Zayn Malik dating history: Who has the One Direction star dated?
ONE Direction star Zayn Malik has had a rollercoaster dating history, with some major names on his list of exes.
But who has the musician stepped out with and who is he seeing at the moment? Here’s everything you need to know.
Who is Zayn Malik?
Zayn Malik is a British singer and former member of the hit band One Direction.
The 30-year-old rose to fame as part of the group in 2010, alongside bandmates Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson.
They finished third in that year’s series of The X Factor, which would be won by Matt Cardle.
Zayn left the band in 2015, saying he wanted to live as a “normal 22-year-old who is able to relax and have some private time out of the spotlight”.
He would later criticise the group’s creative direction and slammed their music as “generic as f***” in an interview with The Fader.
The singer has also stated that he suffered from an eating disorder while with the bad, due to the high workload and intense pressure of his lifestyle.
Since his departure, he has released three studio albums as a solo artist, made a cameo appearance in blockbuster heist film Oceans 8 and appeared as a guest on big-name shows including The Voice and The Tonight Show.
Zayn was born in 1993 in Bradford, West Yorkshire, and was raised as a Muslim.
His father is from Pakistan and his mother is British but converted to Islam upon her marriage.
In 2018, Zayn said that he no longer considers himself a Muslim.
Who has Zayn Malik dated?
Zayn has had an active and public dating life over the years.
Several of his relationships have been with fellow artists, including other X Factor contestants.
Let’s run down the full list.
Geneva Lane
Zayn dated fellow X Factor star Geneva Lane in 2010 shortly after they appeared on the show.
The relationship soon fell apart, when he split with Geneva and moved on with another co-contestant.
The scorned musician slammed him as a “heartbreaker” in 2011, saying: “He told me he loved me and promised me the world.”
Rebecca Ferguson
Soon after dumping Geneva, Zayn began a romance with Rebecca, who was the runner-up on the same X Factor series that saw One Direction come third.
They kindled the triste as they took part in the show’s tour throughout 2011.
Rebecca was 23 at the time, while Zayn was just 18.
She later said that the fling was the “first mistake” she made as a star, especially given the scrutiny of their age gap.
In 2013, she told The Independent: “Of course, if it was a 23-year-old guy dating an 18-year-old girl, no one would have batted an eyelid, but this way around was a big deal, apparently.
“I didn’t realize that. I was just a hippy, free-loving person, but that’s not a good thing to be in this industry.
“You can’t just follow your heart.”
Stephanie Davis
Moving away from X Factor alums, Zayn took up with Hollyoaks‘ Stephanie Davis in 2011.
However, it seems things did not end well as she eventually changed her phone number to break things off.
During an appearance on Celebrity Big Brother in 2016, she said: “He [wasn’t] happy, even when I was going out with him. I can’t believe he stuck it out for that long.
“I ended it with him because at the time I was oblivious to that world.
“And then I was out with the girls in town and he was calling me, calling me. I changed my number.”
Perrie Edwards
Well, 2011 certainly was a busy year for Zayn as, by year’s end, he had moved on from both Rebecca and Stephanie with pop star Perrie Edwards.
Yet another former X Factor show-stealer, Perrie was a member of girl-group Little Mix, who won the series that year.
This was Zayn’s first long-term relationship, with the pair even becoming engaged in 2013, before splitting up two years later.
In Little Mix’s book, Perrie wrote: “It was horrible, the worst time in my life.
“A four-year relationship, two year engagement ended by a simple text message. Just like that.”
For his part, Zayn has denied that he ended things with a text.
Gigi Hadid
Without doubt, Zayn’s most publicised, controversial and complicated relationship has been with American model Gigi Hadid.
The couple initially got together in 2015, after his engagement to Perrie fell apart.
Gigi starred in one of his solo music videos, while he modelled alongside her for Vogue and Versace.
They lived together in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, close to Gigi’s mother Yolanda and sister Bella.
However, it all ended in tears in 2021, when Yolanda accused Zayn of assaulting her.
The claims led to a brush with the law, as he entered a no contest plea to four charges of harassment.
These included allegations that he grabbed Yolanda and shoved her into a dresser and resulted in a sentence of 360 days of probation, as well as being ordered to complete anger management and domestic violence awareness programmes.
Selena Gomez
Controversy stirred in early 2023, when Zayn and child star Selena Gomez confirmed their relationship.
This sparked rumours of a feud between Selena and Gigi, who are long-time acquaintances through their mutual friend Taylor Swift.
The Calm Down singer unfollowed Gigi, her sister and Zayn on Instagram, leaving fans speculating as to the reason why.
However, sources reportedly told Cosmopolitan that the model had “no problem” with the new couple as long as Zayn remains “happy and stable”.
Does Zayn Malik have any children?
Yes, Zayn has one child from his relationship with Gigi Hadid.
Their daughter Khai was born in September 2020.
The name is Egyptian in origin and reportedly means “the chosen one” and “royalty or nobility”.
Gigi revealed the name in an Instagram post four months after the little girl’s birth,