Gigi Hadid and Zayn Malik broke up following allegations from Hadid’s mother, Yolanda, that the former boy band member “struck” her during an argument in September.
Things weren’t always so hostile, however. Check out the ebb and flow of the couple’s relationship over the years below.
November 2015
Hadid and Malik were first linked in late 2015, following the model’s split from Joe Jonas and the singer ending his engagement to Little Mix’s Perrie Edwards.
One year later, Malik later detailed their meeting in ES magazine, saying they met November 2015 at a Victoria’s Secret party where he recognized her “from her picture.” He asked her out and they spent their first date at The Bowery Hotel’s restaurant Gemma in New York City.
“She’s a very intelligent woman,” he told the outlet. “She knows how to carry herself. She’s quite classy and that. She’s not, like, arrogant in any way. She’s confident. She carries it well. She’s cool.”
December 2015
One month later, the former One Direction singer confirmed their relationship with a black-and-white photo of the couple cuddling, which he shared to Instagram just before the holidays.
January 2016
Hadid welcomed the new year with her own black-and-white photo of Malik. Just over a week later, the beauty declared “ZDAY 💛” while sharing a photo of herself wearing a “Z” gold chain necklace, further cementing their relationship in the public eye.
Malik, however, claimed that he and the model were just “good friends,” during an interview that same month. Fans, however, realized he was underselling the relationship when Hadid was spotted using his photo as her cell phone lock screen.
They all but confirmed their love affair when she was featured in his first solo music video, “Pillowtalk,” exchanging flirty messages about the visual on Twitter.
February 2016
After Malik confirmed their relationship during an interview with Zach Sang & The Gang, Hadid shared a photo of her beau on Valentine’s Day, simply captioned with a 💘 emoji.
April 2016
By Spring 2016, the couple shot their first Vogue spread together in Naples, Italy, sharing plenty of PDA for the cameras.
Hadid’s ex Jonas also weighed in on their relationship around this time. As per the Daily Mirror, Jonas said, “I think it’s interesting that she moved on so quickly. I mean, it was definitely very quick.”
Jonas went on to marry actress Sophie Turner in 2019.
May 2016
The couple made their red carpet debut at the 2016 Met Gala, where Malik donned a Versace look while Hadid wore a Tommy Hilfiger ensemble.
June 2016
Just three days after a source at E! News claimed they called it quits, Hadid was spotted wearing her “Z” chain, subtly killing the scuttlebutt.
She also squashed burgeoning breakup rumors during an interview with Elle, telling the pub that she preferred a night in with her man to hitting the town.
“Night in. Cook. Paint. Play with my dog. Hang out with my boyfriend. Watch movies. Just chill,” she said at the time.
They were also snapped together by the paparazzi all over New York City throughout the summer.
September 2016
By fall, the couple attended London Fashion Week together and were spotted hanging out with Mailk’s “I Don’t Wanna Live Forever” collaborator Taylor Swift, the ex of his former One Direction bandmate, Harry Styles.
The couple also appeared to have gone on vacation, with Hadid sharing a black-and-white shot of them together on the beach, captioning the snap with three palm tree 🌴🌴🌴 emojis.
January 2017
Hadid took to Instagram to wish Malik a happy birthday, captioning her snap of the singer, “happy birthday my handsome! so lucky to know and love a soul like yours ☄wishing you the best year ever!!!”
March 2017
To fans’ delight, Hadid hopped into Malik’s acceptance video after the heartthrob won the Best Music Video award at the iHeartRadio Music Awards.
“I call her Gee, she calls me Zee,” Malik shared with Sunday Times Style when asked about their pet names for one another. “There’s some other nicknames too, but I’ll keep those private.”
July 2017
The fashionable couple appeared on the cover of Vogue July 2018.
“It will forever be a great honor to cover @voguemagazine .. but I felt extra grateful and proud to stand beside my 💛 @zayn !!” Hadid wrote in celebration of the cover. “@inezandvinoodh we are always humbled to be in front of your lens, and we beyond thank you, Anna, @tonnegood and everyone who made this a reality for us! A dream. 🌻.”
September 2017
Hadid’s mother, Yolanda, publicly embraced the couple at this point, sharing her own photo of the pair to her Instagram page, captioning the flick, “❤️Summer Loving……. #Family.”
The pair also spent Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha with each other’s moms, with Yolanda sharing a photo of the foursome celebrating together.
October 2017
The couple went all out for Halloween, with Malik dressed as Spider Man while Hadid went as the Black Cat from the comics series.
“Spidey’s girl 🕷🐾🖤 HAPPY HALLOWEEN from #FeliciaHardy, The Black Cat xx 🎃,” she captioned the costumed flick.
January 2018
The pair opened up 2018 dressed to impress in matching sunglasses and monochromatic black looks in New York.
Days later, the runway pro wished her man an happy birthday with a collection of photos and clips of them over the years.
“love this man more than I could ever put into words, & am inspired by his drive to be and do better everyday,” she wrote on Instagram. “✨ cheers to YOUR YEAR my @zayn – happiest happiest birthday & 25th year of life !! I’m proud to be by your side x.”
March 2018
Two months later, the couple officially called it quits, both confirming their split with statements on social media.
“Gigi and I had an incredibly meaningful, loving and fun relationship and I have a huge amount of respect and adoration for Gigi as a woman and a friend,” Malik tweeted at the time. “She has such an incredible soul. I’m grateful to all of our fans for respecting this difficult decision and our privacy at this time, we wish this news could have come from us first.”
Gigi wrote at the time, “Breakup statements often seem impersonal because there is really no way to put into words what two people experience together over a few years … not only in the relationship, but in life in general,” wrote Hadid. “I’m forever grateful for the love, time, and life lessons that Z and I shared. I want nothing but the best for him and will continue to support him as a friend that I have immense respect and love for. As for the future, whatever’s meant to be will always be. xG.”
June 2018
With reconciliation rumors bubbling thanks to pics of the pair kissing in New York, Hadid confirmed they were at least friendly with a sweet Instagram photo June 2018.
September 2018
Proving that their families were still close, Malik shared a photo of Yolanda Hadid holding his GQ cover on Instagram.
While neither Malik nor Hadid officially confirmed their reconciliation, much of the public and press took this to be a sign of renewed courtship.
January 2019
Despite still being fond of one another, the couple reportedly split again by January.
A source at Entertainment Tonight claimed at the time, “Gigi and Zayn have broken up, but not because they don’t love one another. After trying for a long time, the couple just couldn’t make it work. Zayn has been dealing with personal things for a while and Gigi has become a comfort blanket for him.”
March 2019
Malik declared his love for the runway pro in a tweet, but didn’t garner a public response from the beauty.
August 2019
Hadid began publicly dating former “Bachelorette” contestant Tyler Cameron, but the relationship fizzled within a few months, splitting and unfollowing each other on social media by November.
December 2019
Hadid fueled speculation that she was once again dating ex Malik by tagging an account that appeared to be affiliated with his mom, Trisha Malik, in a post on her Instagram Stories.
“Sunday in the kitchen: about to marinate the chicken for one of my favorites!!! @mammamalik’s Chicken Curry Pasta Salad,” she captioned a photo of herself cooking.
Trisha’s alleged account then reposted a video Hadid previously shot with Vogue, in which the model said her favorite restaurant in the world was “my boyfriend’s mom’s house.”
January 2020
By mid January, the couple appeared to be back together, as the pair went on two dates over one weekend, including one to celebrate Malik’s birthday.
April 2020
Not only did the couple celebrate Hadid’s 25th birthday together while in quarantine, but announced that they would be expecting a baby together, with many fans scoping her developing baby bump before she confirmed the news on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.”
“Obviously, you know, we wish we could’ve announced it on our own terms, but we’re very excited and happy and grateful for everyone’s well wishes and support so…I’m trying [to be present for every part of it],” she said during the interview. “Especially during this time, it’s a nice silver lining to be able to be home and together and really experience it.”
July 2020
Hadid shares the first photo of the couple since announcing her pregnancy, calling Malik her “baby daddy.”
She also showed off her baby bump on Instagram Live while addressing rumors that she’d gone out of her way to hide her stomach.
“There’s my belly y’all,” she said, turning sideways and displaying her growing baby bump. “Like it’s there, it’s just from the front it’s different,” she laughed.
September 2020
Malik confirmed the birth of his daughter, Khai Hadid Malik, in late September with an Instagram post dedicated to the newborn.
“Our baby girl is here, healthy & beautiful,” he began. “To try put into words how I am feeling right now would be an impossible task. The love I feel for this tiny human is beyond my understanding. Grateful to know her, proud to call her mine, & thankful for the life we will have together.”
October 2020
Their first family photo was shared by Hadid on Halloween, with the model dressing up as Zero Suit Samus from Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros and Metroid series. Malik dressed up like a Slytherin student from Harry Potter, and baby Khai appeared to be the Incredible Hulk.
February 2021
Hadid revealed to Vogue in February that they planned to raise their daughter on their Pennsylvania farm as opposed to having her brought up in New York City.
“The greenery and the farm-y lifestyle are similar to what made me feel really centered as a kid, and I think that’s really important to Zayn and me,” Hadid shared at the time.
She also shared PDA-filled flicks of her then-beau on Valentine’s Day, captioning the shots, “I love you, Valentine && love the Valentine we get to share forever. 👼🏼”
October 2021
The couple split once again following allegations made against Malik claiming he “struck” Gigi’s mother, Yolanda.
Allegedly, the singer — who pleaded no contest after be charged with four counts of harassment — also referred to the former Real Housewife as a “Dutch slut” during a heated argument at the Pennsylvania home he shared with Gigi.
He also allegedly screamed at his child’s mother, “Strap on some f–king balls and defend your partner against your f–king mother in my house.”
The crooner addressed Yolanda’s claims, writing in part on Twitter, “This was and still should be a private matter, but it seems for now there is a divisiveness and despite my efforts to restore us to a peaceful family environment that will allow for me to co-parent my daughter in a manner in which she deserves, this has been ‘leaked’ to the press.”
Gigi also issued a statement through her rep, which read, “Gigi is solely focused on the best for [daughter] Khai. She asks for privacy during this time.”
June 2022
Hadid proved she and Malik were still on good terms when she posted a Father’s Day tribute to him eight months after their legal kerfuffle.
The model first wished her dad, Mohamed, a happy Father’s Day and finished the salute by sending a note to her ex.
“& to Khai’s baba!!!!” she captioned a rare pic of the British crooner sitting on the floor playing with their daughter.
“[The fact that] she can be with both parents makes me very happy,” she told the Times of London in March 2023.
July 2023
Malik reflected on his altercation with Yolanda in a rare interview on an episode of the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, which was released in July 2023.
“If something happens in the family, like, I’d rather keep that between the family,” the “Dusk Till Dawn” musician said.
He also aIso told host Alex Cooper that he’s “super full-on, hands-on with my child every chance I can be.”
When Khai turned 3, he admitted he “couldn’t live” without the youngster.
