Zayn Malik goes shirtless on covr of Interview magazine's #ME issue: Exclussive to admiano.com

There are a number of ways to shake off your teenage pop star image - and posing topless is a tried and tested method.

So it is not too much of a surprise that Zayn Malik opted to go shirtless on his first magazine cover since leaving One Direction.

The 22-year-old can be seen smouldering for the camera, abs and tattoos on display, on one of the eight covers for Interview magazine's #ME issue.

The singer, who has been spending time in the U.S. while recording his first album as a solo artist, tweeted the cover on Tuesday afternoon.

He accompanied the picture of himself with the hashtag #imcoming, believed to be a reference to his re-launching of his music career post-One Direction. 

Zayn is believed to have been chosen to appear on the cover due to his large online presence - he has some 15million followers on Twitter - and his recent practice of getting into arguments with other artists on social media.

The heartthrob has also been caught up in online feuds with singer Calvin Harris after he made a comment on Taylor Swift's iTunes outlook, and British DJ Naughty Boy, with whom he was formerly friends.