Zayn Malik on his statement after leaving One Direction: 'do you think I wrote that?'

Zayn Malik joins American beau Gigi on the list for the first time ever (Getty Images for People.com)

If Zayn Malik’s farewell message announcing his departure from One Direction didn’t feel authentic among more die-hard directioners out there, it’s because it wasn’t.

“My life with One Direction has been more than I could ever have imagined," his statement read. "But, after five years, I feel like it is now the right time for me to leave the band. I'd like to apologise to the fans if I've let anyone down, but I have to do what feels right in my heart. I am leaving because I want to be a normal 22-year-old who is able to relax and have some private time out of the spotlight.”

Malik is now a year into his solo career after prompting fears it would implode by leaving the band. The Bradford-born singer has already released an eponymous autobiography - at the tender age of 23 - and much of it touches on what he has repeatedly suggested about being in One Direction: that the all singing, all dancing teenager on stage wasn’t a true reflection of who he is.

It was a point he was keen to press when the Evening Standard read the statement back to him.

He replied: “I’m going to ask you a question now — do you think I wrote that? Like, look how it’s worded. I’m not a 35-year-old lawyer. I don’t write like that.”

The 'real' Malik is still being ascertained. In interviews, he often comes across as reticent to talk about subjects closer to him and his autobiography skirts over topics throughout his life, briefly glossing over his family, relationship with the supermodel Gigi Hadid, his struggle with anxiety and an eating disorder. As the New Statesman notes, it features 17 uses of the word ‘sick’ and a generous sprinkling of semi-colons, but is vague on matters closer to his heart.