Liam Payne, former member of One Direction, dies at 31 : NPR

Liam Payne, a singer who rose to fame as a member of the chart-topping boy band One Route, has died whereas in Buenos Aires, in keeping with a number of information companies. He was 31.

The Related Press obtained a press release from Buenos Aires police saying that Payne fell from the third story window of Casa Sur Lodge within the Palermo neighborhood of the Argentine capital. Pablo Policicchio, the spokesperson for the Safety Ministry of Buenos Aires municipality, offered the Related Press with a press release saying police had been dispatched after receiving an emergency name about an “aggressive man who might be beneath the affect of medicine or alcohol” and located Payne’s physique within the lodge courtyard.

AP studies that officers are nonetheless investigating the occasions that led to Payne’s dying. NPR reached out to representatives for Payne however has not acquired a response.

Throughout 5 albums launched within the 2010s, One Route grew to become a world phenomenon. Sustained by singles like “Stay Whereas We’re Younger” and “Finest Track Ever,” the quintet charted a course from actuality present runners-up to full-on teen fixation.

Payne was born in 1993 in Wolverhampton, England. He first auditioned for The X Issue UK in 2008 however was not chosen to maneuver ahead by choose Simon Cowell. He returned in 2010.

“I do assume Simon did the proper factor and I wasn’t prepared,” he mentioned as he launched himself to the judges onstage. “Now I’m 16, and I’m again and I’m prepared to provide it one other shot.”

He then launched into a canopy of Michael Buble’s rendition of “Cry Me A River.” His second try at getting into the truth TV contest earned him roaring applause, however Payne was virtually eradicated in subsequent rounds. As an alternative of being despatched house, he was chosen to kind a bunch with 4 different boys who additionally wouldn’t be transferring ahead in solo classes: Niall Horan, Harry Types, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson. Types steered a reputation and it caught.

On the flip of the millennium, the boy band stood on the heart of the pop zeitgeist, however a decade later, when Payne and his bandmates emerged from the truth competitors, the format had misplaced a lot of its luster. One Route caught on virtually instantly within the U.Okay. and the U.S., with the group’s traditional rock-influenced debut single “What Makes You Stunning,” respiration new life into mannequin.

With 2014’s 4, the boy band made historical past as the primary group to have its first 4 albums — all launched between 2012 and 2014 — go to No. 1 on the Billboard 200. In 2014 in addition they had the very best grossing tour of the yr, which grew to become one of many highest grossing reveals of all-time. The band amassed a loyal following throughout its run and helped to open the door for different worldwide acts that may observe, like BTS.

After Malik left the group in 2015, One Route launched one closing album, Made within the A.M., as a quartet earlier than occurring an indefinite hiatus in 2016. When the group later received the Video of the Yr award on the 2017 Brit Awards for his or her tune “Historical past,” Payne was the one member in attendance. Standing alongside Cowell he mentioned, “The sheer devotion that our followers have proven on-line for that is completely superb. We’ve been taking a little bit of time engaged on our solo materials, however One Route is who we’re and it’s who we at all times might be.”

Because the members break up off to pursue solo careers, Payne was the third to make his debut: The album, LP1, was launched in 2019 and spawned a handful of well-liked singles, together with “Strip That Down” with the Migos frontman Quavo and “For You” with English singer Rita Ora. It was his solely album; in 2023, Payne revealed to Rolling Stone that he was engaged on a follow-up, and he launched the one, “Teardrops” in March.

In a video posted to his YouTube web page in 2023, Payne opened up about his battle with alcoholism and his sobriety and detailed his determination to affix a remedy program in Louisiana, the place he spent a number of months. “Ever since then, I’ve simply been making an attempt to get to know this new man,” he mentioned, signaling himself.

Payne is survived by a 7-year-old son, his dad and mom and two sisters.

Sheldon Pearce contributed reporting to this story.