Niall Horan, once part of the pop sensation One Direction, has shared his grief over the passing of his former bandmate Liam Payne in a touching Instagram post. This follows statements put out by the band and his other bandmates.
“I’m absolutely devastated about the passing of my amazing friend, Liam. It just doesn’t feel real,” wrote Horan. “Liam had an energy for life and a passion for work that was infectious. He was the brightest in every room and always made everyone feel happy and secure.”
Horan added: “All the laughs we had over the years, sometimes about the simplest things, keep coming to mind through the sadness. We got to live out our wildest dreams together and I will cherish every moment we had forever. The bond and friendship we had doesn’t happen often in a lifetime.”
The singer feels lucky to have seen Payne recently. “I sadly didn’t know that after saying goodbye and hugging him that evening, I would be saying goodbye forever. It’s heartbreaking,” he shared.
Horan extended his love and support to Payne’s family and son Bear, concluding with “Thank you for everything, Payno. Love you brother. Nialler.”
Payne, just 31, lost his life in Buenos Aires, Argentina, after a tragic fall from a hotel’s third-floor balcony. The local Public Prosecutor’s Office’s initial autopsy report states that Payne died from “multiple trauma” and “internal and external hemorrhage” due to the fall.
As standard procedure, authorities are looking into the incident as a “doubtful death,” even though it appears Payne was alone when it happened.
Payne’s journey began on August 29, 1993, in Wolverhampton, England. At 14, he first tried out for The X Factor, belting out Frank Sinatra’s “Fly Me to the Moon.” Though he didn’t make it then, Simon Cowell encouraged him to return. In 2010, Payne came back and was grouped with Horan, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and Zayn Malik, forming One Direction. After their run on the show, Cowell’s Syco Entertainment signed the group.
From 2010 to 2016, One Direction took the world by storm. They released five albums, won seven Brit Awards, and sold over 70 million albums worldwide.
After the group split, Payne released his solo album LP1 in 2019.
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