Simon Cowell Nabs Rights to Zayn's First Solo Releases

It seems that Simon Cowell had a direct hand in Zayn Malik's departure from One Direction.

The X-FACTOR judge and One Direction co-creator reportedly made a deal with Zayn, stipulating that he could get out of his contract with the boy band early if his first solo material would be released by Syco.

"Zayn is now the most in-demand solo artist in the world. There's huge excitement as he's the first member who will be able to release on their own," said an insider.

"Simon was very understanding about him leaving the band but quickly made it clear he would stay a Syco artist for his future projects. He'll now be able to make sure any releases are timed so they don't clash with anything by One Direction."

The 22-year-old singer's first solo album is set for an early 2016 release. "Obviously everyone at Syco would have preferred he had stayed part of the band but this result still works out for everyone."

Zayn Malik is an English singer and songwriter. He competed in The X Factor in 2010, and from 2010-2015 was a member of the boyband One Direction.

In 2010, 17-year-old Malik auditioned in Manchester for the seventh series of reality-television competition The X Factor. He sang "Let Me Love You" by Mario as his audition song, and was accepted into the next round. Upon auditioning for The X Factor, Malik stated: "I was looking for an experience". He was eliminated before the final round of the competition, but judges Nicole Scherzinger and Simon Cowell grouped him with fellow competitors Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson to form a new act for the remainder of the show, called One Direction. This group became one of the most popular finalists of the series. They finished the competition in third place, and they were signed to Cowell's Syco Music in January 2011.

Malik cites urban music as his main musical influence, growing up, he was into R&B and rap. He as well as other members of One Direction further notes artists such as Bruno Mars, as a "dream collaborator."

Source: Mirror

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