Zayn Malik revealed he despises the term ‘celebrity’ and considers it a dangerous word as it can make people feel more superior. The star also warns that it often attracts the wrong crowd, with many wishing to hang out simply because of a person’s status.

He told Highsnobiety magazine: “I hate the word celebrity. I think it’s a dangerous road to go down, thinking of yourself as a celebrity, because then you somehow automatically think that label makes you superior to other people. Some people just want to hang around you because they know your name … I can see through that bulls**t a mile off.”

Meanwhile, the singer had previously admitted he feels much better now as a solo artist, allowing him to try something different and develop his own identity.

He said: “I just knew it was my time. I knew I wanted to do something different and start expressing the way I felt about certain things …

I know that musicians are seen as one-sided people a lot of the time. But we do have other elements to us as well. I didn’t feel good. Do you know what I mean? And if you don’t feel good … You need to be able to express what it is that you are. I’m free at last.”

Despite enjoying a successful career, he admitted to have faced some difficulty with “built-up anxiety” when preparing his first single.

“There was a lot of built-up anxiety to create this thing. You don’t really know what’s going to happen. So when that song [his debut single ‘PILLOWTALK‘] went out, and I saw the reaction from the fans, that took a little weight off me for a bit. Obviously, there’s still a lot of pressure. I don’t want to be a one-hit wonder, so I’ve got a lot of work to do.”

The star has occasionally suffered from anxiety in front of crowds, but this is something he is gradually working on and fans have reportedly been very understanding.