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Former One Direction star Liam Payne has died at the age of 31 after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Payne’s death occurred at a hotel on Costa Rica Street in the Palermo neighborhood, according to a statement from police provided to CNN.
Born on August 29, 1993, in Wolverhampton, England, Payne rose to fame while competing on season five of The X Factor in 2008 in front of judges Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole, Dannii Minogue and Louis Walsh.
After the audition stages, Cowell grouped Payne with Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik.
After launching their debut album, Up All Night, in 2011, they went on to become one of the best-selling boy bands of all time before going on an indefinite hiatus in 2016.
Payne had a son, born in 2017, whom he shared with former Girls Aloud singer Cheryl Cole.
Tributes from across the music industry have quickly poured in for Payne.
Officials confirmed Liam Payne’s death ‘on the spot’, official reveals
Liam Payne suffered “extremely serious injuries” when he fell from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, local police told the Associated Press.
Medics confirmed his death on the spot, according to the AP.
Police were initially called to the hotel over reports of an “aggressive man who could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol,” officials told the AP.
Singer Charlie Puth posts photo with Liam Payne on Instagram following news of his death
Liam Payne caught in legal battle with ex over allegations of repeated contact
Liam Payne and his ex-girlfriend, Maya Henry, were in a legal battle when he died on Wednesday night.
Henry, 23, had issued a cease and desist notice to Payne earlier this week, accusing him of repeatedly contacting her and her loved ones, The Daily Mail reported.
“‘Maya Henry issued a cease and desist last week to Liam Payne following the emergence of new and concerning information,” her lawyers told the Mail. “She has retained attorneys Marco Crawford and Daniel Cerna to represent her. At this time, that is her only comment on the matter.”
Henry also spoke out in a TikTok video earlier this month.
“Ever since we broke up he messages me, will blow up my phone, not only from his phone, it’s always from different phone numbers too, so I never know where it’s gonna come from,” Henry said in the video.
Liam Payne tributes: MTV and music icons pay condolences after One Direction star’s shock death
A wide range of stars from across the world are paying tribute to Liam Payne after the shock death of the former One Direction star at the age of 31.
Read on:
Liam Payne tributes: Condolences flood in after One Direction star’s shock death
Dermot O’Leary, Paris Hilton, Charlie Puth and Flavor Flav among stars paying their respects
In pictures: Fans mourn Liam Payne
Former ‘X-Factor’ presenter Dermot O’Leary posts tribute to Liam Payne
Liam Payne: the ambitious One Direction star who struggled with dark side of fame
Liam Payne, who rose to global fame as a member of the British pop band One Direction, has died aged 31.
Read The Independent’s full obituary:
Liam Payne: the ambitious One Direction star who struggled with dark side of fame
Singer, who rose to fame as a member of boyband One Direction, struggled to assert his creative identity outside of the group
Payne reportedly in Argentina for Niall Horan show
Liam Payne was reportedly in Buenos Aires for a show by Niall Horan, previously telling fans he needed to “square a couple of things” with his former One Direction bandmate.
“We’re going to Argentina,” he wrote on Instagram. “One, because we want to. Two, because we want to. And three, because Niall Horan’s playing down there and I think we might just go and say ‘hello.’”
Payne also admitted: “It’s been a while since me and Niall have spoken. We’ve got a lot to talk about and I would like to square up a couple things with the boy. No bad vibes or nothing like that but we just need to talk.”
