Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid were on-and-off for about five years, first starting in 2016, then breaking up and making up several times, then finally winding down for good in 2021. During one of their make-up sessions, they welcomed their only child, daughter Khai, who was born in September 2020 (Khai is a Virgo). When they were together, I always thought Gigi was more into Zayn than he was into her. But I never doubted that he loved her, I just thought he was just too young, mixed up and arrogant to really treat her right. Well… Zayn appeared on Call Her Daddy, the popular podcast. And his comments about Gigi and love are getting lots of attention. He doesn’t have youth as an excuse anymore.
On his past relationship with Gigi: “To be fair, just to have this on the record, I will always love G, because she is the reason my child is on this Earth and I have the utmost respect for her. I will always love her, but I don’t know if I was in love with her….I do love her a crazy amount, but no, I don’t think I was in love with her at that point.” As he reasoned, “Otherwise I would have been a better version of myself.”
His thoughts on love in general: “My understanding of love is always developing. At that moment in time, I might have thought it was love, but as I got older I realized maybe it wasn’t. Maybe it was lust. Maybe it was this, maybe it was that. I don’t feel like it was love.”
He’s been single for a while now: “I don’t find being alone scary. No disrespect to all the past relationships I’ve been in. No disrespect at all, it was freeing. I am that type of person who runs on my own clock, answers to myself. So, it was so freeing to me. I could just do things, make plans. Sleep until any time I want.”
What he’s learned: “I tended to get in trouble in relationships, ‘cause I was young, did certain things, spoke to other females when I shouldn’t have been. You live and learn from it, but this way, there’s no guilt.”
Yeah… I think that’s really f–ked up. A man will literally have a child with his girlfriend and then say that he’s not in love with her? Garbage. “I will always love her, but I don’t know if I was in love with her….I do love her a crazy amount, but no, I don’t think I was in love with her at that point.” Sure, it might be true in some sense, that he was never actually in love with her, but it’s a really screwed-up thing to say about the mother of your child and someone you spent five years with (on-and-off). To me, this sounds more like an admission that Zayn never really considered Gigi to be “the one” for him. He never really committed to her, he always considered her just a temporary relationship and he was never making long-term plans with her. That’s my interpretation and it f–king sucks that he’s saying it on a podcast.
Zayn about Gigi Hadid on the new CallHerDaddy episode:
“I will always love G, she’s the reason my child is on this earth, and I have the utmost respect for her.” pic.twitter.com/dbyDLKxyHq
— ً (@ZJMCRAVE) February 11, 2026
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.
-
- CODE: KCS CPI+LSN / 0601337 Gigi Hadid and her boyfriend Zayn Malik have diner at famous restaurant la Perouse Paris,February 28 th 2017
-
- Gigi Hadid and Zayn Malik are seen on October 1, 2016 in Paris, France.
-
- New York, NY – Young singer Zayn Malik arrives at Electric Lady Studios wearing double denim ahead of a recording session. Pictured: Zayn Malik BACKGRID USA 2 OCTOBER 2018 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- New York, NY – – Gigi Hadid and Zayn Malik surprise the world with their reconciliation on his birthday as they step out out to iL Buco with Bella Hadid and Dua Lipa (not pictured). Pictured: Gigi Hadid, Zayn Malik BACKGRID USA 11 JANUARY 2020 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- New York, NY – Gigi Hadid and Zayn Malik surprise the world with their reconciliation on his birthday as they step out to IL Buco with Bella Hadid and Dua Lipa. Pictured: Zayn Malik, Gigi Hadid BACKGRID USA 11 JANUARY 2020 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- New York, NY – Model Gigi Hadid is pregnant, and the dad-to-be is her on-again, off-again singer boyfriend, Zayn Malik. Family sources report that Gigi is 20 weeks along. It’s unclear if they know the sex of the baby yet, but both of their families are very excited. Pictured Here: Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid at the ‘Manus x Machina: Fashion In An Age Of Technology’ Costume Institute Gala at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 2, 2016 in New York City. Pictured: Gigi Hadid, Zayn Malik BACKGRID USA 28 APRIL 2020 BYLINE MUST READ: MediaPunch / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- New York, NY – Supermodel Gigi Hadid welcomes her first child with boyfriend Zayn Malik. Pictured: Zayn Malik, Gigi Hadid BACKGRID USA 23 SEPTEMBER 2020 BYLINE MUST READ: Best Image / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- New York, NY – **FILE PHOTOS** Gigi Hadid and Zayn Malik Break Up After Singer’s Alleged Argument with Her Mom Yolanda. The exes share baby Khai, who’s now 13 months old. **SHOT ON 05/02/2016** Pictured: Gigi Hadid, Zayn Malik BACKGRID USA 29 OCTOBER 2021 BYLINE MUST READ: Best Image / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
So…if he were …checks notes…IN LOVE with the Mother of his child 🫨…he would have been a BETTER version of himself😠…instead of the violent cretin he was😱…so LADIES…it’s up to YOU to ensure HE is enamored enough with YOU…to keep him from posing violence on YOU!🤬
Once again, women are made responsible for men’s behaviour. This is the latest version of “you made me do it”.
This really is unbelievable. Yeah, it’s her responsibility for you to be a good person. That’s how life works.
The lates quite popular version is “she should have chosen a better partner”. Never “he should have been a better partner”. If he had a child with someone he was not in love with, that is on him. Great to inform general public about it.
The NFL player who tried to kill his ex this weekend, his lawyers are already trying to blame her.
Jeez. I’m sure his daughter will love to hear this when she’s older. Totally unnecessary information for public consumption
True
That was my first thought, too. And my second was “Thanks for sharing, douche.”
Oh dear tmi. When doing an interview it’s always a good thing to think before you answer because once it’s out of your mouth you can’t put it back. What a thing to say. He sure is making sure to be alone. Although someone will see this interview and think he could be a keeper.
So if you are in a relationship it’s ok to mistreat someone when you are not in love with them. Had he been in love, he would have been a gentleman. Douche.
Considering how many children have been born to couples who openly hate each other, I don’t find his comments that unusual.
It’s sadly common.
It’s so common that I’m surprised at all the pearl clutching. It might not be something you discuss in public, but who among us doesn’t know the difference between ‘love’ and ‘being in love’?
@werther, the pearl-clutching is about him discussing this in public. It’s beyond gross to imply in an interview that you only ever felt “lust” for a woman who loved you for 6 years and bore your child.
There’s a lot of space in-between, but given the choice of having someone admit they weren’t in love with their former partner vs telling the entire world that they were head-over-heels in love (only for that relationship to spectacularly implode), I’ll take the former.
I’m pretty sure this is one of those podcasts where the questions are pre-approved so he had time to come up with answers beforehand and run them by a publicist. Why say this even if true?
If it weren’t for Simon Cowell taking a chance on him in X Factor, he wouldn’t have a hope in hell of getting anywhere near the likes of Gigi.
First the cheating skier at the Olympics, now this. What is going on????
I have never understood the distinction between “love” and “in love with” someone. Since Zayn seems like a terrible person, and uses this phrase to justify his terrible behavior, I am now freeing myself from feeling like I’m missing something significant.
What a jerk.
He is such a broken, little man. What a creep.
I get what he is saying, how could he hurt someone who he is meant to love. This is more about him than the women. I don’t know much about Zayn at all but I get that. I always think cheaters/abusers can’t truly love someone and then go lie and treat them badly, but I also don’t think he should have said it out loud.
Yeah and I get the “best version of myself” thing. I can relate to being a person I didn’t recognize because I was caught in a toxic dynamic but again, WHY say this out loud, publicly, on a podcast?? Just so hurtful, callous, and unnecessary.
He calls women “females.” The reddest of red flags.
One of many–with this guy. Red flags for days TBH.
“She is the reason 🚩my child🚩 is on this earth…”
YUP. It’s all transactional to him. He sees her as valuable because he got something (a kid) out of her.
Looks like a pretty bad case of the f*ck boi syndrome. This actually makes me think she ended it and didn’t let him restart it. And I guess there’s the time he assaulted her mom.
He’s an asshole. Always has been. To suggest that 6 year relationship—one that produced a whole child—was merely “lust” is nasty work. He’s mad that she’s in love with someone else, so of course he’s trying to retcon his entire relationship with her.
Oh he likes to sleep when he wants to sleep, does he? Good thing he didn’t have a child to keep him up…oh wait. What a scumbag. Saying these things is so very unnecessary. He has hurt her enough.
Is this bitch an aquarius by chance? I can’t be bothered to check after what he said, but that was my first thought. Sadly, it’s something that I have way too much experience dealing with.
Right?! This just screams “absentee father” to me. I don’t doubt he loves his child. But there’s no way he’s taking a big role in her life if he can just sleep as much as he wants and wake up when he wants. That’s impossible when you are actively involved in your small child’s life.
There was no need to announce it publicly.
What an a-hole!
Luckily for me I never wanted children, but I had my dose of “I love you but I am not in love with you” . In my 20’s,at the timthe word “situationship” didn’t exist, but that’s what it is. Basically a man who stays with you because it’s better than being alone, and get to have s&! Without committing too much.
Also: I remember the two of them doing photoshoot together (?).
But he is an immature a-hole for saying this, it’s really hurtful. Don’t get me started with that child…
Plenty of people have kids together when they don’t love each other–friends with benefits, one night stands, unstable long term relationships. I don’t find Zayn’s comments that unusual. Should he have kept them to himself for the sake of his daughter? Of course.
But Gigi and Zayn shouldn’t lie to their daughter either. It does no one any good to lie to a kid and say you were the product of an amazing passionate romance if they weren’t. They don’t need to hear it when they’re young obviously and Gigi and Zayn can have age appropriate conversations as she gets older. But Zayn could have kept his mouth shut.
Can narcissists fall in love with anyone (but themselves)?
I can totally see it. As someone in the comments above pointed it, he probably saw it as a situationship. Or something like that. Grew to have love for her. They have a child together. But was never madly in love with her.
That being said, there’s no reason for him to say this publicly. What he’s saying is hurtful and kind of mean.
I applaud that he’s ok being single. You don’t see that a lot in men, particularly really attractive ones who probably have a lot of options.
Werther, to answer your question, “who among us doesn’t know the difference between love and being in love?” I’d have to answer, “me.” I’ve heard the two versions and it sounds like word salad to me: “I was in love with him, but I didn’t love him.” “I loved him, but I wasn’t in love with him.” It’s a semantic f-ck you in my opinion. So, can anyone explain how you can love a romantic partner, but NOT be in love with them?
To me, “in love” is the early romantic phase. You’re thinking about the other person all the time, wanting to be with them, hanging on their every word and action, etc. It’s based on a big hormonal flood. You’re high on dopamine and oxytocin.
“Love” is when all of that calms down and goes into a long-term thing. It’s attachment and knowing someone. You can also feel “love” for family and friends.
Sometimes when the “in love” phase calms down (and it always does) … you find you don’t really “love” the person. Maybe you don’t even like them that much. But you can “love,” for example, a guy friend but not be “in love” with him.
Ugh, what is with these dudes oversharing their personal lives this week? First the Olympics guy, now this. So messy and so unnecessary. The world doesn’t need this information.
This is what happens when you make mediocre men famous – yuck! What a dimwit.
Bobbi, thank you. You explained the difference perfectly and I agree with you.