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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Entertainment
Jacob Phillips and Josh Salisbury

Liam Payne death latest: Cheryl says loss 'breaking her heart' as his girlfriend Kate Cassidy pays tribute to 'angel'

Cheryl has paid a heartbreaking tribute to ex-partner Liam Payne following his death.

The Girls Aloud singer said the death of the former One Direction star is "breaking my heart", as the couple’s seven-year-old son Bear has to "face the reality of never seeing his father again", in a statement posted on Instagram.

The post was released soon after his girlfriend Kate Cassidy said she is at a “complete loss” following his death after a fall from a hotel balcony in Argentina on Wednesday.

It comes after Music mogul Simon Cowell said he is “heartbroken” and feels “empty” in his own statement on Instagram.

The X Factor judge who created the boy band and signed them to his Syco Entertainment music production company wrote: “every tear I have shed is a memory for you”.Former X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne earlier said the music industry “let down” the star.

“Liam, my heart aches. We all let you down,” the 72-year-old said in a post on Instagram. “Where was this industry when you needed them? You were just a kid when you entered one of the toughest industries in the world. Who was in your corner?”

Meanwhile, former band mate Niall Horan said on Friday morning that he will “cherish every moment” he had with Payne “forever”.

It comes as news broke that Payne was reportedly dropped by record label Universal Music just days before his death.

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