ZAYN Malik has announced his first ever headline solo concert after years of crippling anxiety.
The Pillowtalk singer will perform at the 2,000-capacity Shepherd’s Bush Empire in London on May 17 – which is the same day his fourth album Room Under The Stairs is released.
He is planning to perform tracks from the new record as well as premiering a documentary called The Road Back To The Mic.
Zayn‘s fans were in shock. One penned beneath his post: “Cryingggg” and another celebrated in the comments: “Zayn is back!”
They’ll only be able to purchase tickets through his official album pre-sale link.
The shock U-turn comes eight years after he pulled out of a headline slot at Capital’s Summertime Ball minutes before he was due on stage.
He had played a short set at Wango Tango festival in California earlier in 2016 and also sang on The Voice USA, but has not done any shows since.
In a post on Instagram after failing to take to the stage at Wembley Stadium for the Capital gig, he said: “Unfortunately, my anxiety that has haunted me throughout the last few months around live performances has gotten the better of me.
“With the magnitude of the event, I have suffered the worst anxiety of my career. I cannot apologise enough.
“I promise I will do my best to make this up to everybody I’ve let down today.”
The performance in a fortnight will come ten years after his last full-length concert in the UK, when he played in stadiums across the nation on One Direction’s Where We Are tour.
Speaking in 2017, he said he was managing his anxiety by “just being straight up.”
Asked about how he eases it, he explained: “Just being honest about everything, explaining what it is that makes you feel uncomfortable, what it is that you’re cool with.
“And making sure that all of that is in order and everyone’s got a clear understanding of what that is.”
