Liam Payne, ‘One Direction’ Band Member, Dies At 31
Liam Payne, a ‘One Direction’ band member, died at the age of 31. The sources confirmed that he fell from the third-floor of a hotel room balcony and died on the spot.
The hotel he was staying at was Buenos Aires where the 31-year-old star member of a popular boy band, ‘One Direction’, died. He belonged to one of the most well-known boy bands in the entire globe.
The neighbourhood people and his fans gathered outside the hotel located in Argentina’s capital Palermo to pay tribute to him by singing his songs and celebrating his life.
The police told that they were called by CasaSur hotel when they were notified of an “aggressive man who could be under the effects of drugs and alcohol”.
As soon as the police arrived, they were informed by the hotel management that they heard a loud noise from the inner courtyard. Later, it was verified that a guy had fallen from his room’s balcony.
An audio from the hotel office revealed a worker’s voice where he is asking for police help. The security ministry in Buenos Aires provided the audio.
The worker said, “When he is conscious he is destroying the entire room and we need you to send someone”. The worker thought that because the room included a balcony, the guest’s life was in danger.
The latest photo is revealed from inside his hotel room, which showed a smashed-up television and some debris scattered on the floor. A large break is visible in the middle of the television screen.
‘One Direction’ and Liam Payne
The boy band, ‘One Direction’, became famous after Liam Payne, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles, and Niall Horan were brought together by Simon Cowell on Britain’s talent show “X Factor” in 2010.
The band successfully sold more than 70 million records and managed to make a bang with six hits in the top 10 songs of Billboard’s Hot 100. Some of their famous songs are “What Makes You Beautiful”, “Live While We’re Young” and “Story of My Life”. The songs that Payne had co-written include “Story of My Life” and “Night Changes”.
Billboard posted about the news of the singer’s sad demise.
View this post on Instagram
In 2016, the band decided for an “indefinite hiatus”, which meant that they wanted to take an indefinite break, after which, they got ready to pursue meteor solo careers.
Liam Payne’s last single was released in March this year’s March, named “Teardrop”.
Charlie Puth, an American singer and songwriter, worked with Liam Payne when he was pursuing his solo career.
Payne also teamed up with Rita Ora in 2018 for the song “For You” and was able to release his first solo album in 2019 by the name LP1.
Liam Payne first auditioned for his entry into the music industry when he was only 14 years old, in 2008. However, he was again introduced by Cowell when he was older for the show X Factor.
Cowell explained that he was confident in the singer’s abilities and knew that he would be a “valuable member of this band”. He did not hesitate to bring him back to the music arena through this show.
He sang “Fly Me to the Moon” on the talent show. He mentioned after his first audition that he should be concentrating more on his studies but he is busy with auditions. He was told to come back to his college and education after his first audition.
This did not stop Payne from chasing his dreams. He came back after two years, in 2010, for his second audition. The other band members then met him to form ‘One Direction’ together.
After long preparations and struggles of the band, the group came third in the competition and successfully signed the record label with Cowell. Their record made it to 54 global venues and showed some fireworks in the making.
Net Worth of Liam Payne
With his solo career, his net worth rose up to $70 million based on the statistics revealed by Celebrity Net Worth.
He was born on 29 August 1993 in England’s city, Wolverhampton.
Liam Payne’s life
The singer had a son named Bear with Cheryl, a singer of Girls Aloud and British TV personality. She was the one who had helped him through his solo career and as a member of the panel of judges on the talent show X Factor.
Cheryl proclaimed that drugs and alcohol had destroyed many of her loved ones. Her older brother used to live in a tent on the streets in 2021 and was a drug abuser. Also, her elder sister was a teen drug abuser.
Her childhood friend passed away from a heroin overdose in 2005. He was also a famous footballer.
Payne posted a video on YouTube last year for his fans to know that after having given up on alcohol, he would be more with his family and indulge in making new art. He expressed gratitude to his fans for getting him through his difficult times.
On Wednesday, he had just posted on Snapchat to show how much he was enjoying in Argentina, while horse riding, playing polo, and missing his home.
He cited, “It’s a lovely day here in Argentina”.
Liam was not very liked by his teachers and peers at College, however, that was the time when he rose to fame within his community for his singing. He was recognised by one of his peers for having a positive influence on the school community.
Liam Payne’s struggles
The reason for the fall and his instant death are still under investigation. However, Liam Payne mentioned his struggles with mental health and substance abuse (alcohol) that hindered him from coping with the pressures of fame.
In an interview in 2019, he said,
“Doing a show to however many thousands of people, then being stuck by yourself in a country where you can’t go out anywhere – what else are you going to do? The minibar is always there”.
He continued drinking and partying hard after the discontinuation of the band in 2016. He admitted that it was his biggest mistake as he did not know at that time that alcoholism would become a big problem for the rest of his life. He comprehended the consequences of his “erratic behaviour” later.
During his last years of life, he had been battling with his addiction to alcohol, finding his way through his music career and difficulties in his relationship. He and Cheryl were together for two years and then parted ways.
Many fans shared their concerns about his disturbed behaviour for the past few weeks right before his death.
He used to claim that he was the more mature one as compared to the rest of his band members. There were some clashes among his band friends but were sorted out somehow. However, their indefinite hiatus in 2016 did not make the matter clear in public.
He had been open about his battles with the harsh realities of fame. On one hand, he was enjoying fame but on the other, he wasn’t able to handle it aptly. He once said,
“There was a swarm of them and I just wanted a burger with my parents. I cried my eyes out. I thought ‘I can’t do this’ and really hated my life”.
The overwhelming life of his fame prevented him from becoming a normal human being again. He explained his frustration when they were living from ‘gig to gig’ in a hotel and couldn’t come out of the hotel as there were thousands of fans standing out. He wasn’t able to sleep or move anywhere outside.
Regarding his music career, when they decided to opt for an indefinite hiatus, Zayn Malik, another band member, hit a huge success pot with his solo projects including Harry Styles. However, Payne kept coming back with his singles but each time he did so, he wasn’t able to raise the bar of success that much.
With every subsequent release, he felt that his career was getting dark and came up with new twists in his life.
After the band split, he even went for therapy because he was under stress about his career. Over two years were spent in therapy. He realised that it was a difficult phase of his life where he felt he was becoming “numb”.
In 2022, he revealed some surprising facts about his former band members on a social media podcast. He received great criticism from the members later but revealed to them that he had been to a rehab centre.
He confessed later that it all came from the wrong side of his personality as he was going through a lot of distress in those days. He apologised and decided to look “outwards at everybody else” rather than thinking about his own self.
Despite making an apology for his disastrous move, he conceded that the podcast interview helped him break his own internal barriers and break free from the unwanted “grip of life” over him. It seemed as if he was free of the chains which he let go of while talking about it openly.
Liam’s family is “heartbroken”
Liam’s family released a statement in which they stated that they are “heartbroken”. They added,
“Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul”.
The family elucidated that they are supporting each other in difficult times and requested privacy and space.
Fans’ reaction to Payne’s death
Fans held vigil in Argentina as they were shocked by his death.
One of his fans told the media,
“I feel like it’s like a dream like I’m going to sleep now and tomorrow it’s all going to be a lie…I think it’s going to take me a while to accept all this, it’s very complicated”.
Another fan told that he had been to a Niall Horan concert where Payne performed. The fan revealed that Liam Payne was okay at that time.
Charlie Puth expressed his shock over the news of the singer’s death. He disclosed that Liam was always kind to him.
“Britain’s Got Talent” got postponed
The filming of the show “Britain’s Got Talent” got delayed soon after the news of Liam Payne’s death. They postponed their auditions that were scheduled for Thursday.
