Liam Payne, the former One Direction singer, has died at 31.
The musician plummeted to his death after falling down several stories from the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina on October 16, People Magazine reports. Argentine news channel TN was the first to report the incident.
Several witnesses at the time of the incident reported to TMZ that he fell from the 3rd-floor room where he was residing in the hotel. The outlet reported that a 911 call was made from the CasaSur Palermo to the authorities reporting an ‘aggressive male’ behaving erratically in the hotel lobby, lining up with the witness testaments that allege Payne was behaving similarly. He even went on to smash his laptop and had to be carried back to his room, hours before the fatal fall.
Alberto Crescenti, the head of SAME, Buenos Aires’ public emergency medical services system reported that the singer fell into the hotel’s internal courtyard. SAME confirmed Payne’s death at 5:11 pm and said that the injuries were so substantial, that there was no room for resurrection. The case is under investigation and an autopsy will be conducted on his body.
Payne and his girlfriend Kate Cassidy reached Argentina on September 30, after which he posted several updates on his social media accounts spending time with her and enjoying their long vacation together. Cassidy reportedly left on October 14 leaving Payne behind, who then checked into the CasaSur, two days before his death. Additionally, he also attended his former bandmate Niall Horan’s concert in Argentina earlier this month.
The ‘Familiar’ singer had been experiencing intense legal troubles with his ex-fiancée, Maya Henry right up to the point of his death, an exclusive source reported to People Magazine.
The 23-year-old model had issued a cease-and-desist order against Payne last week alleging that even though they were not together, the singer had been “blowing up” her phone constantly trying to contact her. Henry even alleged that Payne would “weaponize” his One Direction fans against her.
She claimed, “It’s always from different phone numbers too. I never know where it’s going to come from . . . Also [he] will email me,” before adding, “Not only me, but he’ll blow up my mom’s phone. Is that normal behavior to you?” The reason behind his “aggressive” behavior at the hotel lobby hours before his death remains untraced.
Back in 2019, Payne revealed that he had severely suffered from alcohol and addiction following his fame with One Direction. He told Men’s Health Australia in 2019, “It’s difficult when you have the level of fame that we had in the band,” before adding that the industry never provided mental health facilities to the stars who were in their initial years of growth.
He further said, “It’s the same s— that happens to everyone, that’s been happening since the ’70s. You know what the traps are and if you are lucky enough, like me, to be able to get out of that scenario and back into a sense of normality, then you know it’s a bit different.”
In July 2023, Payne finally broke out of the addiction trance and announced that he had successfully spent almost 100 days in rehab. He noted his progress in a YouTube video headlined, “I’m Back.”
The singer rose to fame with the heart throb boy band, One Direction after they were launched on X Factor in 2010, with the other members being Zayn Mallik, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, and Harry Styles. In 2015, the band broke up as the singers embarked on their solo careers. Payne secured his career with the hit debut solo, “Strip That Down” featuring Quavo, which currently has over a billion streams on Spotify.
The ‘Story Of My Life’ singer is survived by his 7-year-old son Bear Grey, with his ex, Girls Aloud singer Cheryl.
Disclaimer: If you or your loved one is suffering from mental health and substance issues, immediately contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.