Singer Zayn Malik famously quit boyband One Direction back in March 2015 in order to pursue a solo career and music mogul Simon Cowell has praised his new material.

Cowell told Yahoo! Celebrity that he has heard some of Malik's solo songs and thinks he will do very well with what he plans to release:

“I’m not interested in a single word he says, but I am interested in what he sings. I’ve heard it, it’s good, he’s going to do well.”

Back in November, Cowell told the press that Malik's departure didn't come as a surprise because he knew the young vocalist was unhappy: "I knew Zayn was going before it happened. He was unhappy. My concern was actually for the boys. Zayn wasn't in a great place but it was his decision to leave, he wasn't kicked out. He wanted to distance himself. My responsibility was to the boys because they had no warning."

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Watch Zayn Malik's Fader cover shoot here: