Zayn Malik turns 28: Little known facts about former One Direction singer

It’s been more than a decade since we were first introduced to Zayn Malik on UK’s ‘X Factor’, but his star is still rising. The ‘Pillowtalk’ singer, who turned 28 years old today, celebrated the milestone with a unique fan interaction.

The former One Direction member tweeted a phone number, obviously driving his fans crazy. When they dialed in, they heard a recording of the singer’s voice saying, “Yo, this is Zayn here. Album is dropping on January 15. Press any number from one through nine to get to meet me. Press it now.”

Clicking on a number meant a sneak hear of the track ‘Vibez’ from the singer’s upcoming album, ‘Nobody is Listening’. Publicity stunt of course, but very, very cool nonetheless.

Zayn, whose real name is spelt Zain, has had a productive year with not only a new album but also a growing family. He and his girlfriend, the supermodel Gigi Hadid, recently welcomed a daughter together.

Here’s a look at some other facts about the ‘Dusk til Dawn’ singer. Zayn is scared of water, i.e. he has aquaphobia, and so can’t swim.

Celebrating Eid with family: Zayn has roots in Pakistan on his dad's side while Gigi Hadid is proud of her Middle Eastern descent.

He’s got a pre-performance tradition since his One Direction days: He brushes his teeth before heading on to stage.

Did you know? When he joined One Direction, Zayn didn't own a passport.

Let us take a glimpse at the love life of this star singer with his lady love Gigi Hadid. Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid have been known to have been in an on and off relationship since the time they started dating. After a temporary, apparent hiatus, their fans woke up to a social media post of being back together with this one: On Instagram, Hadid posted a snap of Malik visiting her family farm in Pennsylvania. She wrote in the caption, "HEY VALENTINE Z on the farm ♡ Dec 2019."

One of the most-talked-about gorgeous couples, they announced the arrival of a baby girl soon after in September 2020 with this heart-warming, black and white photo of the new-born child holding Gigi’s fingers. Captioning it as ‘our girl…’.