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One Direction star Liam Payne has died suddenly aged 31, after falling from a hotel balcony in the Palermo neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Local authorities have said they will conduct an autopsy and investigate the circumstances surrounding the singer’s death.
A hotel worker made a distressed call to police shortly before his death, it has emerged, in which they said a guest was “destroying everything in his room” and appeared to be “on drugs and alcohol”.
Workers reportedly heard a loud sound in the courtyard before Payne’s body was discovered just after 5pm local time (9pm UK time).
Stars including Liam Gallagher, X Factor host Dermot O’Leary and TV presenter and former contestant Rylan are among those to have paid tribute. Anne Twist, the mother of Payne’s former bandmate Harry Styles, wrote on Instagram: “Just a boy.”
Payne rose to fame while competing on season five of The X Factor in 2010, when he was placed in the band One Direction along with Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik.
They went on to become one of the world’s most successful boybands, selling 70 million records and performing in stadiums around the world.
Payne had a son, born in 2017, with former Girls Aloud singer Cheryl Tweedy.
Prime minister Keir Starmer pays tribute to Liam Payne
“The Prime Minister’s sincere condolences are with Liam’s family and friends at this time,” a spokesperson for Keir Starmer said.
“One Direction were one of the biggest bands in history, and the music has a huge impact on many millions of fans around the world”.
Payne’s secondary school in Wolverhampton shares tribute
Two schools where Payne was a student have paid tribute to the One Direction star.
City of Wolverhampton College shared an old photograph of Payne, wearing school uniform, at a mixing desk in their music department and said the news was “very sad”.
St Peter’s Collegiate Academy Wolverhampton said it was “deeply saddened”.
The statement said he was “well-liked” by staff and students and his “contributions” to the school community are well remembered.
Liam Payne’s legal issues with ex-fiancé Maya Henry explained
Liam Payne’s legal issues with ex-fiancé Maya Henry explained
One Direction singer has died aged 31, after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires
Former One Direction vocal coach says people should focus on Payne’s music legacy
CeCe Sammy-Lightfoot, a vocal coach who previously worked with One Direction, has said she “absolutely loved working with the whole band”.
She told Sky News: “The biggest thing I would like to say to everyone out there is that, you know, at such a young age, Liam and all of One Direction worked so hard, spent hour upon hour, day and night, working round the clock.”
“He has contributed so much into the music world. And the main thing with all of this sadness, I just want to say to everyone to remember what he has done in his contribution to music, because it’s very easy to get sort of distracted by where people might want to go, what happened personally in his life.”
The vocal coach grew emotional as she spoke about the importance of people remembering his musical legacy.
“But I think at this time it’s really important, especially because he has a family out there, to really think about... sorry, I’m getting all emotional, but for them to really remember what he contributed to music generally,” she said.
McFly ‘extremely sad’ to hear news of Payne’s death
McFly, the boyband who rose to fame in the Noughties with hits like “All About You” and “Star Girl”, have said they are “shocked and extremely sad to wake up to the news of Liam Payne’s death”.
Bandmates Tom Fletcher, Danny Jones, Dougie Poynter and Harry Judd said in a statement: “Our thoughts and love are with his family and friends at such a difficult time.”
Find out all of the tributes shared in Payne’s memory, here.
Liam Payne fans sing his songs at candlelit vigil outside hotel after singer's death
Liam Payne: The ambitious One Direction star who struggled with dark side of fame
Liam Payne, who rose to global fame as a member of the British pop band One Direction, has died aged 31.
The singer died after falling from the third floor of a hotel in Argentina, officials said on Wednesday 16 October. Pablo Policicchio, the spokesperson for the Security Ministry of Buenos Aires municipality, said in a statement to the Associated Press that police were dispatched to the hotel in response to an emergency call about an “aggressive man who could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol”.
Born in Wolverhampton, England, Payne was drawn to singers such as Usher and Justin Timberlake. He remembered his childhood as a happy one: his father, Geoff, worked as a fitter, while his mother, Karen, was a nursery nurse.
“It was great, though we didn’t have much,” he told The Telegraph in a 2017 interview. “Dad was in debt, but they did the best they could. It makes you dream a bit, you know?”
Liam Payne: The ambitious One Direction star who struggled with dark side of fame
Singer, who rose to fame as a member of boyband One Direction, died aged 31 after falling from a hotel in Buenos Aires
Niall Horan’s brother Greg pays tribute to ‘top man’ Payne
Greg Horan, the older brother of One Direction’s Niall, has shared a tribute to Payne.
Writing in a post on Instagram, Greg said he was “heartbroken” by the news, and that Payne was “only one of four lads I was happy enough to take my place in Niall’s life as a brother”.
“You will be forever missed Liam words can’t describe how much I want to grab my brother and mind him now while the world shows their memories of you and him and the boys,” he said, calling Payne a “top young boy to a man, a son, a brother”.
“My heart goes out to your family parents and sisters and your son Bear and your 1D brothers. 10th October we met and we started out that evening as five families into one big 1D family. Thank you for all the laughs bro watch down on all your family and mind them. Lots of love kiddo x x x 1D 4 LIFE.”
Who is Liam Payne’s girlfriend Kate Cassidy? Inside One Direction singer’s last relationship before death
In the days before his death, Liam Payne’s girlfriend of two years, 25-year-old influencer Kate Cassidy, had joined him on his trip to Argentina. The pair had been documenting their trip together on social media.
Cassidy had been on the trip with Payne for two weeks before she decided to return home to her Florida home.
In a vlog posted on her TikTok account two days before Payne’s death, Cassidy said she was “so ready to leave” Buenos Aires after their five day trip had turned into a two week long holiday.
Full story:
Who is Liam Payne’s girlfriend Kate Cassidy? Inside One Direction star’s relationship
Payne was on holiday with influencer girlfriend in days before his death
Backstreet Boys pay tribute to Liam Payne
“Words can not express the emotions we are collectively feeling right now, and it seems like the rest of the world is in the same boat,” a statement from the official Backstreet Boys account on X/Twitter said.
“Our hearts go out to Liam’s family, friends, and Directioners around the world. Rest in peace brother.”
Words can not express the emotions we are collectively feeling right now, and it seems like the rest of the world is in the same boat.
— Backstreet Boys (@backstreetboys) October 17, 2024
Our hearts go out to Liam’s family, friends, and Directioners around the world.
Rest in peace brother.
