Zayn Malik says it was 'nice' to be included in 1D's last video

Los Angeles - Zayn Malik thinks it was "nice" One Direction included him in their final video.

The 23-year-old singer left the group in March 2015 to go solo, but he features heavily in the History video - which was released last week and is their last release before taking an extended hiatus - as it comprises archive footage of the band, right from their formation on The X Factor in 2010 up until their last concert in Sheffield last year, and the Pillow Talk hitmaker was grateful to be a part of the montage.

He said: "It was a nice memento to look back at and to be reminiscent of a time that was great for all five of us together. And I'm glad that they did that. It was cool, it was nice."

Zayn is enjoying working on his own as he has wanted to release a solo album for years.

Speaking to KISS FM, he said: "I've been wanting to get this album out, really, for the last maybe six, seven years, so it's a long time coming."

Though the songs on the record, which is called Mind of Mine, are very personal to him, Zayn insists he hasn't written about his time in One Direction.

He said: "All the songs mean something to me about a specific moment in time or, you know, trace back to an exact event, or something that happened that triggered that song.

"There's no really tale or stories within my songs that tie-in to the fact that I was in a band for five years.

"Not necessarily to do with the fame side of things but just generally what it's like to be a 22 year-old man in 2016."