Zayn Malik has hit back at the suggestion he “threw shade” at his ex-fiancée Perrie Edwards on Twitter.
The ‘Pillowtalk’ singer raised eyebrows among his Twitter followers on Tuesday night (15 March), when he appeared to take a swipe at Little Mix’s risqué tour outfits, writing: “Love how people feel liberated naked... Read a book liberate your brain.”
His tweet was unfortunately timed, though, as it came just hours after Perrie defended Little Mix’s stage attire, insisting the group’s costumes weren’t inappropriate for their younger fans.
![Zayn 'ZAYN' Malik](https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/56e94c05150000ad000b230c.jpeg?cache=0IpLlDhtJr&ops=scalefit_720_noupscale)
Zayn’s fans quickly leapt to conclusions, thinking he was making a dig at his ex, but it didn’t take long for the former One Direction singer to set the record straight about what he really meant.
He also retweeted a post from one fan, which read: “I think what Zayn meant to say was he loves that people feel liberated naked and the people who shame them should liberate their brain.”
![Little Mix performing at the Brit Awards last month AND WIPING THE FLOOR WITH ABSOLUTELY EVERYBODY](https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/56e94cf1150000ad000b230d.jpeg?ops=scalefit_720_noupscale)
Although their split last summer appeared amicable enough (at first, at least), he later took aim at Perrie on Twitter, when he suggested he preferred rival band Fifth Harmony to Little Mix.
She got her own back, though, admitting she thought he was a “bell-end” when asked about the break-up in an interview.
Since ending things with Perrie, Zayn has begun dating model Gigi Hadid, who appears alongside him in the music video for his debut solo single, ‘Pillowtalk’.