Louis Tomlinson has addressed Liam Payne’s death in a touching tribute posted hours after the latter fatally fell from the third-floor balcony of his hotel room in Argentina.
Tomlinson, 32, on Thursday to break his silence on his former One Direction bandmate’s sudden passing.
“I am beyond devastated to be writing this but yesterday I lost a brother. Liam was somebody I looked up to everyday, such a positive, funny, and kind soul,” he wrote.
Tomlinson said he was “instantly amazed” by Payne’s voice, adding, “but more importantly as time went on I got a chance to see the kind brother I’d longed all my life for.”
He also credited Payne for “shaping” One Direction.
“A message to you Liam if you’re listening, I feel beyond lucky to have had you in my life but I’m really struggling with the idea of saying goodbye,” he wrote. “I’m so grateful that we got even closer since the band, speaking on the phone for hours, reminiscing about all the thousands of amazing memories we had together is a luxury I thought I’d have with you for life. I would have loved to share the stage with you again but it wasn’t to be.”
He continued, “If Bear ever needs me I will be the Uncle he needs in his life and tell him stories of how amazing his dad was,” telling Payne that he wished he “got a chance to say goodbye and tell you one more time how much I loved you.”
Tomlinson signed off, writing, “Payno, my boy, one of my best friends, my brother, I love you mate. Sleep well X.”
The pair were brothers for life thanks to the success of their band, but they didn’t always get along. Payne admitted when they first set off on their boy band journey.
The 1D stars met on “The X Factor” in 2010 when Simon Cowell formed the group, which also included Harry Styles, 30, Zayn Malik, 31, and Niall Horan, 31.
One Direction found success with hits like “What Makes You Beautiful” and “Story of My Life.” They went on to become one of the highest-selling boy bands of all time, having sold 70 million records worldwide.
The 1D split bega♍n in 2015, with Malik being the first to leave the grᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚoup and pursue a solo career. While the remaining members scoffed at rumors of a breakup, the band went on an indefinite hiatus in 2016.
Despite going thei♛r separate ways, Tomlinson and Payne remained ti✃ght through the hard times.
When Tomlinson’s mom, Johannah, in 2016, Payne wrote his ex-bandmate a heartfelt note.
“I am so sorry for you, my brot𓆉her,” he wrote. “My heart aches for you. Just know I love you the same from a million miles away as I do right next to you. I’m always here for you through everything as you have been for me. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family at this incredibly sad time.”
Payne signed off by penning “RIP, Johannah, you꧋ are forever in my thoughts.”
In October 2021, Payne told ও that he and Tomlinson were the closest within the band.
“Me and Louis did not get along. We all got thrown together, and we didn’t know each other when got made into a band,” he said. “Now we are actually the best of friends within the band, which I think is absoꩲlute❀ly hilarious … I think even in those moments of angst it breathes a connection between you both.”
In March 2023, Payne shared his regrets for not being there more through Tomlinson’s toughest times after attending the latter’s documentary “All of Those Voices.”
“Seeing the world through youꦡr eyes last night was the most beautiful thing to experience𝄹,” Payne .
“My neck hurts from how much I’m looking up to you right now you were already my friend and brother but getting to look thro🔯ugh that window into your world and mind just extends that respect I have for you. What you’ve dealt with and how you held it all inside. I’m so sorry I was so out of my mind and didn’t do better for you. I feel ashamed in those moments to not be as good of a friend as you have been to me, at least I have time now and I’m me again so will try and make amends.”
Payne died on Oct. 16 at 31, with officials initially saying he “had jumped from the balcony of his room” at CasaSur Palermo in Buenos Aires, Argentina. However, the autopsy report said the singer had fallen.
Communications Director for the Buenos Aires Security 💧Ministry, Pablo Policicchio, that investigators are still working to determine if it was an accident or intentional.
Payne fractured his skull and died instantly of “very serious injuries,” medical officials confirmed on Thurs🎶day.
The National Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor’s Office No. 16 also revealed that the position of Payne’s body and injuries indicated he “did not adopt a reflex posture to protect himself” and may have “fallen while in a state of semi or total unconsciousness.”
The autopsy concluded his official cause of death was “polytꦚrauma, internal and external hemorrhage.” Internal and external hemorrhages in the skull, thorax, abdomen and limbs “contributed to the mechanism of death.”
Shocking images showed Payne’s trashed hotel room, littered with drug paraphernalia and alcohol. It was also reported that two women were in the singer’s room in the hours before his death.
Payne went to Argentina with his girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, 25. The pair attended his former 1D bandmate Niall Horan’s Buenos Aires concert on Oct. 2; however, Cassidy left on Monday.
In a TikTok video, she shared that their five-day trip turned into two weeks, and she was “relieved” to be back home in Florida.
The Post spoke to Cassidy’s father, who exclusively revealed “she’s grieving” o🉐ver the sudden loss of her boyfriend of two years.
The couple was first linked in October 2022 after his failed engagement to Maya Henry, who issued a cease and desist against Payne, claiming he ওwas obsessively contacting her and her loved ones, just days before his death.
Before Cassidy and Henry, Payne famously date🐼d singer Cheryl Cole, 41.
The pair met when Payne was a contestant and she was a judge on “The X Factor,” but didn’t begin seeing each other until 2016.
They share a son, Bear, 7, whom Payne called his “mini-me” in a heartbreaking post from August that has resurfaced following his death.
Follow along with The Post’s coverage of Liam Payne’s tragic death at 31
- Liam Payne’s girlfriend Kate Cassidy breaks her silence after his tragic 𝓀death at 31: ‘At a complete loss’
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- One Direction releases h🌳eartfelt statement on Li🐻am Payne’s death: ‘We will miss him terribly’
- ‘Violent♒ scream’ came from Liam Payne’s room💃 before he plunged to his death: hotel guest
Payne’s family broke their silence on the tragedy in an emotional statement.
“Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul,” the family said. “We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”
