Is it true that Imam Malik wanted to become a singer in his youth, that his mother carried him for more than a year, and that he was very fair-skinned, blonde, with blue eyes?

First: Imam Malik was blond, handsome, fair-skinned, bald, with a large beard and a large head. He did not trim his mustache, and it was said that he had blue eyes.

Second: The claim that he was a singer in his youth is false and fabricated. The story narrated in "Kitāb al-Aghānī" (Book of Songs) relies on a chain of transmission from Isḥāq ibn Muḥammad al-Nakhaʿī, who was a fabricator and a liar. Al-Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar al-Asqalānī explicitly stated that the story was concocted from the narration of this liar. The story also contradicts the confirmed attributes of Imam Malik, as the story depicted him as ugly, whereas it has been established that he was handsome.

Third: It is well-known among biographers and historians that Imam Malik's mother carried him for three years. This was mentioned by a number of authors of biographical works and was supported by Maʿn ibn ʿĪsā, one of Malik's most reliable companions. Similar cases have occurred with others, and there is a difference of opinion among jurists regarding the maximum duration of pregnancy.