Liam Payne

Liam Payne
Payne in 2013
Born	Liam James Payne (1993-08-29)29 August 1993 Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England
Died	16 October 2024(2024-10-16) (aged 31) Buenos Aires, Argentina
Occupations	Singer songwriter
Years active	2008–2024
Works	Solo discography One Direction discography
Partners	Cheryl (2016–2018)
Children	1
Musical career
Genres	Pop R&B
Labels	Capitol
Formerly of	One Direction
Website	liampayneofficial.com
Signature

Liam James Payne (29 August 1993 – 16 October 2024) was an English singer and songwriter. He was a member of the pop group One Direction, one of the best-selling boy bands of all time. Payne twice appeared as a solo auditionee on the British television series The X Factor in 2008 and 2010; in the latter, he was invited to join One Direction alongside fellow contestants, placing third and later achieving global success.

After One Direction's hiatus in 2016, Payne pursued a solo career, signing with Republic Records in North America. In 2017, he released his debut solo single "Strip That Down", which reached number three on the UK Singles Chart and number ten on the US Billboard Hot 100, and was certified platinum in both countries. His solo studio album, LP1, was released in December 2019. During the first three years of his solo career, Payne sold over 18 million singles, 2.4 million albums, and amassed 3.9 billion streams. In addition to his solo work, Payne produced remixes under the pseudonyms Big Payno and Payno. He collaborated with other musical artists and remixed tracks for both his group and singer Cheryl. Payne died on 16 October 2024, having fallen from a third-floor balcony at a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Early life

Liam James Payne was born at New Cross Hospital in the Heath Town district of Wolverhampton on 29 August 1993, the son of infant nurse Karen Payne and fitter Geoff Payne. He had two older sisters named Nicola and Ruth. Payne was born three weeks premature and suffered frequent illnesses. Until the age of four, he had regular tests done in hospital as doctors noticed one of his kidneys was scarred and dysfunctional. In the book Dare to Dream: Life As One Direction, he mentioned that before he was four, "I was always in hospital having tests done but they couldn't find out what was wrong. They discovered that one of my kidneys wasn't working properly and it had scarred. I had to have 32 injections in my arm in the morning and evening to try and make me better."

As a student, Payne was heavily involved in sports, particularly cross-country running. Payne joined the Wolverhampton & Bilston Athletics Club to pursue his running career. For three years he was ranked in the top three 1500m runners in the country within his age group.

He began taking boxing lessons at the age of 12 amidst bullying from older students in secondary school. Payne completed 11 GCSEs at St Peter's Collegiate School (now St Peter's Collegiate Academy) before moving on to study music technology at City of Wolverhampton College. Payne was introduced to the world of show business at the age of 12, as a member of the Pink Productions Theatre Company, appearing as Tony Manero from Saturday Night Fever. Payne had previously performed in front of a crowd of 26,000 during a Wolverhampton Wanderers football match.

Career

2008–2015: The X Factor and One Direction

Payne performing in April 2012 in Sydney, Australia

Payne auditioned for the fifth series of The X Factor in 2008, at 14 years old, in front of judges Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole, Dannii Minogue and Louis Walsh. Payne moved past the first round after performing Frank Sinatra's "Fly Me to the Moon". He was cut at the Boot Camp stage, but Cowell then changed his mind and asked Payne to return for the judges' houses stage. Payne was cut again during judges' houses, but was encouraged by Cowell to "come back in two years".

Payne returned to the show in 2010 for the seventh series, auditioning in front of Cowell, Cole, Walsh and guest judge Natalie Imbruglia. He sang the Michael Bublé version of "Cry Me a River", which earned him four yeses and a standing ovation from Cowell. Payne was considered the second favourite to win the competition following his solo audition. He failed to progress to the "Boys" category at judges' houses, but after a suggestion by guest judge Nicole Scherzinger, Payne, along with Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, and Zayn Malik, were put together to form a five-piece boy band at Wembley Arena, during the bootcamp stage of the competition, thus qualifying for the "Groups" category. For their qualifying song at Judges' houses, and their first song as a group, they performed an acoustic version of "Torn". The group came in third place on the show.

After appearing on The X Factor, One Direction were signed to Simon Cowell's Syco Entertainment. Their debut single, "What Makes You Beautiful", was released in September 2011, and was a commercial and international success, reaching number one in several countries. Their debut album, Up All Night, was released in Ireland and the UK of November of that year, charting at number one and number two, respectively. The album was released worldwide in March 2012 and debuted at number one in the United States. After the release of the album, the group headlined the Up All Night Tour. It had been intended only for the UK and Ireland, but Australian and North American legs of the tour were added due to demand. The band released Up All Night: The Live Tour, a video album documenting the tour, in May 2012.

Payne performing in February 2013 on the Take Me Home Tour

In September 2012, "Live While We're Young", the lead single from the group's second album, was released, and was a global success. Another single, "Little Things", was the band's second number one single in the UK. In November 2012, the group released their second album, Take Me Home, and it reached number one in over 35 countries. Reaching number one on the Billboard 200, the group became the first boy band in U.S. chart history to record two number-one albums in the same calendar year, and were the first group since 2008 to record two number-one albums in the same year. Following the release of the album, the group embarked on their second headlining concert tour, the Take Me Home Tour. Performing 123 shows in North America, Asia, Oceania, and Europe, it grossed $114 million. In August 2013, One Direction: This Is Us, a 3-D documentary concert film was released, accumulating a box office gross of $68.5 million.

The group's third album, Midnight Memories, was released in November of the same year. It was the best-selling album worldwide in 2013 with 4 million copies sold globally. The album's lead single, "Best Song Ever", is their highest-charting single in the U.S. to date. The group embarked on their third headline tour, the Where We Are Tour. In total, the tour grossed over $290 million and was the highest-grossing tour of 2014, the 15th highest-grossing concert tour of all time. It is still the highest-grossing tour of all time by a vocal group. The tour was attended by 3.4 million fans. The group's second concert film, One Direction: Where We Are – The Concert Film, was released in October 2014.

Payne performing with One Direction on the On the Road Again Tour in 2015

In November 2014, the group's fourth album, Four, was released, and was the group’s last album to include Zayn Malik. Singles "Steal My Girl" and "Night Changes" were released, both achieving platinum status in the U.S. among other countries. The album debuted at number one in 18 countries, selling 3.2 million copies. One Direction became the only group in the 58-year history of the Billboard 200 albums chart to have their first four albums debut at number one. The group embarked on their fourth headlining world tour, the On the Road Again Tour, grossing $208 million and selling 2.3 million tickets. In November 2015, One Direction's fifth album, Made in the A.M., was released. Singles "Drag Me Down" and "Perfect" both debuted at number one in various countries, and the album reached number one in the UK and number two on the U.S. Billboard 200. Following the release of the album, the group went on an indefinite hiatus in 2016.

Following the departure of Zayn Malik, Payne was tasked with taking over the bulk of Malik's vocals. Payne was known as one of the principal songwriters in One Direction, credited for co-writing more than half of the songs on the band's third and fourth album. Together with Louis Tomlinson, Payne was also One Direction's top earner.

2016–2021: Solo projects and LP1

Payne began working as a producer under the monikers "Big Payno" or "Payno", teaming up with fellow producers AfterHrs to remix several tracks including Cheryl's "I Don't Care" in 2014. Some EDM websites noted Payne's remixes were venturing into future house. Payne was also credited with writing Cole's "I Won't Break", off her album Only Human.

In August 2014, Payne created and became director of Hampton Music Limited, a publishing company under which his solo projects appeared. Australian band 5 Seconds of Summer is signed to One Mode Productions Limited, on which Payne served as one of the directors. Payne began working on future projects, collaborating with Juicy J, DJ Mustard, and Miguel, Pharrell Williams, and Will Singe. In 2015, Payne collaborated with songwriter Jamie Scott on Irish band Hometown's single "The Night We Met". In early 2016, Payne featured on a track titled "You" by Wiz Khalifa and Juicy J; the track was a leak from an untitled, unreleased mixtape.

In October 2016, it was announced that Payne had signed a recording contract with Republic Records. His debut solo single "Strip That Down", featuring Quavo and co-written with Ed Sheeran and Steve Mac, was released on 19 May 2017, and sent to U.S. contemporary hit radio on 23 May. The song was a commercial success, reaching number ten on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the UK Singles Chart. Payne later released the single "Bedroom Floor" and a collaboration with Zedd, "Get Low".

Payne in July 2019

In January 2018, Payne and Rita Ora released the single "For You" from the soundtrack of the film Fifty Shades Freed. In April 2018, Payne released "Familiar" with J Balvin. He announced his debut album would be released on 14 September 2018. On 30 March 2018, Payne performed in front of more than 100,000 people during a free concert at Global Village 2018 in Dubai. He released his first extended play, First Time, which features a collaboration with French Montana of the same name, on 24 August 2018. Prior to the EP's release, Payne announced that he was putting off his album to make some adjustments to it. He contributed vocals on Jonas Blue's song "Polaroid", along with Lennon Stella, released on 5 October 2018.

Payne released the song "Stack It Up", featuring American rapper A Boogie wit da Hoodie, on 18 September 2019. After its release, Payne revealed that his album was "finished" and would more likely be released in 2020, although in October, the album, LP1, was confirmed for a 6 December 2019 release date. He released "All I Want (For Christmas)" on 25 October as the first track from the album. It was released to mixed to negative reviews, and debuted at number 17 on the UK Albums Chart and number 111 on the Billboard 200. In April 2020, Payne collaborated with Alesso and released the song "Midnight" to positive reviews. The same month, Payne began a weekly YouTube series. In July, he announced he would be launching The LP Show, a livestream series, with "Act 1" being a livestreamed concert. On 30 October 2020, Payne released "Naughty List", a Christmas single featuring Dixie D'Amelio. In August 2021, Payne released the single "Sunshine", which was featured in the film Ron's Gone Wrong.

2023–2024: Planned second studio album

In May 2023, Payne revealed he was working on his second album, which he claimed to have more creative control over than he did his debut album. He scheduled his first solo tour dates for Latin America to take place in September 2023. He postponed the tour after he was hospitalised in August 2023 with a kidney infection. Payne returned to music with the single "Teardrops", which was released on 1 March 2024. The single was co-written with NSYNC member JC Chasez. "Teardrops" reached number 39 on the UK Singles Downloads Chart.

Artistry

On One Direction's later three albums, especially Four, Payne became a "prolific co-writer" with over 30 credits total, second only to Louis Tomlinson, with whom he frequently collaborated. Where Tomlinson was known for his lyricism, Payne had a penchant for coming up with melodies.

Payne was a pop and R&B singer who explored other genres including electronic music. He cited Chris Brown, Pharrell Williams, Justin Timberlake, and Usher as major musical influences. Payne stated "The person who has inspired me most is Pharrell Williams who I worked with a while back. I got talking to his producer recently and asked him what Pharrell was like when he was younger, and he said to me that when he was my age he couldn't press a note on a keyboard. And that was amazing to me because at 22 I thought I was too old to learn guitar." His first exposure to rock music was through Linkin Park's Hybrid Theory with "In the End" as they were the gateway for him to listen to other types of music outside of what he would typically listen to as a child. Payne would label "In the End" as one of the most important songs of his life.

Other ventures

Payne was named the first global brand ambassador for German brand Hugo Boss in May 2019. The first Hugo x Liam Payne capsule collection was revealed during Berlin Fashion Week in July 2020. His second capsule collection with Hugo Boss was launched in May 2020. The collection, which mainly consists of men's wardrobes, includes polo shirts, T-shirts, shorts, hoodies, sweatpants and a pair of sneakers. In January 2020, Payne starred in the Hugo Boss fragrance campaign for their perfume Hugo Now.

In June 2021, Payne launched his non-fungible token (NFT) digital artwork collection, entitled "Lonely Bug". On 25 January 2022, he dedicated a separate Twitter account @PaynoETH solely to discuss the subject.

Philanthropy

Payne at a charity football event in 2014

As a member of One Direction, Payne supported many charities. The band supported BBC's Children in Need fundraising efforts. The band also supported Comic Relief, notably raising over £2 million for the charity in 2013, in part through the release of a charity single “One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks)” and films of the band's trip to Ghana. He was also part of an initiative titled Action 1D "to help better the future".

Payne was an avid supporter of UNICEF and teamed up with tennis star Andy Murray, Jack Whitehall and Clare Balding in support of UNICEF UK's Children in Danger Summer Disease Appeal. Payne teamed up with motorsport star Eddie Jordan in support of UK based charity CLIC Sargent. Payne was an ambassador for the charitable organisation Trekstock. Payne's original campaign with the organisation in 2013 raised $784,198. He raised an additional $211,237 during his campaign in 2015. Payne was also named an ambassador of Sustainable Development Goals also known as the Global Goals campaign. In 2015, Payne helped to promote a £6 million youth project "The Youth Zone" in his hometown of Wolverhampton.

Payne and bandmate Harry Styles partnered with Trekstok, a youth cancer charity, by taking two people on a date. They became Trekstok ambassadors. Payne co-hosted a charity ball in honour of Believe in Magic, an organisation that supports terminally ill children, with bandmate Louis Tomlinson. Tomlinson donated £50,000 for Payne's face to be painted. Collectively Payne and Tomlinson donated over £5 million at the event. In 2018, Payne and Tomlinson filmed an episode of Gogglebox in support for Stand Up to Cancer.

Liam was an advocate for food security. Beginning in the spring of 2020 he became a donor to the Trussell Trust and its network of UK food banks, funding more than 360,000 meals during the COVID-19 pandemic. He said, "I'm glad to be playing my small part as we work towards a future in which nobody needs a food bank." More specifically, Payne donated £80 thousand and volunteered to help out in person at Euston Food Bank and Food for All in Holborn, which was not revealed until after his death. Food for All director Pete O'Grady said Payne "didn't want anyone to make a thing about it. He let nobody know of his generosity".

Payne participated in UNICEF's Soccer Aid. In 2022, he captained the English team, and he returned in the 2023 event.

Payne donated thousands of pounds to various GoFundMe pages in the month prior to his death. In a Snapchat video uploaded at the time he explained, "I’ve been going on night by night by night, trying to finish off people’s donations so that they can get the operations they need."

Personal life

From 2010 to late 2012, Payne dated then-X Factor dancer Danielle Peazer. From 2013 to 2015, he was in a relationship with a childhood friend, Sophia Smith. In 2016, he started dating Cheryl; they had one son who was born on 22 March 2017. Their relationship ended in 2018. In early 2019, he dated British model and actress Naomi Campbell.

Payne began dating model Maya Henry in 2019; they became engaged in August 2020. By June 2021, Payne and Henry had separated. The couple reunited that year and became engaged again. In May 2022, the couple ended their engagement for the second time. From October 2022 until his death on 16 October 2024, he had been in a relationship with influencer Kate Cassidy. Payne's net worth was estimated at £47 million in 2020. Payne owned homes in Malibu, California, and Surrey, but listed them for sale in early 2020 and 2021, respectively. In 2020, he moved to Chalfont St Giles, Buckinghamshire to be near his son, having previously lived with Cheryl in nearby Chalfont St Peter.

Payne was a supporter of the football team West Bromwich Albion.

Political views

Payne was pro-choice. In May 2019, amidst anti-abortion legislation passed in Alabama, Payne stated that they were "completely taking away the rights of women and the ownership of the bodies that belong to them" and that "us as men never have to go through that so how can we even comment or decide what women should or shouldn't go through", also adding "here was me thinking it was supposed to be the land of the free it all looks very tied up from where I'm standing". In May 2020, Payne expressed support for the Black Lives Matter movement and encouraged fans to educate themselves and donate. He attended London Black Lives Matter protests.

Health

Payne had spoken about struggling with alcoholism since the peak of One Direction's success. More specifically, he mentioned being locked in hotel rooms with a mini-bar between gigs. Payne also discussed his struggles with suicidal ideation. In May 2023, he stated that he had been sober for over three months, and in July he shared a video expanding on this, sharing he spent 100 days in a rehab facility in Louisiana. Payne received an ADHD diagnosis as an adult. In August 2023, he was hospitalised with a kidney infection.

On 1 June 2022, he was interviewed by Logan Paul for his podcast series, with Payne recording while intoxicated. Payne said that One Direction originated with a promise that Simon Cowell had made to him; Payne had previously appeared on the show and Cowell purportedly pledged to "make it work" should he return. He also discussed former fellow member Zayn Malik's family life and stated, "There's many reasons why I dislike Zayn and there's many reasons why I'll always, always be on his side". He subsequently clarified his remarks on Malik and apologised.

Death

Group of fans remembering Payne in front of the hotel where he died

Main article: Death of Liam Payne

On 16 October 2024, Payne died after falling from a third-floor balcony at the CasaSur hotel in the Palermo neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina, at the age of 31. His death was confirmed at 5:11 p.m. Argentina Time (UTC−03:00) and announced by Alberto Crescenti, director of Buenos Aires' public emergency medical service, on the Argentine news channel TN. Initial post-mortem examination indicated that Payne died from internal and external haemorrhages and multiple traumatic injuries. Tributes were paid by Payne's family, Cheryl, Cowell, One Direction bandmates, and many others, with some using theirs to raise concerns about the music industry, media, and adolescent fame in their commemorations.

Shortly after his death, fans of the singer and One Direction gathered outside the hotel. As the van carrying Payne's body was driven away, there was a moment of applause from the crowd. The group then lit candles and wept before dispersing. Fans also gathered to light candles in Mexico City on 17 October and a service was held in Copenhagen. Written notes were left at London's Hard Rock Cafe and fans laid flowers at the One Direction plaque at Clevedon Pier. A vigil was held at the Lady Wulfrun statue at St Peter's Collegiate Church on 18 October. A fan memorial took place at Hyde Park and Chamberlain Square on 20 October, as well as in other UK cities over the weekend. Further memorials were held in cities across the world, including in New York's Washington Square Park.

Discography

Main article: Liam Payne discography

Studio album

• LP1 (2019)

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2012	iCarly	Himself	Guest role; Episode: "iGo One Direction"
2013	One Direction: This Is Us	Himself
2014	Where We Are – The Concert Film	Himself
2014	Dynamo: Magician Impossible	Himself	Guest role; Season 4, episode 1
2014	Dancing with the Stars	Himself	Guest role; Season 19, episode 13
2016	Family Guy	Himself	Voice role; Episode: "Run, Chris, Run"
2017	Drop the Mic	Himself	Episode: "Niecy Nash vs. Cedric the Entertainer / Liam Payne vs. Jason Derulo"
2021	Ron's Gone Wrong	Unnamed B-bot	Voice role; cameo; final role

Awards and nominations

See also: List of awards and nominations received by One Direction

Year	Organisation	Category	Nominee/work	Result	Ref.
2015	Attitude	Sexiest Man of the Year	Liam Payne	Won
2016	BMI London Awards	Pop Award Songs	"Night Changes"	Won
			"Steal My Girl"	Won
2017	Teen Choice Awards	Choice Summer Male Artist	Liam Payne	Nominated
		Choice Male Hottie		Nominated
2018	Brit Awards	British Single	"Strip That Down" (featuring Quavo)	Nominated
		British Artist Video of the Year		Nominated
	BMI Pop Awards	Award Winning Songs	"Strip That Down"	Won
	Global Awards	Best Male	Liam Payne	Nominated
		Best British Artist or Group		Nominated
		Best Pop		Nominated
		The Global Special Award		Won
	iHeartRadio Music Awards	Best New Pop Artist		Nominated
		Best Solo Breakout		Nominated
	LOS40 Music Awards	International New Artist of the Year	Liam Payne	Nominated
		International Video of the Year	"Familiar" (with J Balvin)	Nominated
	MTV Video Music Awards	Best Dance Video	"Get Low" (with Zedd)	Nominated
	Teen Choice Awards	Choice Latin Song	"Familiar" (with J Balvin)	Won
		Choice Summer Song		Nominated
		Choice Summer Male Artist	Liam Payne	Nominated
2019	Brit Awards	British Artist Video of the Year	"For You" (with Rita Ora)	Nominated
	BreakTudo Awards	Best International Performance in Brazil	VillaMix	Nominated
	Global Awards	Best Male	Liam Payne	Nominated
		Best Pop		Nominated

External links

• Official website
• Liam Payne discography at Discogs
• Liam Payne at IMDb
• Liam Payne at AllMusic