Zayn Malik Defends Taylor Swift Amid ‘LWYMMD’ Video Backlash, ‘She Deserves Her Success’

Zayn Malik opened up about his admiration for Taylor Swift amid the backlash she received for the imagery in the video for her new song, “Look What You Made Me Do.” In an interview with FADER, Zayne showed Taylor some major support and said he respected her as an artist. In 2016, the singers collaborated for the Fifty Shades Darker soundtrack, “I Don’t Wanna Live Forever.”

In the interview, Zayn revealed that he doesn’t pay attention when it comes to the personal lives of other celebs, according to Billboard. In fact, Malik said he rarely pays attention to what others say about him. Malik says he waits until he meets a celeb in person and bases his perception of them on the relationship he has with them.

“In terms of relating to it, of course, I relate to things being written about us all the time. But I don’t listen to it. I rate her as an artist, I think she’s cool, I think she’s successful, and I think she deserves her success because she’s worked hard. That’s just how I look at it. I did a song with her, it was fun, she was professional. She gets on with my girlfriend, they’re good friends. I don’t have a bad word to say about her. She’s cool.”

Zayn and Swift’s, “I Don’t Wanna Live Forever” was released on December 9, 2016, and debuted at No. 1 on the Digital Songs chart and reached No. 2 in the United States on Billboard’s Hot 100, Mainstream Top 40, and Adult Top 40 lists.

Malik is now in the works of creating his new album. Zayn explained his recent disappearance from the VMAs was because he was hard at work in the studio writing new material.

According to Billboard, Malik doesn’t wish to share the album’s release date but assures fans the album will be out “pretty soon,” meaning within the next couple of months. However, Malik wants to take his time with it. He also hasn’t shared the album’s title said it’s “going to be something weird with it.”

Just last year, Taylor was nominated for six Country Music Association Awards, including the top honor of Entertainer of the Year, which she’s won twice. Taylor was also the youngest recipient of that award, as she was only 20-years-old when she received them.

The video for Taylor’s “Look What You Made Me Do” has already smashed records, becoming 2017’s most-viewed music video in such a short time span, according to Variety.

At its peak, the video attracted a massive 3 million views per hour and surpassed this year’s biggest musical debut, the “Despacito” remix which featured Justin Bieber and Adele’s “Hello,” which totaled around 27 million in 2015 during the same time frame.

Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do,” is the first single off her newest album, Reputation, which will be released on November 10, 2017.

Last month, William Martinez, a U.S. District Judge, dismissed former DJ David Mueller’s lawsuit against Taylor Swift ruling that Mueller could not prove that Taylor got him fired from his job from country music station, 98.5 KYGO, following allegations that he groped her.

Taylor Swift breaks social media silence after groping lawsuit victory https://t.co/uAgPcuKAbQ

— Metro (@MetroUK) August 16, 2017

The former Colorado DJ had sought $3 million in damages from the pop star, according to Us Weekly. Swift, who countersued for $1 was awarded, as the jury ruled that her mother, Andrea Swift, did not intentionally interfere with Mueller’s KYGO contract.

[Featured Image by Kevin Winter/Getty Images]