I Watched Zayn's 'Call Her Daddy' Interview So You Don't Have To
Elusive singer-songwriter Zayn Malik sat down with Call Her Daddy podcast host Alex Cooper for his first sit-down interview in six years. The episode premiered today, and I watched (and summarized) it so you don't have to.
• On being Pennsylvania-based: "I came out here with my ex [Gigi Hadid] a bit, and I fell in love with it. It was super calm and chill, and I wanted to take a break from the busy city. I was living in New York for three years at the time, and it just got a bit overwhelming. Where I grew up in Bradford, it's a lot more like this kind of pace and vibe. I feel like I just fit in better around here."
• On childhood in Bradford: "My dad was always aware of the things that were out there, and he always explained stuff to me from a young age and kept me away from [trouble], if I'm being honest. And that's where I developed into being a person that likes to be by myself and in my room singing, recording, writing. I got into poetry and things like that because I was in my room a lot."
• On his X-Factor audition: "It feels so much longer [ago] than it actually was, because so much stuff's happened in that time. It's very interesting, very surreal. I feel all the nerves again when I watch it, like, I feel like I could give myself a hug and be like, 'It's okay, bro,' because I'm holding onto the mic for dear life."
• On performing with One Direction: "I think there was [anxiety], but I don't think we had time for it. I think we got thrown into the deep end and we kind of just had to swim, you know? I feel like we did a good job in terms of keeping it together and making the music that we were meant to make. I think I got out at the right time. I think if I had done it any longer it might have affected me a bit more."
• On his exit from the group: "I think I'd known [it was time] 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, certain people were doing certain things, certain people didn't want to sign contracts, so I knew something was happening.
"I just got ahead of the curve, if I'm being honest with you. I was like, I'm just going to get out of here, I think this is done. And 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. 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.
"And then there was obviously underlying issues within our friendships too. We'd been together every day for five years and we got sick of each other. We were close, we'd done crazy things with each other that nobody else in the world will ever understand or have, and I look back on it now in a much fonder light than when I'd just left."
• On public perception: "I try to 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 in one go. So if [the public] doesn't know everything yet, that's okay. Hopefully they get to know me a bit in this interview, you know, see my thought patterns a little."
• On anxiety: "I feel like for generations human beings have felt it and not really been able to put their finger on what it is. But we overcome it, and certain things in life can change your perception of things. Since I've had my daughter, my main thing is trying to be a good example to her, in terms of, 'I can do things and I can achieve things and and I can overcome things, and you can do this too.' And be this example to her that doesn't succumb to [negative] feelings. That's why I'm even doing this interview. I used to get a lot of anxiety around having a conversation like this, 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 a cool guy.'"
• On his daughter Khai, 2: "Thinking about having a child and raising her in [the city] was very claustrophobic for me. I didn't want her to have to be exposed to that because she didn't choose it, you know? 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 for a normal childhood, where there's not cameras flashing in our faces constantly.
"She's going to know, she's going to get to a certain point [where] she's going to have a certain level of awareness. I'm just trying to give her an option, so it's a choice for her. If she wants to be away from it, she can be out here. Whatever she wants to do in her life, I'll support it."
• On fatherhood: "I have [Khai] 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 have her, I don't work at all. I just spend a full day with her doing things she wants to do, like painting, Play-Doh, things like that. Go to the park, go to the theme park, go to the zoo. We just have fun, and I feel like I've rekindled my own childhood through her. I feel like we get to a certain point in adult life where everything's kind of vague and gray and boring, and she's brought that color back for me."
• On his alleged 2021 altercation with Yolanda Hadid: "I don't tend to get involved when people say things online, whether it's got something to do with me or it doesn't. I just kind of keep it to myself. I knew what the situation was, I knew what happened, and the people involved knew what happened too. That's really all I cared about. I wasn't trying to get into a negative back and forth with [Yolanda], or any sort of narrative online where my daughter was going to look back and read that."
• On returning to the stage: "I'm nervous because it's been a few years, but I have this energy like I have something to give and I want to get on stage and be there again and feel that. One thing I can say is my fanbase has always been supportive in that manner. They're always like, 'We're here, we've got you. When you're ready, we're gonna come and listen to your tunes.'"
Zayn's comeback single, "Love Like This," drops next Friday, July 21.
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