What could be more surprising than a global pop star admitting he once “was really rubbish”?

Ahead of his upcoming fifth solo album, Zayn Malik once again sat down for a headline-grabbing interview with Alex Cooper on her Call Her Daddy podcast.

Among other honest confessions, one related to his singing career caught fans off guard.

When the host asked the former One Direction star how he handles being a beginner at something new despite his massive success, Zayn didn’t hesitate.

“That’s why I get into so many weird random things,” the Die For Me hitmaker replied. “I enjoy that feeling. I enjoyed the beginning stage of not being good at something and then seeing the progression, like over the years.”

“Even when I was a little kid in a weird way, like when I was like eight, nine, that was what it was that it taught me about wanting to do music. I wasn’t great. You don’t just come out and you’re amazing at things,” he continued.

The Dusk Till Dawn vocalist reflected on his childhood, revealing that his passion for music didn’t come from instant talent. In fact, he was brutally honest about his early abilities.

“I was really rubbish. I couldn’t sing at all,” he admitted. “I had to work hard and practice and I was quite cute, but it’s definitely not good.”

Instead of fearing failure, the Bradford boy actively chases the challenges and is now smashing it. 

He revealed he enjoys the awkward beginner stage, the part where you’re not good yet, because watching his own progression over time is what excites him most.

The PILLOWTALK chart-topper also admitted he strives for perfection even though he knows it doesn’t exist.

He described the mindset as something that “drives [him] a little bit insane,” but ultimately pushes him further creatively.

Zayn’s revelation is a reminder for all that even the biggest names start somewhere and sometimes, not very well at all.

Usher is taking a walk down memory lane to his surprise wedding with Jennifer Goicoechea.

Two years after secretly tying the knot in Las Vegas, the Grammy winner paid tribute to wife Jennifer Goicoechea with a heartfelt anniversary post on Instagram, celebrating the day they said “I do” following his Super Bowl LVIII halftime performance.

The couple wed on February 11, 2024, at Vegas Weddings’ drive-thru tunnel, The Fast Lane, just hours after Usher lit up Allegiant Stadium. Late Wednesday night, the eight-time Grammy winner shared a carousel of never-before-seen wedding photos along with a romantic message for his wife.

“Soft as cotton, strong in the weave. Here’s to the life we’re building thread by thread,” Usher wrote. “Happy 2nd Anniversary, my love.”

The post featured nine snapshots from their big day, including sweet moments of the couple kissing, holding hands and posing beside vintage red-and-white cars that matched Goicoechea’s bouquet.

Their blended family also took part in the celebration, with all four children dressed in white. Usher and Goicoechea share daughter Sovereign, born in 2020, and son Sire, born in 2021. 

He is also dad to sons Usher V and Naviyd from his previous marriage to Tameka Foster.

A hand-painted animation by artist Eeman Masood is being screened every night this February on the iconic billboards of Times Square in New York City, putting a Pakistan-trained miniature painter’s work in one of the world’s most visible public art spaces.

The piece, titled “Listen”, is part of Times Square Arts’ monthly “Midnight Moment” programme. Speaking on Geo News programme “Geo Pakistan”, Masood said the work is displayed nightly from 11:57pm to 12:00am across 96 screens, with February designated as her showcase month.

Masood said her practice is rooted in miniature and watercolour painting, which she studied at the National College of Arts (NCA). During her master’s degree at the University of Victoria in Canada, she said she was able to bring that hand-painted practice into animation with greater access to facilities and support.

Describing the selection process, she said artists can submit proposals, but the final choice is made after multiple rounds of review by panellists. Masood said her work was selected last year, followed by a lengthy process before it reached display.

‘Listen’ reflects what she described as the quiet generosity and endurance of the natural world. The animation features shimmering particles encircling an ancient banyan tree, blurring the line between the earthly and the celestial. 

Masood said every element in the piece, including the peacocks and the banyan tree at its centre, was painted by hand before being animated.

The music for the work was created by her friend Mujeeb, a senior from NCA, who played the flute and santur, with the soundtrack made specifically for the project.

Masood said she has long been drawn to nature not only for its surface beauty but for the “small signs of hope” it offers, cycles of ending and return. 

She linked the banyan-tree motif to a visit to Lahore in 2023, saying she had long heard about a banyan referred to as a “tree of blessing” and was moved when she saw it for the first time. She said its condition appeared poor, with advertisements pasted on it, yet it continued to provide massive shade while people ran their shops beneath it.