Simon Cowell has admitted he was so panicked by the news that Zayn Malik wanted to leave One Direction, he was 'about to jump off a cliff'.
The music mogul helps guide the career of the boyband, which he put together on The X Factor, and told James Corden during a guest appearance on The Late Late Show that he felt just as bad as some of their fans about Zayn quitting.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vf2dKBxk5g&feature=oembed
Asked by James where he was when he heard the news, he said: “I was about to jump off a cliff.
“I kind of knew this was coming to be honest. I’d had a few conversations with him, he wasn’t happy and I was trying to say to him, ‘No, I think you should stay around a bit longer’. But something inside him said he’d had enough.”
He added: “I saw him in person as well – but once someone has made their mind up they are going to go.
“At the same time I don’t want to push him too much because he’s 22 and I could see he was a bit stressed and needed some time off.”
Simon Cowell with One Direction (Ian West/PA)
Simon also said he felt the need to play the father figure to the other group members – Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne and Niall Horan – to make sure they were OK.
He said: “Once the decision was made I dealt with it, then I made sure the guys were OK – because they were shocked as well. So I had to respect his decision.
“For the boys it was interesting because they were in the middle of these live shows at the time. Then I watched the show back and they were incredible… I have a feeling they are going to deliver the best record they have ever made.”
One Direction are working on their fifth album, which will be their first as a four-piece.
