For the first time since it happened, Zayn Malik has spoken about his explosive falling out with Gigi and Yolanda Hadid.
For the most part, the former One Direction star has remained tight-lipped about the fall 2021 altercation with the 59-year-old Hadid matriarch, which ended with Malik pleading “no contest” to four counts of harassment. Other than posting a blanket statement on social media about the incident days after it became public, he hasn’t said a word — until now.
In a candid interview with Alex Cooper on the Call Her Daddy podcast, Malik reflected on the dispute and opened up about why he chose at the time to plead “no contest,” which is the equivalent of a guilty plea that does not actually admit guilt. “I knew what the situation was, I knew what happened and the people involved knew what happened too,” the “Pillowtalk” singer said on the Wednesday (July 12) episode.
“And that’s all I really cared about,” he continued. “If anybody of the same mind would look at the situation, I believe that you could respect that I just didn’t want to bring attention to anything. I just wasn’t trying to get into a negative back and forth with her — any sort of narrative online where my daughter was going to look back and be able to read into it and it would just be something, there was no point.”
Before the fight, which went down at the family’s Pennsylvania home, Malik and the Victoria’s Secret model had dated on and off for six years. In 2020, the ex-couple welcomed their now 2-year-old daughter Khai, and Malik noted on Call Her Daddy that he and Gigi now have a “really good relationship” as co-parents.
At the time, however, things were not so rosy between the two. In a police report, Malik was accused of hurling insults at Gigi — telling her to “strap on some f—ing balls and defend your partner against your f—ing mother in my house” — and grabbing Yolanda and shoving her into a dresser. He was also alleged to have called Yolanda a “f—ing Dutch slut” and demanded that she “stay away from [my] f—ing daughter.”
Listen to Malik’s full Call Her Daddy episode here.
