One Direction band member and pop star Zayn Malik is looking to venture off on his own.  The singer quit the band last week, but is still signed with Simon Cowell’s label. He is looking to go solo for a potential album in 2016.

“I feel like I’ve let the fans down but I can’t do this anymore,” Malik said in an interview for The Sun.  “It is crazy and wild and a bit mad but, at the same time, I’ve never felt more in control in my life … And I feel like I’m doing what’s right – right by myself and right by the boys, so I feel good.”

The other band members cut Malik out of their tour montage video.

As for the multi-million fan base, as well as Regina students, let’s just say they aren’t taking it too well.

Krystyna Kaminski ’16 reflected the feelings of many Directioners by writing a post on Wattpad stating, “I am confused, heartbroken, depressed, and just every possible emotion I can think of.”

4.7 million tweets on the topic were sent out within 24 hours of Malik’s announcement. Many tweets raised concern with fans indicating they were thinking of inflicting self-harm with the hashtag #CutForZayn. #AlwaysInOurHeartsZaynMalik was also trended.

“I cried for the longest time in class,” Leah Farfan ’16 said. “But I don’t like to rant on social media.”

Boy band obsessions like these are nothing new.  From Elvis Presley’s radically suggestive dance moves to The Beatles’ “British Invasion,” teenage girls have been flocking to concerts and closely following their favorite celebrities for years.  The explosion of social media in the past decade has made celebrities’ lives even more accessible.

Fans differed in their reactions to Malik’s leaving. Some were happy to see him growing musically and venturing off on his own, while others were bitter.

“Yes I backed him up as first, but when you look at the details and what’s really happening, you won’t back him up as much as before,” Kaminski said.

“It was selfish of him to leave out of the blue in the middle of the tour,” Farfan said.

One Direction plans to continue their tour as scheduled.