‘I’m crying:’ Tributes flow on One Direction star Liam Payne’s final Instagram post
Charlie Puth and Paris Hilton have joined shocked fans in paying tribute to the One Direction star.
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The music world continues to be rocked by the tragic death of former One Direction singer Liam Payne, as more stars take to social media to express their grief in heartbreaking tributes to the 31-year-old.
The British singer died after falling from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Wednesday at 5pm local time.
Preliminary autopsy results show Payne died from multiple injuries sustained in his fall that led to “internal and external haemorrhaging”.
Backstreet Boy star shares tribute
Fellow boy band star and Backstreet Boys member AJ McLean is one of the latest celebrities to pay tribute to Payne.
The singers were expected to appear together in a new Netflix talent show, Building The Band, which McLean was set to host.
Sharing a heartbreaking post on Instagram on Friday, McLean wrote: “Words cannot begin to express the pain I have for this man and the great loss we have endured!”
“We became very close almost immediately and shared so many stories, laughs, and life experiences. Gone too soon my friend.”
McLean went on to describe Payne as an “incredible person” and a “light” to be around.
“I cannot believe you are gone. Keep shining and keep singing for us all to hear. My deepest condolences to your family, loved ones, and your bandmates. Love you bro!”
Harry Styles’ mum shares heartbreaking tribute
Hours after news of Payne’s death broke, Harry Styles’ mum shared a shattering tribute to her son’s former bandmate.
Taking to Instagram, Anne Twist shared an image of a black screen with a broken heart emoji.
“Just a boy …” she captioned the post alongside another emoji of a broken heart.
A number of other celebrities have shared their shock and heartbreak over Payne’s sudden death.
Ty Dolla $ign said he recently spoken to the star as he mourned his loss.
The rapper reshared a video of the One Direction star doing karaoke to his Instagram story along with a heartbreaking message. “Just talked to you 2 days ago my guy,” he wrote.
“RIP Liam … I can’t believe this is real … absolutely heartbreaking …,” German DJ Anton Zaslavski, also known as Zedd, wrote on X.
“Sending strength to Cheryl and his son Bear and all the One direction Family,” Irish singing and television presenting duo, Jedward, wrote.
Singer Olly Murs, who also started out as a contestant on the X Factor, remembered Payne for sharing the “same passions” as him.
“This news is devastating, am lost for words,” Murs wrote on Instagram, sharing a photo of the pair back in the day mid-laugh.
“We always had a good laugh when we saw each other, sometimes the catch ups were only short and sweet but when we did it was mostly about how annoyingly good his hair always looked, or our love for Becks, the old XF days and the tour we shared together.”
DJ Jonas Blue said he is “beyond sad” after hearing his collaborator and friend died.
The DJ worked with Payne on the track Polaroid back in 2018.
Beyond sad to hear this news. Rest well my friend @liampayne,” wrote the DJ alongside a picture of the two of them together.
Singer Charlie Puth shared a series of posts on his Instagram Story where he remembered Payne for being “so kind” to him.
“I am in shock right now. Liam was always so kind to me. He was one of the first major artists I got to work with. I can not believe he is gone,” Puth wrote, before sharing an old photo and video of the pair.
“May he rest in peace.”
Meanwhile, US media personality Paris Hilton shared: “So upsetting to hear the news of (Liam Payne) passing. Sending love and condolences to his family & loved ones. RIP my friend.”
Fans left heartbroken
Heartbroken fans were quick to flood’s Payne’s social media account following the news and share tributes under his latest Instagram post – where the singer shared a photo of his One Direction bandmates in a tribute to American documentary filmmaker and writer Morgan Spurlock, who died in May.
“Rest in peace Liam, you were my childhood,” one person wrote.
“I’m crying I love u,” said another.
“This can’t be real,” another added.
“Rest easy, Liam,” said another.
“Heart broken right now,” another wrote.
Another fan expressed sadness over the photo with his former bandmates “being the last thing he posted”.
‘Heartbroken’ family release statement
The singer’s devastated family earlier released a statement on Thursday, hours after his tragic death.
“We are heartbroken. Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul,” his loved ones said.
“We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”
The Sun reports that his parents, Geoff and Karen Payne, were seen leaving home “in a hurry” around midnight on Wednesday, as news of the 31-year-old’s death began to spread.
A family member who answered the door told reporters at the time: “We’re obviously devastated at the news but we don’t want to comment.”
Preliminary autopsy results show Payne died from multiple injuries sustained in his fall that led to “internal and external haemorrhaging”.
Two forensic pathologists reached the conclusions during a post-mortem on Thursday in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The autopsy report also found Payne may have been unconscious when he fell.
The National Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor’s Office No. 16 reported on Thursday, “it is presumed that Payne did not adopt a reflex posture to protect himself” and “he could have fallen while in a state of semi or total unconsciousness”.
It also said all indications show Payne was alone when he fell and the singer had been “going through some kind of outbreak due to substance abuse” at the time, according to an official statement from the office translated from Spanish.”.
The report noted officials have questioned three hotel workers and two women who had been in the singer’s room in the hours before his death “but had already left the hotel when the incident occurred”.
Further tests are now taking place to see if the singer had consumed drugs and alcohol which could have played a contributing factor in the star’s tragic death. A toxicology report is still pending.
Payne shot to fame in 2011 after appearing on the X-Factor where he become a member of hit boy band One Direction with Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Niall Horan.
Payne is father to a seven-year-old son, Bear, whom he shares with singer Cheryl Cole.
He has been dating influencer Kate Cassidy since October 2022.
More to come
Originally published as ‘I’m crying:’ Tributes flow on One Direction star Liam Payne’s final Instagram post
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