One Direction's Liam Payne Dies at 31 in Hotel Fall
Former One Direction singer Liam Payne, 31, whose English-Irish boy band generated a global following of fans, was found dead October 16 after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, local officials said.
Buenos Aires police said in a statement that Payne fell from the third floor of the Casa Sur Hotel in Argentina's capital, resulting in "extremely serious injuries." Medics confirmed his death on the spot, the statement said.
Alberto Crescenti, head of the state emergency medical system, told Argentina's Todo Noticias TV channel that authorities were investigating the circumstances of his death and conducting an autopsy.
One Direction fans from across Buenos Aires gathered at the Casa Sur Hotel after the news broke. Fans expressed shock and heartbreak as a makeshift memorial with candles and bouquets quickly grew outside the hotel.
Payne — who was from Wolverhampton, in England's West Midlands region — was one of five members of One Direction, which formed when they each auditioned for the British singing competition series The X Factor in 2010.
After each singer failed to make it through the competition as solo acts, Simon Cowell and his fellow judges combined Payne, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson into what would become one of the most successful boy bands.
The band became known for romantic hits like "What Makes You Beautiful" and "Story of My Life." Payne had prominent solos on songs like "Stole My Heart" and co-wrote several of the band's hits. They had six Top 10 hits on the Billboard charts by the time they disbanded in 2016.
Payne then pursued a solo career, shifting toward electronic dance music and hip-hop. His 2017 single "Strip That Down" reached the Billboard Top 10, he put out an album LP1 in 2019, and his last single "Teardrops" was released in March.
Payne had a 7-year-old son, Bear Grey Payne, with his former girlfriend, the musician Cheryl Cole. In addition to his son, he is survived by his parents, Geoff and Karen Payne, and his two older sisters, Ruth and Nicola.
