One of the five members that made up the pop boy band One Direction, Liam Payne, passed away after falling from a third-story balcony in a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on October 16.
Rising to fame following his audition on the British reality show “The X-Factor” in 2010, Payne hit the ground running along with Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, and Harry Styles. Payne was in Argentina to see Horan’s show, and he was accompanied by his girlfriend, Kate Cassidy. Payne’s autopsy revealed he had numerous drugs in his body during his fall, including the mixture of drugs known as “pink cocaine”.
Liam Payne was born in Wolverhampton, United Kingdom, on August 29th, 1993, to Geoff and Karen Payne. First auditioning on the “The X Factor” in 2008, Payne was told to come back in two years, where he then struck gold. Starting off solo, the 16-year-old singer was grouped with Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan, and Harry Styles, becoming One Direction. The band’s popularity skyrocketed, quickly reaching #1 with their first single, “What Makes You Beautiful”. The band continued to thrive until their break-up in 2016.
The artist had a successful solo career, currently with 9.2 million monthly listeners and over one billion streams of his song “Strip That Down (feat. Quavo)” on Spotify. In March 2017, Payne welcomed his son, Bear Grey, into the world with his then-girlfriend, Cheryl Tweedy.
All of his former bandmates have posted, and his family has issued statements asking for privacy during this time. Our thoughts are with his loved ones, his son, and his fans.
