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Zayn Malik shocked fans at a recent concert by singing a One Direction song for the first time in a decade.
For his first concert in Mexico as part of his Stairway to the Sky tour on Tuesday (March 25), the "Pillowtalk" singer honored his time in one of the biggest boybands ever by singing the group's hit song "Night Changes," from their 2014 album Four, per E! News.
As soon as the crowd heard the opening notes of the song and realized what was about to happen, they immediately began cheering and singing along. After the performance, Zayn, who was overwhelmed with the crowd's response to the song, acknowledged the special performance.
"It's the first time I sang that song in 10 years," he told the crowd. "Thank you, that was f---ing amazing. I almost cried at one point. This is insane."
The surprise performance also coincided with a major milestone in Zayn's career — the 10th anniversary of the day he announced his departure from 1D. On March 25, 2015, the musician wrote in a Facebook post that he felt it was the "right time" for him to step away from the band so he could enjoy "some private time out of the spotlight."
Over the years, Zayn seemingly still kept in touch with his former bandmates, which included Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson. Earlier this year, he even gave the latter a shoutout on stage when Tomlinson caught one of his shows. He also penned a heartbreaking message to Payne after his tragic death in October 2024 mourning the loss of his "brother."