WATCH: Zayn Malik’s “Pillowtalk” Is Kinda Blah

Every since Zayn Malik made the decision to leave One Direction to pursue a solo career, we’ve all waited with baited breath to hear HIS music, and see what kind of vibe he’d have striking out on his own. While it’s totally admirable what Zayn has done by following his heart, the result so far can be summed up with a universal, “meh.”

His debut single “Pillowtalk” dropped today and TBH, it’s pretty underwhelming. We’ve heard much much worse, but also heard much much better. If Frank Ocean and Justin Bieber collaborated on a song and had Zayn go in the studio and make it his own, that’s what “Pillowtalk” sounds like. It’s not a bad song, it’s just…there. There’s nothing about it that makes Zayn stand out as an exceptional solo artist.

We’ll be the first to say that we’re likely in the minority on this one, as the video features Zayn making out with current girlfriend Gigi Hadid, overt sexual undertones, and him staring into the camera with smoldering looks. It all adds up to a millennial orgasm of eye candy perfection, which is cool. Like, who needs exceptionally awesome music when you can use your supermodel girlfriend and sexual exploration to distract from what should really matter? ::Cue shoulder shrug.::

Take the video for a spin above and form your own opinion, but we’ll continue to hold our breath until Zayn comes out with something to really WOW us, which we don’t doubt will happen…in time.