BUENOS AIRES – Former One Direction singer Liam Payne, 31, was found dead outside a hotel in Buenos Aires after he fell from his third-floor room balcony, Argentine police said on Oct 16.
In a statement, the police said they were called to the hotel in the capital’s leafy Palermo neighbourhood, where they were notified of an “aggressive man who could be under the effects of drugs and alcohol”.
The hotel manager said he heard a loud noise at the back of the hotel, and when the police arrived, they found that a man had fallen over the balcony in his room, the statement said.
Emergency workers confirmed the death of the British singer, who was reportedly found in the hotel’s interior patio.
“I am in shock right now. Liam was always so kind to me,” American singer Charlie Puth said on Instagram. “He was one of the first major artistes I got to work with. I cannot believe he is gone.”
US music channel MTV, streaming service Spotify and the Brit Awards expressed grief on social media, sending their condolences to his family and loved ones.
Neither Payne’s record label Republic Records, nor its owner Universal Music Group, could immediately be reached for comment.
Police had received a call from a worker at the hotel requesting urgent help with an intoxicated guest, according to audio related to the case, obtained from the Buenos Aires security ministry.
“When he is conscious, he is destroying the entire room, and we need you to send someone,” the worker said, adding that the guest’s life was at risk because their room had a balcony.
Emergency responders removed the body from the hotel to take it to the morgue, while fans and onlookers who had gathered through the early evening, some hugging one another and crying, burst into applause.
One Direction burst onto the scene in 2011 when the group’s debut single, What Makes You Beautiful, hit No. 4 on Billboard’s Hot 100. Five of their other songs reached the chart’s Top 10, including Live While We’re Young (2012), Story Of My Life (2013) and Drag Me Down (2015).
The group, which had 29 hits on Billboard’s Hot 100, would go on to release five albums and become one of the definitive boy bands of the 2010s, largely by eschewing the sleek precision and polish of earlier generations of pop groups.
One Direction announced in 2015 that they were taking a break from performing as an ensemble, and each of the artistes has since invested most of his time in his solo career.
“It’s just a break :) we’re not going anywhere!!” Louis Tomlinson, one of the band’s members, posted on Twitter at the time.
But in January 2016, the band split, Us Weekly reported.
Payne auditioned as a solo artiste on the television show The X Factor in 2008. He found success in 2010, after trying out again with a jazzy rendition of late American singer Ella Fitzgerald’s Cry Me A River.
He was put together with four other contestants – Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles and Tomlinson – for another round of auditions as a group, which eventually turned into One Direction.
Payne released a single called Teardrops under his name in March 2024.
Reuters reporters at the scene saw crowds gathering outside the hotel, where dozens of police and emergency services teams had cordoned off an area as night fell on the city.
One 25-year-old fan, Ms Yamila Zacarias, said her family had made a lot of effort so she could see One Direction when they came to Argentina, but she decided not to go as her parents did not have much money then.
“He meant a lot to me because the band came into my life at this time when you’re trying to be a part of something, and being a One Direction fan became that something for me,” she said. “This was the only time I could applaud him.”
Ms Violeta Antier, another fan, told Reuters she had come straight away after her sister told her Payne had died.
“I saw him two weeks ago at Niall’s concert. He was there, I saw him,” she said. “He was okay.”
Payne had on Oct 2 attended the Buenos Aires concert of Horan on the Argentine leg of a Latin American tour that spanned Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Peru and Colombia. The two had posted videos together and with fans.
Payne was one of the group’s standout singers, though One Direction as a whole underscored affability and casualness. He had several songwriting credits across the group’s releases.
He told Entertainment Weekly in 2015 that of the songs he penned for One Direction, he was most proud of his contribution to What A Feeling (2015), a Fleetwood Mac-inspired groove that he said he hoped people would play on long, serene drives down a coastal road.
Payne put out a solo album called LP1 on Capitol Records in 2019, which was full of collaborations across the musical spectrum: Latin music star J Balvin, American rapper Quavo, German music producer Zedd and more.
His single with Quavo, the bouncy and flirty Strip That Down, reached No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. But in time, Styles would eclipse all other former One Direction members as a chart-topping pop star. In 2020, Payne teamed up with Swedish producer Alesso for an EP.
The temptations that came with fame took a toll on his mental health, which he described in a 2023 video posted to his YouTube account about his decision to stop drinking.
“I kind of became somebody who I didn’t really recognise any more. And I’m sure you guys didn’t either,” he said.
He added that he had spent 100 days in a rehab facility in Louisiana. “It’s good to be in this position,” he said. “I definitely don’t need those things anymore. The party’s over.”
On the Diary Of A CEO podcast in June 2021, Payne said: “It feels to me like when we were in the band, the best way to secure us, because of how big it got, was just to lock us in our rooms. Of course, what’s in the room? Mini bar. So at a certain point, I thought, well, I’m going to have a party for one.”
In ？a May 2023？ interview with iFL TV, he said he was working on a follow-up album to LP1.
“I’ve been making an album for a change, which is quite fun,” he told iFL. “It’s been good, I’m excited to bring it out, and I definitely want to tour this time, which is unusual. Because I wasn’t sure I was going to tour for a long time. I was kind of over it a little bit, but I’m really excited to get back out on the road and go and see all the fans.”
Earlier on Oct 16, Payne had appeared to post on Snapchat about his trip in Argentina, talking about riding horses, playing polo and looking forward to returning home to see his dog.
“It’s a lovely day here in Argentina,” he said in the video.
Payne’s survivors include a seven-year-old son, Bear, whom he had with British TV personality and Girls Aloud singer Cheryl; his parents Geoff and Karen; and his two older sisters Ruth and Nicola, The Associated Press reported. REUTERS, NYTIMES