Former One Direction star Liam Payne has died at the age of 31 after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires.
Buenos Aires police said Payne fell from the third floor of the Casa Sur Hotel in the Palermo neighborhood of Argentina’s capital, resulting in “extremely serious injuries” before medics confirmed his death, in a statement to the Associated Press.
Pictures show fans gathering outside the hotel after police cordoned off the area with forensic investigators seen entering and exiting in white protective suits and blue gloves.
Payne was part of the original line-up of the boy band, formed in 2010, alongside Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Harry Styles.
After becoming one of the biggest pop groups in the world with five albums and four world tours, One Direction went on indefinite hiatus in 2016.
Earlier this month, Payne attended bandmate Horan’s Argentinian concert alongside his girlfriend Kate Cassidy.
Payne, who was born in Wolverhampton, released his debut solo album LP1 in December 2019 which included the singles Polaroid and Familiar.
He and Girls Aloud singer Cheryl share a son Bear, born in 2017, having been in a high-profile relationship between 2016 and 2018.
Payne first auditioned for The X Factor in 2008 at the age of 14 singing Frank Sinatra’s Fly Me To The Moon, with judge Simon Cowell telling him to return to the ITV reality show at an older age.
He impressed the judges in 2010 singing Michael Buble’s Cry Me A River before he was put with four other solo hopefuls at the boot camp stage of the competition – the group which later became One Direction.
In August last year, Payne postponed his scheduled tour of South America after suffering from a “serious kidney infection”.
He said the infection was something “I wouldn’t wish on anyone” and he had been instructed by doctors to “rest and recover”.
Later last year he was banned from driving in the UK after admitting a speeding offence.
The singer was reportedly travelling at 43mph in a 30mph zone and was banned from driving for six months, as well as paying a fine, in October 2023.
In August, Payne was announced as a judge on a new Netflix show alongside former Destiny’s Child singer Kelly Rowland and The Pussycat Dolls star Nicole Scherzinger.
The stars were to judge attempts to create a band, looking at the contestants’ chemistry as they formed groupings in the musical competition series.