Zayn Malik And Harry Styles: What Is Their New Direction After One Direction Split?

Zayn Malik and Harry Styles have gone their separate ways since Zayn left One Direction last March. Harry has also left the group as of January, but many fans remain unaware that the entire band has split up. While there seems to be an effort to conceal this fact on the part of ex-band members, many reliable sources confirm the split-up is real. Each member is finding their own path in the world, but Harry seems eager to follow Zayn’s example.

Zayn Malik and Harry Styles fans have to be wondering what was wrong with the One Direction gig? Why would a successful band like One Direction split up? Was the publicity too much? Were One Direction members angry with each other? But none of this really seems to be the case. Zayn was recently quoted by Fuse TV, explaining his reasons for leaving the group.

“There was never any room for me to experiment creatively in the band. If I would sing a hook or a verse slightly R&B, or slightly myself, it would always be recorded 50 times until there was a straight version that was pop, generic as f**k, so they could use that version. Whenever I would suggest something, it was like it didn’t fit us. There was just a general conception that the management already had of what they want for the band, and I just wasn’t convinced with what we were selling. I wasn’t 100 percent behind the music. It wasn’t me.”

Like Zayn Malik, Harry Styles’ first action when leaving One Direction was breaking ties with the One Direction management team, Modest Management. Harry has signed with Jeffery Azoff of CAA, according to the Mirror. Harry has not expressed his reasons, but the action doesn’t seem to be personal, one could assume the problem is with management style interfering with musical style, since that was Zayn’s only complaint.

Zayn Malik has recently released a single, “Pillow Talk” and his album, Mind of Mine, is ready for release next month. Zayn spent a lot of time perfecting his new sound, in late night jam sessions with friends. Some of the music was released on YouTube, it was raw and unfinished, but fans went wild, so Zayn Malik moved forward with the album. The music is much more mature with plenty of adult language, sexy lyrics, and a soulful R&B sound.

Like Zayn Malik, Harry Styles is beginning to develop a new style. Harry is looking to Paul McCartney for inspiration, as the Mirror reports. The new Harry Styles music does sound a bit like McCartney, just as Harry intended. Styles’ friend, Charlie Puth, says the chord changes are a deliberate mimic of Paul McCartney’s style, and there are a few other elements Styles learned from Paul’s example, as well. Paul McCartney and the Beatles were icons in the very beginning of rock music, and continue to be thought of as founders of early rock and roll. McCartney enjoys a decades-long career, both with the Beatles and with a band called Wings after the Beatles spit. He also frequently performed with his wife, Linda.

Zayn Malik and Harry Styles are developing more mature music that speaks to a deeper audience than their previous work. It is part of growing up as a musician to move away from teen style musical appeal into a more adult genre. Making this transition successfully is the only way to ensure an extended career in music. The split from their management company was necessary in order to allow their music to grow up and mature.

Zayn Malik and Harry Styles have made a strong commitment to their music, and their future without One Direction.

[Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images]