Harry Styles Responds to Zayn Malik's Harsh Comments About One Direction: "It's a Shame He Felt That Way"

With One Direction on an indefinite hiatus since Zayn Malik’s departure and the end of their 2015 tour, fans have been waiting for their favorites to make their solo debut. Harry Styles is currently having his “moment.” He appeared on Saturday Night Live last weekend, and now Rolling Stone has released an epic profile on his life in the last few years.

Despite the drama and uncertainty of their breakup, Harry has nothing bad to say about the group. In fact, he’s not even closing the door on making music with them again.

"I love the band,” he says, “And would never rule out anything in the future. The band changed my life, gave me everything."

But that doesn’t mean he’s regretting this solo adventure, saying, "I wanted to step up. There were songs I wanted to write and record, and not just have it be 'Here's a demo I wrote.' Every decision I've made since I was 16 was made in a democracy. I felt like it was time to make a decision about the future  ...  and maybe I shouldn't rely on others."

Harry’s interviewer, Cameron Crowe, mentions some of the negative stuff that his fellow bandmates didn’t so graciously withhold, specifically Zayn Malik who criticized One Direction’s sound after his departure and disparaged the taste of his bandmates. Cameron shares this quote from Zayn with Harry:

"[One D is] not music that I would listen to. If I was sat at a dinner date with a girl, I would play some cool sh**, you know what I mean? I want to make music that I think is cool sh**. I don't think that's too much to ask for."

"I think it's a shame he felt that way," Harry responds, gracious and handsome as ever, "But I never wish anything but luck to anyone doing what they love. If you're not enjoying something and need to do something else, you absolutely should do that. I'm glad he's doing what he likes, and good luck to him."

Very diplomatic! Could he be as diplomatic when asked for the eight billionth time about his distant relationship with Taylor Swift?

"I gotta pee first. This might be a long one," Harry jokes with Cameron, "Actually, you can say, 'He went for a pee and never came back.' "

Eventually, Harry reflects on the viral images of he and Taylor walking through the park side by side.

"When I see photos from that day," he says, "I think: Relationships are hard, at any age. And adding in that you don't really understand exactly how it works when you're 18, trying to navigate all that stuff didn't make it easier. I mean, you're a little bit awkward to begin with. You're on a date with someone you really like. It should be that simple, right? It was a learning experience for sure. But at the heart of it – I just wanted it to be a normal date."

"I don't know," he adds, "Certain things don't work out. There's a lot of things that can be right, and it's still wrong. In writing songs about stuff like that, I like tipping a hat to the time together. You're celebrating the fact it was powerful and made you feel something, rather than 'this didn't work out, and that's bad.' And if you run into that person, maybe it's awkward, maybe you have to get drunk ... but you shared something. Meeting someone new, sharing those experiences, it's the best sh** ever. So thank you."

Again, extremely diplomatic. What a gentlemen. If he keeps this up he may end up being the Justin Timberlake of this group.