#zayn vs ot4 narrative

[ohthathurt]

Hello. Okay maybe i'm sceptical but why Zayn unfollowed all boys if he fight? I don't this someone did that. So why?

Hi anon,

You’re saying this under the assumption that his social medias are all under his own control, which is completely false. We all know by now social media managers are a thing. Sponsors and product placements are a thing too. So why not influencers?

When they feel the need for that push, for that ‘extra drama’ they go for it and the result is some measly articles for a week and fandom drama for decades.

By now it’s happened so many times that we’ve just developed a thick skin to it (or at least I hope we have) and continue believing that nothing can or ever will break ot5.

And just for that I wanted to add this:

[twopoppies]

Hi I'm the zourry fallout anon (sending this again bc I had internet issues last time I tried) so I went through your links and I'm still confused. On one hand Zayn said Harry was his rock on the other he said they never talked then there's Harry shading him during mitam promo so what exactly happened between them? And I know this is the same "friendship ruined" narrative w Larry but what makes this one believable? Also does Zayn still talk to any of the other boys besides Larry?

So, I think the links I gave you weren’t the best... I thought they were a bit more comprehensive, but it was mainly about zarry as a possible romantic relationship. I know I’ve talked about all of this before, but I just can’t find it. I’ll try and be brief because I don’t have the energy or interest to really be meticulous.

I don’t really think there’s a particular “friendship ruined” narrative between Z and H. Zayn made that comment, H had those snarky moments (which I think were genuine), and that’s pretty much it. There’s been a push for Harry vs OT4/5 for ages, so if there’s more of a separation seen, it could be that. Additionally, whatever fallout Louis has with Z is going to factor in to how Harry feels. I think there was more of a narrative being pushed of Zayn was over one direction and had moved on, but his few in person interviewed seem to negate that.

I think Zayn was really struggling during that last couple of years with the band—his anxiety, his eating disorder, possible drug use etc. and all that puts a lot of pressure on the other boys to protect him, help him, carry his weight etc. Some people think that Louis, in particular, tried to help Zayn and that he put a lot of energy towards that (because that’s how Louis is as a friend). So it’s possible that Zayn leaving really hurt Louis on a different level (which then hurt Harry). There’s also the theory that a coming out for HL was a carrot that was dangled for them at the end of 2014 into the beginning of 2015, but Zayn leaving unexpectedly early was used as an excuse to rescind that offer. If that was true, it could be another reason to have some leftover anger towards him.

On top of all of this, we now know for sure that all of them were dealing with huge amounts of pressure, some with the addition of mental health issues, addiction etc. As much as they could have understood Zayn absolutely needed to leave, I’m sure there were angry and hurt feelings as well.

I hope that helps a little. I’m honestly not the best person to talk about this with, but maybe someone who’s more of an OT5 blog would have more insight?

[myohmine]

1D as city and why

Nialler = Geneva, Switzerland

(Peace out of participating in #LARENTS closet from day one. Never gone along with Zayn-VS-OT4 narrative #march17 #ziallHoliday)

H = Paris, France + Venice, Italy

(Live, breathe, and eat fashion. Plus obsession with boats & blue. Get away with rule-bending + verbal savagery due to the power of cute.)

Tommo = Doncaster, England

(A thousand years from now, still nobody could pry it from his cold dead hands. Don’t even think about trying. HOW VERY DARE YOU.)

Payno = Japan, Sydney

(this is not a drill. Both dinosaur (exhibition) and Japan (Foundation) are legitimately in Australia where Koalas will welcome all with Chlamydia.)

Zayn = Solar system, the Earth, the sun, the moon, the galaxy, the universe

This entire glitchy stimulation got nothing on his unfuckwitable connexion to the power that be. He IS the power that be.

[verseziam]

i can’t wait to be the only ziam stan left supporting both liam and zayn on this trash ass site im still going to be supporting ziam and all of yall who are dragging liam that are suppose ziam stans will come running back in a couple of months when liam throws shade and says something great about zayn :) 

[backonefish]

The proper way to handle a band member leaving: the Backstreet Boys edition

As with everything One Direction does, I often think back to my original loves. The more complicated and messy One Direction’s situation, the more I wonder, what would have been the proper way to handle things. 

Situation 1: AJ Going to Rehab

Half way through the Black and Blue tour (BSB’s 4th --- whoa coincidence) when they were at the height of fame, out of the blue, it was announced that AJ, was dealing with an addiction to drugs and alcohol. 

I unfortunately cannot find the original announcement made on TRL, but this video should suffice. BSB postponed their tour for 6 months so AJ could go to rehab. They talked about his addictions, were open and honest with the fans, and in every single interview, were respectful. I remember crying when I learned about this, and fell more in love with every one of the boys.

The 1D way: Contrast this to Zayn’s departure. The original statement said that Zayn was leaving for mental illness. Which is nothing to be ashamed of. Instead of being honest with the fans, taking some time to talk about why he was leaving, how it was going to impact the other four, we got some shitty ass FB post and everyone carried on like he was never there. We spent the next months of the tour scratching our heads going.... what. just. happened?

Situation 2: The Hiatus

After the Black and Blue tour, the boys were burnt out. Sounds familiar? They all took some time off to just relax and do their thing. They made no promises of returning. Nick and Brian both released solo music, AJ continued to work on his sobriety and I’m not sure what Kevin and Howie were doing at that time, but I can assure you, there was no shitting on the band members. 

The 1D way: Contrast this to how 1D left without touring their last album. To how they promised they’d be back, gave a time frame, and now aren’t sticking to it. To how, even in their hiatus, they’re managing to be shady and problematic. 

Situation 3: Kevin Leaving... and Subsequent Return

Once the Never Gone tour was done, Kevin decided he didn’t want to be in the band anymore, so he left. Well, he first finished the Never Gone tour, then he left. For the longest time, the BSB website featured a pair of empty sneakers to symbolise his place. Every single interview they did to promote Unbreakable, their first album as a quartet asked them about Kevin leaving. And in every single interview, they gave the same answer, they said it with respect and there was always love. Yes, the remaining four were unhappy with the situation, Nick mentioned a couple of times that it was easier without Kevin because they could experiment more, but it was never said with malice. It was never rude or derogatory or offensive to Kevin in any way.

Kevin stayed low, he did his own thing. Then their second album as a quartet, This is Us came out, and on this press junket, they weren’t asked about Kevin. Him leaving was no longer news. They carried on and if he was ever brought up, it was in a positive manner. 

Kevin went on to return 6 years later. They released another album, just finished a stint in Vegas, and ONE DAY ARE TO GRACE ME WITH NEW MUSIC. I digress. 

The 1D way: As already mentioned, why did Zayn rush to push out music even though he’d originally left to take some time away from the limelight? Why did he leave mid tour? Why did they know he was leaving, were fine with him from Nov 2014 to April 2015, and then suddenly decide wait we actually don’t like each other and the best place to air their grievances was through Twitter? Why, during the MITAM and now solo promo, aren’t they able to remain professionals and speak of him in a positive way? 

The point is, aside from their sexuality and a talent show, there are a lot of similarities between the two biggest boybands of their generation. These situations have occurred before and they’ve been handled well. This is how they should be handled. 

Don’t come at me saying Liam, Niall, Louis, and Harry hate Zayn and vice versa, because if that was truly the case, they wouldn’t constantly be talking about it. It’s sucky that so many people are hurt by Liam’s recent comments, that so many people are celebrating Liam’s recent comments, but when one of your band members has left, the media trained professional thing to do, is to not constantly talk about him in a negative light. 

Unless its some piss poor PR strategy, served to drive the narrative of Zayn vs. OT4 even further and make an already shady situation even shadier. 

[quietzap]

One Direction reunion 'takes step closer' but 'Zayn Malik still ignoring calls' So Zayn vs ot4 narrative is started.

From the Mirror. Now the question is, is this part of a reconciliation narrative? It means something that officially, the boys are reaching out to Zayn. So now maybe this will lead to Zayn calling back and then conversations and boom ot5 reunion. Or nothing will happen and it's just tabloids being annoying but who knows, shady stuff. Though I wish Zayn would stop being portrayed negatively so they'd better shut up or hurry up with the official reconciliation 😒

[neonredglow]

Cate what I don’t get about zouiam vs narry. Aren’t all five of them supposed to be under contract still ? If she why don’t narry get the same treatment as zouiam. Because narry has toured and released albums. Lilo haven’t don’t either and Z has two amazing albums but hadn’t toured. And I know some people say that narry never got “punished” hoe fucked up would that be that they would let their band mates take all the bad ? I jist as so confused about this.

it is very likely that the x factor uk contract that they all signed is supposed to last for 10 years, given the other leaked contracts from other shows simon’s run and what kelly clarkson has said about american idol. if this is true, then 10 years is 2020 so simon still has control over each of their public images (not their music.) it would also appear that syco’s (and i believe modest’s) contract with one direction is not complete yet either given the release of the souvenir edition of uan through syco. also for context, in 2010 1d signed with syco to release 3 albums and in 2013 they resigned to release 3 more (5+1) albums. 1d has released 5 albums. (i know there’s been a lot of theories about the +1 bit, like maybe being fulfilled by mom, the perfect ep, etc but the release of the new uan edition in the us makes me think it hasn’t been fulfilled yet- perhaps a greatest hits album? around the 10th anniversary next year?) so all of them (except zayn) are still “1d members” meaning syco/modest will have some say over how they are portrayed (for lack of a better word) cause that affects how the band is portrayed (generally i think that syco/modest want ot4 to be publicly united as that would best serve the future of the band they own and that’s the official 1d narrative and anything that goes against that is not)

ok, so narry vs zouiam, a tale as old as time. louis is still signed to syco & zayn was passed onto rca by syco without the ability to negotiate his own contract. louis we know pissed people at syco off when he fought for 1d to have their own sound (and generally fought for the band) so it’s no surprise that they have sabotaged his music (and it’s no surprise that when he signs to new management & a new american label in addition that his music actually gets released/promoted.) zayn would have had no say on his contract, so no surprise that it wasn’t what he wanted. and rca has a reputation for fucking their artists over anyway so. and as for liam, republic used to support him back when he first went solo really up until their ceo got fired and replaced in like october(?) 2017. and then later ariana (another republic artist) made her comeback and republic seemingly put all of their time/money into her and then taylor (yet another republic artist) made her comeback and then republic seemingly put all of their time/money into her. and yet a coincidence that things really seemed to have gone downhill for liam after ariana released no tears left to cry and only started to pick back up after taylor released her album. narry, i think, both have good relationships with their record labels

as for narry sitting back while zouiam got “punished” well.... narry never appeared to have done anything that needed to be “punished.” all of zouiam in some way, shape, or form acted out against simon, syco, and/or modest. narry never did (as far as we know.) so yeah, narry are in better situations than zouiam both in terms of their public images and their music. and it wouldn’t be fair if their public images were just as shitty as zouiam’s cause they never did anything to “warrant” it

[justapayneaway]

I'm a little bit surprised that Liam could mention him with all the ot4 vs Zayn narrative going on right now. It's a bit confusing. Him mention Zayn is probably so normal for him that he doesn't even really register himself talking about Zayn.

I think he is allowed to do it... he has been doing it since he started promo as a solo artist. I do think that you see the difference in ot4 vs Zayn though, since last year. 

His team tried to create the distance especially with all the mentions of how Zayn left the band and probably won’t come back. But then you see when Liam mentions Zayn with fondness and a lot of know-how about what he does. So for me it’s all about reading between the lines. 

[yaz-the-spaz]

I'm sure you've noticed me stalking your blog these past two days lol and I have another question if you dont mind. In my last ask you said you had some theories about zayn leaving ot4vszayn etc and I was wondering if you would expand upon them? If you dont want to write it all out, you can point me towards certain tags or other blogs if you want. I've been looking through your tags and have found a lot but I wanted to know if there is something that might be more like a timeline of sorts? Thx!!

hey there! here i finally am, so sorry to have kept you waiting but i hope this reply finds you well! :) 

now onto your questions…

so as far as a timelines @bakagamieru has some really good masterposts (x, x) that i would recommend checking out that really break things down play-by-play and i think most of which was compiled as it was happening so it’s a super great (and super detailed) documentation of all the shit that was going down during that period and all the narrative inconsistencies and stunts and back and forth, etc. they’re quite long though and, like i said, very detailed so i would recommend making sure you have plenty of time on your hands before you get sucked down a masterpost and link rabbit hole lol

and for more thoughts/theories of mine i would say check my zayn vs. ot4 tags (x, x - sorry there’s multiple iterations of this, apparently sometimes i had put a period after vs and sometimes i didn’t and now i have two tags smh at my own damn irritating inconsistency)

now onto the meat of your question, which is my current theories on zayn leaving/the zayn vs. ot4 narrative which i’m gonna put as a read more cause i’m not in the mood for ppl coming for me if they disagree, so read at your own risk folks…

so over the years there’s four main theories that i’ve personally gone back and forth over, which i’m gonna summarize quickly and try and explain as succinctly as i can my thoughts on each one and my opinion on the likelihood of it holding credence

disclaimer before i get into the explanations - a large part of my reasoning has to do with the caveat of there possibly being any kind of real tension or bad blood between zayn and louis in particular or any of the other boys. not saying that it was necessarily actually the case, just that it was a potential factor that went into my rationale and personal mental debate over the whole situation

he was coerced in some shape or form to leave and instead of fighting it, went along with it (maybe b/c he was already unhappy) - if there ever was actually any real animosity between him and louis (or harry/niall), this could explain why louis (or the others) might have hypothetically been mad at him b/c he might have felt that zayn could’ve/didn’t fight hard enough or went along with it too easily. but all that aside, even if there was no tension between him and louis/the boys, this option makes a lot of sense because given all he talked about going through in the band (depression, the e.d., too much pressure, not having control or being able to do what he wanted, the intense and rampant closeting putting a strain on his relationship, etc.) it’s not hard to see how he might’ve felt this was the best and only option

he was coerced into leaving, tried to fight it but couldn’t (and possibly even knew for a while that it was coming) - this wouldn’t explain why louis (or the others) might have hypothetically been mad at him but instead does put more credence into the fact that that was completely contrived and pushed by mgmt, and is also just as likely as #1 to me for pretty much the same reasons, not to mention it explains some shady things that happened in the months leading up to it re him not being there for certain promo obligations and appearances, etc.

he was coerced into leaving and had absolutely no choice about it and no way to fight it (i.e. didn’t necessarily want to leave but still knew for a while that it was coming) - pretty much same reasoning as above for this one, the only difference being that in this scenario he wouldn’t have wanted to leave at all which given all he went through i just don’t know if i believe that was wholly the case (more on this below) 

he chose to leave completely on his own - although it would explain any lingering animosity, this to me is the least likely in large part because i just have a hard time believing he would have chosen all on his own to just up and leave in the middle of a tour, not to mention been allowed to (esp given that they would’ve all known they had the hiatus coming up not long after and were about to go the countries where zayn specifically probably have had the biggest following/fan support - the middle east and north africa). but even if he hypothetically really did choose it all on its own it’s hard for me to believe that he would have even been able to leave like that unless there was some element of complacency from their mgmt that allowed it to happen and then you have to wonder why would they just let 1/5 of their biggest money maker walk away with no law suits, no drama, no nothing. it stinks of a larger plan at play which is what brings me back to the theories above. 

those are the main theories that i’ve gone back and forth on and i’ve never really been able to settle on just one, but to me given all that he expressed after leaving the most likely are the first two. i think all of the boys were pretty much done with how they were being treated, but zayn especially so, and it’s very easy for me to see how, when the opportunity arose he might have accepted because he felt it was the best way to save himself (as in his mental and physical health) and possibly also his relationship, though whether that acceptance was with a little (theory #1) or lot (theory #2) of initial opposition on his part, who’s to say. however, i definitely believe that, regardless of the details, there was some element of seeding and/or coercion from tptb, esp when considered in context with the shadiness of certain things, like him not being at certain events that he should’ve legally been obligated to be at in the months leading up to his leaving if no one but him knew he was planning on leaving. or him crying at the last concert that he performed at. those do not seem to be like the actions of a man who wanted to leave completely of his own accord and without any degree of finessing by mgmt to orchestrate it. when you’re a mega popstar in the biggest band in the world you don’t just not show up to something. that’s the type of situation where people will literally come to your house and drag you out of bed because you’re costing them a shit ton of money (like millions of dollars worth of money) by not being there. there’s tons of stories of rock stars where managers or someone from their team would literally go bang down a missing band member’s door, shove them in the shower to sober them up or help them whatever they needed to do, and drag their ass on stage to perform or to a press event or whatever. so you can bet that nothing less, if not the same, would be done for a missing member of a multi-billion-dollar-making band if need be. 

so yeah zayn just not showing up for promo events and performances in the months leading up to his leaving? not believable to me at all. the only conceivable reason for him not to have been there is if mgmt didn’t want him there and the only reason (at least that i can think of) for why you wouldn’t 1/5 of your biggest money-maker to be somewhere he should have been legally obligated to be (and that might’ve cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars for him not to be) is if he wasn’t legally obligated to be there because you were already in the process of phasing him out. ergo it was very likely planned. months in advance. and if it was planned months in advance with the help and orchestration of mgmt then that story of him just deciding to up and leave is complete bs and makes it even more likely to me that there was a level of coercion (because again if 1/5 of your biggest money maker suddenly says to you ‘i wanna leave’ you’re gonna do everything in your power to make him stay so you can keep making money, not help phase him out. unless of course you want him out, which they clearly did.)

one last thing i wanna add is a link to a post i had saved that i feel adds a bit of further credence to all this, it’s nothing concrete but it’s something that helped solidify some things for me when i was a giant ball of confusion over what to believe

anyway, i know that i rambled on forever and this definitely did not end up being as succinct or brief as i had hoped (though lbr when is anything i do ever), but i hope this at least sort of answered your questions and made some amount of sense/was not too incoherent and didn’t completely bore you to death lol

[britishhusbands]

Okay can i just.. like even tho i’m absolutely positive the boys went through shit, it doesn’t change the fact that zayn up and left them to deal with the bullshit without him and it doesn’t change the things he’s said and done - and although I’m sure it came from a place of hurt and frustration and all that, that still doesn’t make it right. I was heartbroken for him when he left, thinking of how he must feel, but i’ve realized he plays the role of a victim a bit too well..

i mean the thing is we don’t know what really happened behind the scenes so personally i don’t blame zayn or any of the other boys. i just think it was a shitty situation overall cause ALL of them were overworked and it was a high stress environment that just culminated to zayn leaving. like i think in hindsight there were clues to zayn leaving him not attending 1D orlando etc. also the widely believed theory (and i also believe this tbh) that he was originally supposed to leave after otra dubai but then things happened bts that led to him just leaving earlier than planned which i think is probably why things soured between him and the other boys. not to mention, how harry wasn’t even interacting with him the entire otra which was also another red flag that people (including me) just ignored.

most importantly, i also think people are forgetting the fact that zayn situation as the only poc in the band was also really horrendous. their team basically erased his identity and religion and even literally pretended that his dad (who is happily married to his mom btw) did not exist. aka filling the “oh look a poc with a single mom stereotype” even if it’s not even true? not to mention, that i think zayn’s creativity wise leaned more towards r&b which isn’t a match to 1D’s sound so that was probably another factor. his new solo team exploiting the ‘ot4 vs zayn’ narrative is a choice and strategy they decided to go with specially in the beginning to distance zayn from “1D”. to have his own brand and recognition of being a solo artist. i mean it sucks and i’m sure the other boys were also very hurt but it’s literally a marketing tactic like this is the best way to create buzz and headlines so i mean i get why people are still mad about it but also this is business and that is literally why pillowtalk became #1 immediately.

idk i just think they need time to heal and i mean niam i think started talking to him again so little by little we will get a slow burn reconciliation eventually because all of them are still satly and angsty over it. this song is the first step lmao ½ joking but also ot5 please just communicate.

[ssfoc]

Opinion on why harry on his part always stuck with the OT3 vs Harry narrative? Like he hardly interacts with them on stage. He did not publicly hang out with them even on the last party of the band.

Difficult, difficult question. When the forced separation between Harry and Louis started, in 2012, they went through a period of painful withdrawal-- the self-censorship, the withdrawn touches, the secret signals. The others were encouraged to be more touchy, to draw attention away from Harry and Louis. Both of them resented it. Then the serial winter girlfriends for Harry, Eleanor for Louis, no-chill November 2014. The stunts escalated. Then babygate in the middle of OTRA, 2015. These were all to enforce certain images for Harry and Louis. I think that at some point, Harry decided that no interaction was better than fake interactions. If he had to separate himself from Louis, he wasn't going to fake it with anyone else. Did he really not have any interaction with OT3? I mean, he wrote a song with Louis ("Perfect"). An update account had to tell us that they weren't in the same room. This was the level of panic and pettiness that 1DHQ was reduced to. At some point, Harry decided that what 1DHQ wanted-- solo Harry-- was something he wanted too. Except there would be no benefit to Simon. Enter the Azoff family. I do think that solo Harry was set in motion years ago, possibly as early as 2013. The band stayed long enough to fulfill their contract obligations (all except Zayn). I do think that Zayn's leaving potentially disrupted their contract in some way, and Harry and Louis' shade wasn't only because of feelings of disloyalty. Maybe it really was about the paperwork. Harry + OT3 is for public consumption. The next-level next-to-you's during MITAM promo, the loveliness at the BMAs, RBB/SBB, the shared dressing room and closet were all evidence that the separation wasn't real. Behind closed doors, Harry isn't distant from his bandmates, particularly from Louis. Niall and Liam's reactions on being asked about RBB (during the interview)-- and their weird reactions on Ryan Seacrest's interview--- just confirm this theory. They both know. Have known for years.I think OT4's relationship with each other is complex. It's neither as close nor as distant as we think they are. Niall was backpacking through the Pacific for months with his friends. Louis and Liam were in the same city many times and never interacted publicly. Niall and Liam have not interacted except to tweet congratulations for songs released. Yet they were all together to watch Louis perform JHO on X Factor-- unpublicized, without official photos. They're there for each other when they want to be. What we see is for PR, and there's always a reason for PR.

[vloggerliam]

Maybe Niall is not the problem? I mean Liam also complimented Zayn and Pillowtalk. Even though days prior he said he would let Zayn drown and didn't understand why he Zayn hated being in 1D. And it's not just Niall like you guys have stated before it's also Louis and Harry not showing support. So why automatically assume Niall is the one with the problem??

Anon 2: I'm a bit confused right now. When the ztans got upset over what Liam said about Zayn they overreacted? The other boys haven't said anything negative about Liam & thank you for explaining how public support is so important. & how it would have motivated neutral fans. Does that mean Liam's comments about Zayn & not understanding why he left 1D had no negative effect what's so ever? Sadly for Liam while yes ot4 stans had more excuses to hate Zayn it also affected him & a lot of ppl dropped him.

Hi,I’ve decided to address both of you at the same time because I have similar things to say.Not once have I mentioned that Niall is or was theproblem, I don’t know if you read it off somewhere and are coming at me to takecollective responsibility but I have not once painted Niall (or any of theothers) as the bad guy. The tags designated for this topic by me are:management fuckery and the situation, not Niall fuckery or any warped ass shitlike that. I have always maintained, it’s not just Niall, it’s also Louis and Harry, where have you been?Having said that though, Niall a few months back mentioned that if they don’t publicly wish each other, a million stories get written about it, so he is aware of that. Louis clearly preferred publicly expressing his love for Niall, instead of texting in private, he said so himself. So they’re clearly aware. I guess it’s maybe unfair for everyone to be especially expectant of Niall but that’s also because Niall was and continues to be the most publicly supportive out of all of them. He clearly hasn’t discount on publicly supporting Harry or Louis. Besides, Niall and Liam share the same UK label so maybe that’s also another reason people expected him to tweet something, if nobody else. I never mentioned ztans getting upset anywhere? In fact, I understand if ztans got hella upset and all, they buy all narratives and think the world of z*gi’s photoshopped PR romance so I really don’t think I have ever directed any of anger at what they had to say or not. I was more pissed and a bit irked by the so called Ziams and OT5 stans who give the benefit of doubt to everyone over everything but conveniently ignored Liam. About Liam’s comments where he says he doesn’t get why Zayn left, I think those were absolutely unnecessary and insensitive and yes, people have a right to be pissed at him for saying that but I saw some really ugly stuff being hurtled at Liam which is completely unwarranted. The drowning game was a joke, imo. I would also like to clarify that I don’t think Liam in actuality doesn’t understand why Zayn left, that’s because:1. Liam in his first radio interview since Zayn’s departure sounded absolutely understanding of Zayn’s situation, he even said that he didn’t get it at first and he understands now. If he really was clueless, he would have voiced it out then. 2. Zayn’s mentioned that he and Liam talk thereby explaining things were fine between them, even as per the narratives. 3. Liam when asked about the Titanic question picked Harry and Ed over Zayn. Let’s talk context: they went hard for those 2 days with anti ziam-ness, so I’m not surprised. Practically speaking though, he’d already said Harry’s music taste wasn’t his and incurred the wrath of a majority of this fandom. Ed co-wrote his solo debut single, there was no way he’d have not picked Ed because who is that ungrateful? There was no correct answer with that question. It was very reminiscent of Zayn’s radio interview where he didn’t even bring up the PillowTalk views vs the History mv views but he was cornered by the radio guy. 4. I cannot repeat this enough times but the bit about not understanding why Zayn left came from Dan Wootton. Dan Wootton got exclusives from before SGT and PillowTalk mvs dropped, how? Dan Wootton gets exclusives of Liam’s personal life, and for that matter of all the boys’ personal lives, how? Dan Wotton continues to sell narratives. BUT, like my friend mentioned, we never got a picture advertising the podcast with Dan Wootton and Liam as we did for Dan Wootton and Niall or Dan Wootton and Harry! Ever wondered why? “Oh oh but we got audio of Liam!!!” Yeah we did. Print quotes are easy to manipulate because sometimes the tone gets lost in translation and also quotes can be made up but I can assure you that if you went to Billboard right now, if you had the right connections and tried to extract that audio of Zayn and the interviewer that led to the Billboard interview, then you will find it. Because believe it or not, while most of these print quotes can be skewed, they actually do come out of the boys’. It’s not that black and white. Meanwhile Zayn messed up on audio too right? With the ‘n’ word? Where is his apology?Most importantly though, Sashaa Malik 2 days after the Dan wootton and drowning mess, happened to like and possibly rt a tweet saying Liam will always be supportive of Zayn and won’t let anyone forget Zayn is a part of 1D. But she has always been a Liam girl, you say? Okay but Sarooha Malik Snapchatted/Instagrammed bopping to Strip That Down. As insensitive as that Dan interview mention of Zayn was, that podcast didn’t gain much traction either. I get the feeling you’re both pitting Liam as a villain and implying Liampraising PillowTalk was some sort of damage control and I’m just going to remind you of the following:1. Liam was the only one who went off script and thanked Zayn at theBBMAs, so much so that the next time on stage they cut him off and this proves he went off script, and if you still doubt that go check H, Lou and Ni’s expressions,2. Liam was the only one who included Zayn in the 5thanniversary tweet, Zayn acknowledged it,3. Liam publicly said he loves Zayn and would welcome himback in the pap session from 2016, 4. ZAYN FIRST brought up “wanting to do somethingoutside of the band anyway” with Liam5. Repeating this but Liam’s radio interview with Ryan Seacrest after Zayn left plus pap sesh from 2016 is pretty Zayn positiveWas all of this preemptive damage control too? From over 1-2 years ago? LMAO. Liam didn’t abruptly start talking positively about Zayn, so kiss my ass. @anon 2, you indeed are welcome and people always drop Liam, but the hypocrisy is pretty evident when y’alls fave fuck up even more. 

[verseziam]

Can the guest star in Liam's video be Zayn? Then would the whole bg shit make sense..

i wish but i highly doubt it when they’ve been pushing this ot4 vs zayn narrative and ziam don’t even talk anymore according to the narrative 

[backonefish]

im cleaning the house and dancing to 1d and i can’t stop thinking about the fact that:

harry, who still hasn’t explicitly said anything bad about his exes who’ve used his name for fame in the past, almost to the point of slander

liam, who was originally the only one who said positive things about zayn

teams, which have the power to blacklist sensitive topics

suddenly, all these parties feel now would be a good time to air their private laundry in public and talk shit about zayn? or just talk about him in general? these boys who are notoriously private, suddenly all want to talk about how they feel about a band member leaving? if we’re to believe the official narrative, zayn leaving was traumatizing to everyone involved. surely, none of them want to keep bringing it up, surely, they have the decency to fight their battles privately. 

if this doesn’t scream that talking against zayn is some shitty form of pr, then i don’t know what will

[quietzap]

Nope about the reunion itself, I don’t want it to be a big stunt since none of the two are good or anyway involving other people like them

Unfortunately I think we should expect stunts, bc it seems syco/simon is involved.. And tbh the stunts have already started with the ot4 vs Zayn narrative (and tbh it never stopped). But yes hopefully it won't be *too* stunty eh

[nerds4life]

Let me get some wild here and look through the business perspective (If I offend you, I'm sorry it's not my intention) would it in any case Zayn benefits from this Z vs OT4 narrative? Like his Z2 is coming (probably) in June and all this drama would get publicity and people excited to see what comeback he'd bring in his new album? Like in good or bad way all this shit is generating headlines.

There are no real headlines about Zayn right now. This sabotage is OLD, and CONTINUOUS. The only new thing was that Liam was actively participating, but that’s not in the press aside from the 1DHQ garbage press, and the latest article is a positive, so I would disagree.