The members of One Direction have released heartfelt messages following the passing of co-member Liam Payne.
On October 16 (Wednesday), One Direction’s Liam Payne passed away at the age of 31 after reportedly falling from the window of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Prior to this, police officers were initially sent to the hotel following an emergency call from the hotel about a man said to be showcasing aggressive behavior and speculated to have been under the influence of either alcohol or drugs. Information from a number of reliable news outlets would later confirmed that this man was indeed Payne.
On October 18 (Friday), the remaining former members of One Direction — Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan, and Harry Styles — posted on the band’s social media a collective statement, expressing their grief over Payne’s passing and paying tribute to their ex-bandmate. “We’re completely devastated by the news of Liam’s passing,” they said, noting that when the time is right and everyone of them “is able to,” they will speak further on the matter. “But for now, we will take some time to grieve and process the loss of our brother, who we loved dearly.”
“The memories we shared with him will be treasured forever,” they added, expressing that their thoughts are “with his family, his friends, and the fans who loved him” just like the other members of the band did. “We will miss him terribly. We love you Liam.”
Following this statement, Tomlinson, Malik, and Styles also posted their very own individual messages for their bandmate. Other artists, like Steve Aoki and Rita Ora who have worked collaborated with Payne, also shared messages about the artist’s passing,
One Direction was formed in 2010 through the UK version of the hit competition show The X Factor. The quintet are one of the most successful boy bands in history, best known for their hits such as “What Makes You Beautiful,” “Perfect,” One Thing,” “Kiss You,” and more. Following the start of their indefinite hiatus as a group in 2015, the members of One Direction would go on to launch solo careers, with Payne releasing his debut album entitled LP1 in 2019. Prior to his passing, he came out with a single entitled “Teardrops” just last March.