Zayn Malik almost missed his chance at fame. On the morning of his audition for The X Factor UK in 2010, he felt so nervous that he decided not to go — that is, until his mother, Tricia, basically dragged him out of bed and helped change his mind. The rest, as they say, was history.
In the middle of the competition, creator and judge Simon Cowell grouped Malik with Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson to form a boy band named One Direction. The fivesome went on to conquer the world, releasing four albums together in the same number of years and performing at historic stadiums across North America, Europe and beyond.
Malik abruptly left the group in 2015 in the middle of one of their On the Road Again tour. He explained to fans that there was not a rift between the members, but he simply wanted time away from the spotlight.
“We went from theaters to arenas to stadiums — there was never any sort of bridge between. Just boom, boom, boom,” he told British Vogue in 2018. “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.”
Malik has since become a solo artist, releasing three feature-length albums.
Scroll down to see photos of the entertainer through the years, from his childhood to present day:
