Zayn Malik reveals why he left One Direction

One Direction alum Zayn Malik has revealed the real reason for leaving the popular boy band. For those not in the know, the singer – who formed the group with bandmates Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, and Louis Tomlinson in 2010 - decided to go solo and quit the band in 2015.

“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,” he said during the July 12 episode of the Call Her Daddy podcast.

The 30-year-old added, “Certain people were doing certain things, certain people didn't want to sign contracts, so I knew something was happening, so I just got ahead of the curve. I was like, ‘I'm just going to get out of here. I think this is done.’”

The singer further said that he wanted to quickly exit and be the first one to bring out a solo record.

“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 going to jump the gun here for the first time,’” he said. “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 were obviously underlying issues, like within our friendships too.”

Malik further revealed that he had “seen it (coming)”. “If I'm being completely honest with you, I was like, 'I'm going to jump the gun here'. 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,” he stated.

Stay tuned to this space for more updates and reveals.