Zayn
Pillowtalk
«Pillowtalk» is the debut solo single by English singer and songwriter Zayn, for his debut solo studio album Mind of Mine. He co-wrote the track with Anthony Hannides, Michael Hannides, Joe Garrett, and its producer Levi Lennox. The song was released as the lead single from the album on 26 January 2016 along with its own music video, which featured his girlfriend at the time, American model Gigi Hadid. It is Zayn’s first single released after his departure from One Direction in March 2015. It debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot 100, making Malik the first British artist to debut at number one in the US with a debut single. It reached 1 billion views in YouTube on 23 September 2020.
Track information
- Released 29 January 2016
- Recorded 2015
- Genre
Alternative, R&Belectronic - Label RCA
- Songwriter(s)
Zayn MalikLevi LennoxAnthony HannidesMichael HannidesJoe Garrett
Background and release
After signing a recording deal with RCA Records, Zayn gave several interviews with music magazines, such as The Fader and Billboard, to talk about his debut record. He stated «life experiences have been the influences for the album and just stuff that I’ve been through, especially in the last five years.» He said the record will musically lean towards R&B, but will also have some tunes leaning towards R&B-rock or reggae. Zayn’s solo debut album Mind of Mine was released on 25 March 2016. On 24 January 2016, Zayn revealed the release date and promotional cover-art of the lead single «Pillowtalk» through Twitter. It is Zayn’s debut solo single after he left One Direction in March 2015. Zayn wrote the song shortly after leaving the group, in collaboration with co-writers Mike and Anthony Hannides. Speaking about his new single with The Sunday Times, Zayn said that «Pillowtalk» was written about sex, which he described as «so pure, so dirty and raw,» adding, «everybody has sex, and it’s something people wanna hear about. It’s part of everybody’s life, a very big part of life. And you don’t want to sweep it under the carpet. The song was inspired about and written shortly before he split from his ex-fiancé, Little Mix’s Perrie Edwards. Subsequently, «Pillowtalk» was made available for digital download in most countries worldwide via the iTunes Store on 29 January 2016. It achieved worldwide success by topping the charts in a variety of markets, with combined sales and track-equivalent streams of 8 million units according to IFPI.
Chart performance
«Pillowtalk» debuted atop the US Billboard Hot 100 for the chart issue dated 20 February 2016, becoming the 25th song ever to debut at number one on the chart. This makes him the first UK artist to debut at number one on the Hot 100 with a first charted single, and the third UK act to start at the summit (following Elton John’s «Candle in the Wind 1997» and Adele’s «Hello»). It also marks the first number one debut for an artist’s first Hot 100 entry since Baauer’s «Harlem Shake» (2 March 2013). «Pillowtalk» charted higher than any One Direction single, the highest being number two for «Best Song Ever» in 2013. Zayn is the first one-time member of a Hot 100-charting boy band to score a number one with a debut single since George Harrison, the former Beatle who launched with «My Sweet Lord» in 1970. The single’s performance propelled Zayn to number six on the Billboard Artist 100 chart. «Pillowtalk» replaced Justin Bieber’s «Love Yourself» at the summit of the Hot 100 for one week, before dropping to number seven the following week, and then rebounding to number six the week after. Following the release of Mind of Mine, «Pillowtalk» rebounded to number four on the Hot 100. It reached the Mainstream Top 40 top spot for the chart issue dated 7 May 2016, surpassing One Direction’s number-three peak (with «What Makes You Beautiful» in 2012). Zayn is the first former boy band member to top the Mainstream Top 40 with a debut entry since former Menudo member Ricky Martin’s «Livin’ la Vida Loca» in 1999.
In the United States, «Pillowtalk» sold 267,000 copies in its first week, along with 22.3 million streams, the fourth-largest streaming start ever, opening atop the Digital Songs and Streaming Songs charts; it also debuted at number one on the subscription services-based On-Demand Songs chart, with 12.7 million on-demand streams.[59] It garnered 5.9 million in all-format radio audience in the first three days of the Hot 100’s airplay tracking week, and boasted 17 million in radio audience for the week. It was the year’s second biggest first-week seller.[67] «Pillowtalk» had the fastest airplay gain on radio in its second week, when it gained 64% on the Radio Songs chart with 29 million audience impressions,[61] and had 16.9 million streams that week, followed by 17.4 million streams and 38 million audience impressions in its third week, 46 million audience impressions in the fourth week, and 17.2 million streams and 53 million audience impressions the fifth week. It became the top Airplay Gainer in its sixth week, with a 21 percent gain to 65 million audience impressions, followed by 69 million audiences impressions in its seventh week, and 17 million streams in its eighth week. By June 2016, it had sold 1.288 million in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
DID YOU KNOW THAT?
Zayn Malik’s debut single following his departure from One Direction is a downtempo electronic R&B song containing adult imagery and plenty of F-bombs. It represents a break from the pop tunes he previously sung as a boyband member. Malik co-wrote the song with Anthony Hannides and Michael Hannides of MYKL and Levi Lennox, who also produced the track.
Sex was clearly on Malik’s mind when penning the track. He told The Sunday Times: «(The song is) pretty black and white. Everybody has sex, and it’s something people want to hear about. It’s part of everybody’s life, a very big part of life! And you don’t want to sweep it under the carpet. It has to be talked about.
The song’s steamy music video was directed by Bouha Kazmi and finds Malik navigating a sexual fantasy. It features his rumoured girlfriend, the model Gigi Hadid, who also showed up in Taylor Swift’s «Bad Blood» and Calvin Harris’ «How Deep Is Your Love» clips.
Zayn penned the song not long after leaving One Direction. «Basically, I wrote that shortly after I left the band,» he said. «Got in the studio with a couple of writers that go by the name of Mike and Anthony Hannides. We wrote that song around the time that I was feeling those emotions and I feel like that’s why it came out the way it did. I feel like in the vocal you can get a sense that I’m meaning what I’m saying.
