One Direction’s Dubai concert will not be affected by the departure of band member Zayn Malik, say local organisers.
Malik quit the boy band on Wednesday after five years, an official statement confirmed.
The departure came just days after the 22-year-old took time off the band’s world tour due to “stress”, something that was spurred on by rumours that Malik had been unfaithful to fiancee Perrie Edwards.
“My life with One Direction has been more than I could ever have imagined. But, after five years, I feel like it is now the right time for me to leave the band. I’d like to apologise to the fans if I’ve let anyone down, but I have to do what feels right in my heart,” he said in a statement that was posted to the band’s official Facebook page.
One Direction’s sold-out concert in Dubai on April 4 at The Sevens Stadium was the fastest-selling show in the UAE.
Thomas Ovesen, COO of Done Events, organisers of the One Direction concert in Dubai, told tabloid! that the show will go on as planned.
“All I would say is, for the last week the band has performed as a four piece, two shows in Manila and a show in Jakarta, and they are continue now as a four piece in the shows in Dubai and South Africa,” he said. “The show is very much on 4th April in Dubai.”
Of Malik’s departure, he added: “I hope the fans will be happier for [Malik] now, rather than seeing him continue to do something that makes him unhappy.”
For any ticket buyers who might be upset that they will not see the full band, Ovesen said that “this is what One Direction is right now.”
“If anyone has any grievances, they are welcome to contact Done Events,” he said.
