 2017, Zayn gave fans an insight on his current relationship with the guys.

“To be honest, I never really spoke to Harry even when I was in the band. So I didn’t really expect that much of a relationship with him,” Zayn told Us Weekly.

As for Louis, the singer revealed that they were still in touch.

“Yeah we spoke about [his mom’s death], we’re in touch, everything is on a civil level,” Zayn continued. “It’s not the way it used to be, obviously we were a lot closer because we were together the entire time, spending 24 hours a day in the band and now we’re not so we’re living our own lives, we’re all growing as individual men and we still keep in touch and check in with each other not as much as we used to.”

But as of November 2017, the 26-year-old admitted that he was no longer on speaking terms with any of the guys.

“Our relationships have definitely changed since we were in a band together, but I think that’s just life. Everybody grows up; two of the guys have got kids now. But no, I don’t talk to any of them, really,” Zayn told Billboard.

2018

In early 2018, he reconnected with Niall.

“You know what? I actually spoke to Niall a couple days ago,” Zayn said. “We just really support each other and I even spoke to him the other day. I was saying to him I’m really proud of how well his music’s doing. It’s almost like an older brother watching him and it was cool to have that conversation with him. So yeah, we support each other. There’s no real competition, I don’t think, between us.”

But things didn’t seem good by November 2018.

“We went from theaters, to arenas, to stadiums — there was never any sort of bridge between. Just boom, boom, boom,” Zayn said. “I guess that kind of progression to any mind — but especially when you’re 17, 18 — it kind of affects you a little bit. People take it different ways — especially when there are five different personalities. The relationships had broken apart. I ain’t spoke to any of them for a long time, to be honest with you. That’s just the way it is. There’s things that happen and things that were said after I left… Snide things. Small things that I would never have expected.”

Louis Tomlinson

2017

Louis and Zayn got into a nasty Twitter fight a few months after he left the band. But the singer revealed that after the death of his mom, Johannah Deakin, he tried to make up with Zayn.

“My mum said: ‘You’ve got to get back in contact with Zayn. Life’s too short,'” Louis told The Sun. “A mother’s intuition is just f—ing crazy. It always felt supernatural to me. My mum always knew what I was feeling and what I wanted. I can’t stand to hold a grudge with anyone. It doesn’t sit with me right. If there is any animosity, just clear the air. I met up with him and it was nice.”

And when he heard Zayn’s solo song on the radio, it was pretty emotional for him.

“It’s a strange feeling but it’s nice. I think a lot of us have spoken recently, me and Zayn have spoken recently, gotten to a point now where you can just really be happy for each other. Things have happened in the past, of course. It’s great. His first song was an absolute smash and that’s a great song. It’s nice,” Louis said.

He also opened up about how close him and Zayn were during their time in the band.

“Zayn, back in the day. He could relate to me on a nerves level. In the first year we were both the least confident. But Zayn has a fantastic voice and for him it was always about owning that,” he told The Guardian.

2019

But unfortunately, when Zayn didn’t show up to Louis performance of “Just Hold On” on The X Factor, he was pretty hurt.

“I had a couple of calls with him after I lost my mum,” Louis explained to Dan Wootton in his podcast. “All the boys had agreed to come to that performance and he didn’t show so that really bugged me. It was just seeing everyone there – Harry, Niall and Liam – that was what I needed that night, that support.”

Referencing Zayn, the 1D heartthrob added, “So on the other end of the spectrum, it kind of really showed. So, eh, I hope he’s alright.”

And he’s definitely not ready to forgive Zayn.

“I just don’t think I am mature enough, even in my own head, to give that a real answer,” he said, when asked if he could ever forgive his former bandmate in October 2019. “At the moment, I am still pretty mad about the whole thing. I don’t think [Zayn] handled it very well. But never say never. Who knows? He chatted a lot of s**t in the early days. I thought One Direction [was] pretty good.”

2020

When The Sun asked Louis if he thought Zayn’s comments about 1D were disrespectful, he admitted, “Yeah, I do. But I can understand it. We have a lot of situations where we’re sat in interviews and if you’re in a certain mood you might run your mouth. The older you get the more you can tell if these things actually carry any malice or if they’re just a prod in the back. That’s life, innit? Sometimes people chat s**t and that’s the reality.”

As for whether or not he’s reached out to Zayn recently, he said, “No, but I’ve not actively tried. We’ve all got a lot on our plates and there might be a day where I wake up and think, ‘OK, I want to right that wrong,’ but not yet.”

Harry Styles

2017

“I think it’s a shame he felt that way, but I never wish anything but luck to anyone doing what they love. If you’re not enjoying something and need to do something else, you absolutely should do that. I’m glad he’s doing what he likes, and good luck to him,” Harry said to Rolling Stone in 2017.

2019

While appearing on Saturday Night Live in November 2019, Harry completely shaded his former bandmate.

“I love those guys, they are my brothers. Niall, Liam, Louis,” he said, before playfully struggling to remember Zayn’s name.

Harry Styles gives shout out to his former One Direction groupmates on #SNL:

“I love those guys. They’re my brothers. Niall, Louis, Liam and…mmm oh— Ringo!” pic.twitter.com/TEMZT6C7Mr

— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) November 17, 2019

“Ringo, yeah that’s it,” he joked. Ouch!

The “Sign of the Times” crooner also revealed in an interview with Zane Lowe on his “New Music Daily” Apple podcast, “It was kind of like we were sad, obviously, that someone had left, but also sad that he was not enjoying it so much that he had to leave. Because I think at the time too, the tour and everything was going so well and everyone had kind of got to this place where everyone was kind of living in a way where they I think felt pretty good. It felt like everyone was kind of enjoying it. I’d say a big part of it was us kind of being like, ‘Wow.’ You didn’t realize he wasn’t enjoying it that much.”

Harry explained that after Zayn’s departure, the group got a lot closer.

“We were about to start recording a new album and stuff and it was like, ‘Are we recording this without him?’” he recalled. “But I’d say in the moment, I guess the four of us became closer because we were like, ‘OK, this is a hurdle that we weren’t expecting.’ We’d sit down and have conversations [asking if] everyone [is] good, [if] everyone wants to keep going and that kind of thing.”

2020

While speaking Howard Stern on his Sirius XM radio show in March 2020, Harry spoke about Zayn’s departure once again.

“I don’t know if I could say it’s something he shouldn’t have done. I just didn’t feel that way,” he said. “So, it’s hard for me to condemn it, ’cause I don’t. Especially in hindsight looking at it now, the last thing that I would’ve wanted is for him to have stayed there if he didn’t want to be there.”

Liam Payne

2017

In 2017, although he revealed that they hadn’t spoken in a while, Liam couldn’t stop praising his former bandmate.

“I haven’t spoken to Zayn in a while, he’s off doing his thing and more power to him. I think it is great, more power to him,” he said.

But when asked if the band would ever reunite with Zayn, he wasn’t too sure.

“I think so, but I think there’s a lot of things that need to be polished out there, but that’s on him really,” Liam said when asked if the five of them could ever get back together. “He doesn’t really support the cause. I’ve spoken to Zayn since and it’s all fine and good, it is what it is. If he feels hurt and scorned in some sort of way that I don’t really understand, that’s down to him so there we go. It is very sad because One Direction was a wonderful, wonderful time in all of our lives. It was so much fun and I don’t understand how you can come out of that experience and say the things that he says sometimes, it doesn’t make any sense to me but there you go.”

2018

In 2018, the singer gave some insight on Zayn and Harry’s relationship.

“I don’t know true or false for that one. Sometimes, people can seem like friends and maybe under the surface, they’re not,” Liam said, when asked if they were friends during their time in the band. “I don’t really know. When we were in the band, we all seemed to get along quite well up until the end of it I guess you know, after Zayn left.”

“I feel like it was nice to be Zayn sometimes. He just came in and he wasn’t expected to say very much, unless prompted to do so,” Liam also said while appearing on Radio 1’s Breakfast Show With Nick Grimshaw.

2019

“Zayn left so I haven’t seen him since then,” Liam admitted in October 2019. “I always feel like Zayn didn’t really feel being there, if that makes sense. We all had a good time, there were moments when it was absolute bliss but then obviously there were moments where it was like, ‘This is awful.’ For him I just think there were more moments where he didn’t really enjoy what he was doing. Fair play to him, he went off and did his own thing and he’s doing really well.”

And when he was asked if One Direction would ever reunite with Zayn, he admitted, “No, I don’t think that’ll ever happen. When he left, it wasn’t on great terms so I don’t feel like it’s a thing. If he didn’t want to be here, he shouldn’t be here. Which is fine. Like I say good for him, he’s gone off and is doing his own thing and he’s doing really well so I don’t want to mess with his stuff… We did a whole stadium tour without him so I feel like it’s fine.”

The father of one also told GQ in November 2019, “Zayn genuinely was the best singer in One Direction, hand on heart, out of all of us. But for him to get to a point where, you know, he can’t step on a stage? It’s a lot. I mean, he’s doing great. His streaming numbers are ridiculous but I do think he misses out on the performance side a bit, you know. He can’t seem to get past that part.”

And when the outlet asked if Liam had reached out to his former bandmate after he left 1D, the “Strip That Down” crooner explained, “I did, yeah. I didn’t want him to feel like he was going through this all alone in some ways, or that we were all out to get him. We’re the only people who know what you’re going through. The only five people who know what you are going through were all in a room together once, and you left – fair enough – but you don’t want anyone going through such evils for no reason. But it got to a point with me where I wouldn’t know where to begin with Zayn. I hope he has good people around him, but I don’t at this stage think it’s anything the rest of us can solve.”

But Liam admitted that he stills holds a grudge against Zayn.

“We had our differences throughout the whole experience with some things. I still think about some stuff that was said and done that now I would do differently, but then that’s all part of growing up. Being in One Direction was such a schoolyard mentality somehow — the One Direction University, I call it. Everyone has stuff they’ve said at parties they wished they hadn’t but, for us, the difference was that it was all happening in front of the world,” he continued. “Now we are older, for me certainly there are things that I am just not as bothered about. I think with Zayn’s particular exit and the way he chose to go, we haven’t really heard from him since he left. He didn’t even say goodbye, if I am being honest. It was a really sordid scenario, from our side certainly. A bit strange. It’s difficult.”

The singer also spoke out about Harry’s “Ringo Starr” joke on SNL.

“I think it’s just a funny joke at the end of the day,” he said on Watch What Happens Live in December 2019. “Obviously Zayn’s circumstances for leaving were his own and it’s a different situation for all of us and I suppose we deal with it in a different way. I thought it was quite funny.”

2020

Liam spoke out about Zayn’s issues with anxiety in April 2020.

“Zayn makes music but he doesn’t really perform. For him, he had such performance anxiety that he just couldn’t put his head around it. I remember watching his first solo performance it went really great. The graphics they did around him and everything else,” he said. “I think he is just kind of happy. He likes going to the studio, making the songs, he just doesn’t want to do anything that happens after that. But he is streaming hugely.”

He also told Daily Star, “I remember Zayn telling us the story that it was his mum got him to go to the audition the day he didn’t want to go and that was literally what we saw all the way through One Direction.”

In May 2020, someone asked Liam who from 1D he’d want to collaborate with the most, and he chose Zayn!

“I mean, he’s not really a member of One Direction anymore. But probably Zayn because we have quite similar sounds, I would say,” he said.

2021

During an Instagram Live in January 2021, Liam said he listened to Zayn’s song “Vibez.”

Niall Horan

2017

Niall admitted in 2017, that he hadn’t spoken to Zayn in quite some time.

“I haven’t spoken to Zayn in a while. I spoke to him at Christmas then I spoke to him again a couple of months ago. Zayn’s Zayn, not a lot of people would be able to say that they get in touch with him. He’s the hardest man to get in touch with. He is always changing his number,” he said.

2018

But in June 2018, things were looking better!

“I spoke to Zayn about three weeks ago. We had a big conversation on text and stuff. But Zayn is the kind of fella that changes his number every five minutes. Don’t know where he’s at,” he said.

2019

When asked if Zayn would be present during when One Direction reunites one day, the “Slow Hands” crooner admitted he wasn’t too sure.

“There’s no hard feelings. He’s doing his own thing and I don’t know what would happen with Zayn if the conversation came up to get the band back together,” Niall said in October 2019.

2020

While speaking to GQ in March 2020, Niall admitted that he and Zayn no longer speak.

“As long as I’ve known him, Zayn’s been the hardest man to stay in touch with,” he said. “Then we had a falling out a few years ago and, to be honest, that’s just the dynamic: you have people you are friends with and people you are not.”

He also spoke out about their relationship to The Sun a few days later.

“He’s quite a hard fella to keep in touch with. He’d probably tell you that himself, to be fair. I don’t particularly talk to him a lot,” Niall admitted. “I mean, if he’s got something coming out or something I will text him. He might not reply but I’ll give him a shout, but I don’t know… After the band, he left for his reasons and then he never really spoke to us much afterwards. I’ve got no bad blood with him at all but some things have a lifespan. I don’t know. We will see what happens. Maybe one day we can reconvene at some point, but not right now.”

Despite all the drama, we know that the boys will always share a deep connection.