Zayn Malik Details Psychedelic Influences & Love of The Beatles

One week from now, former One Direction singer and current pop-star Zayn Malik will share his debut autobiography, Zayn. To promote the book, the “Pillowtalk” musician has published select sections from Zayn, including stories about his father and his go-to producer, Malay. Reconnecting with The FADER, Zayn Malik has liberated another part of his upcoming autobiography, this time shedding light on the final stages of the Mind of Mine creative process and his psychedelic, Beatles-dominated influences.

Zayn Malik’s new book will officially see release on November 1 via Penguin Random House.

On Mind of Mine process:
When I’d finally finished recording Mind of Mine, I realized I had put down forty-eight songs. I couldn’t believe we had so many. It was a nightmare choosing the final list, especially because all the songs meant a lot to me, and I procrastinated as much as I could before making my decision. In the end, it all came together; the songs chosen for the album spoke for themselves.

On psychedelic and Beatles inspirations:
I’d been listening to a lot of tracks by the Beatles when I was working on it. I had really got into some of their more psychedelic stuff, like ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds’ from the 1967 album Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. The piano chords at the start of ‘Fool for You,’ and the guitars, were inspired by the Beatles’ sound…I like to draw on the influence of all sorts of music and artists.