Liam Payne Discusses Former One Direction Member Zayn Malik Not Ever Wanting To Be In The Group

Liam Payne recently spoke to the United Kingdom’s Daily Star newspaper about how former One Direction member Zayn Malik was forced into the entertainment industry by his mom.

The group first rose to fame when they took part in The X Factor in the United Kingdom back in 2010. They auditioned as solo artists and were put together by the show’s producers. One Direction would end up becoming that year’s most commercially successful act.

Before Malik went his own way, Payne explained that he always knew that Malik wasn’t happy because he told his group members, long before he left, that he only auditioned for the talent show because his mom told him to.

“I remember Zayn telling us the story that it was his mum (who) got him to go to the audition (on) the day… He didn’t want to go. And that was literally what we saw all the way through One Direction,” the “Strip That Down” hitmaker said.

Due to anxiety issues, Malik hasn’t performed live for many years. He enjoys making music but isn’t a fan of what comes with fame. Payne expressed that he thinks Malik has to be very careful where he treads when it comes to exposing himself.

“He likes to make songs and his songs do very well but at the same time, he doesn’t really like to go out and perform the songs. He doesn’t really like going out and doing the press stuff that surrounds it in the crazy little world that we live in.”

In 2015, Malik made the decision to leave the group. He decided to embark on a solo career and has yet to join One Direction for any appearances since. His debut album, Mind of Mine, was released exactly one year after he went his separate way from One Direction, per Bustle.

The album proved to be an instant commercial success and entered the charts at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200. According to Billboard, his first solo single, “Pillowtalk,” also reached the top spot on the U.S. Billboard 100.

Talks of a One Direction reunion made headlines recently. As previously reported by The Inquisitr, Payne hinted that Malik will not participate if the band does decide to get back together.

Fans started to speculate that the group would be reuniting for their 10 year anniversary after their website was reactivated for the first time since they broke up in 2016. They also noted that all the members had started following Malik on their Twitter accounts again. However, Payne implied that he can’t see Malik being a part of anything.