BY BRITTANY CHALMERS

Staff Writer

In his debut album after leaving One Direction, Zayn Malik proves his talent as a solo artist in Mind of Mine. With a much different sound than he had in previous years, he relies on both electronic background music and his wide vocal range to create a sound somewhat similar to The Weeknd. Malik was known for his high notes in his One Direction days, and his solo music is no different. With his newfound freedom to write lyrics without restriction, his songs are naturally more mature than fans are used to hearing from him. He built the suspense for his album release with the massive success of his first single, “Pillowtalk.” Songs like “Wrong” and “Like I Would” are fun and easy to dance to. However, there are also songs like “It’s You” and “Fool For You,” which are slow and relaxed without becoming boring or uninteresting. Overall, Malik shows his ability to write both bass-heavy electronic songs and relaxing piano melodies.