Abby Botan
Entertainment Columnist
Nearly an entire year after his departure from One Direction, Zayn Malik released his debut single as a soloist. On Jan. 29, Malik released his first single as a solo artist is titled “Pillow Talk.”
The song has a completely different vibe than the songs he sang for five years with One Direction. Malik sang on four (“Up All Night,” “Take Me Home,” “Midnight Memories” and “Four”) of the five albums the boy band released. The boy band’s most recent album was “Made in the A.M.” Contrasting to the strictly Pop sound One Direction listeners are so used to hearing, “Pillow Talk” has a Pop/R&B feel to it.
This isn’t the first time we’ve heard Malik on a song all by himself though. Less than a week after he left, Naughty Boy, a producer, unexpectedly released a demo Malik was working on behind his back. This is one of the reasons why Malik no longer works with Naughty Boy and now uses Malay Ho’s producing skills.
So far, the song is breaking records on the charts.
Malik is the first UK artist to debut at #1, with Pillow Talk, on Billboard’s HOT 100 with a first charted single. Malik is also the first person to go solo from a band to debut at #1 since The Beatles. Malik and Justin Bieber are the only male singers this decade to debut at #1 on Billboard Hot 100, which is a big deal for the new soloist.
It seems as if Malik wants to trail as far away from the boy band image he once held, and by releasing “Pillow Talk,” he’s one step closer to doing exactly that.
The song begins with an unusual, electronic almost tune. It has a very calm sound. As soon as you get used to the funky beat that you’re hearing, it’s almost like you’re ambushed by Malik’s gentle voice. Although, the song is explicit, you almost forget that and just focus on his voice and the catchiness of it.
Malik has clearly changed his audience. He wants to reach a mature audience of R&B lovers.
Malik’s first album “Mind of Mine” will come out March 25, which is also known as the day that Malik decided to publicly announce his departure from One Direction.
“Pillow Talk” is available on iTunes for $1.29.
