Liam Payne, former One Direction member, dead at 31

Liam Payne, a former One Direction member, has died. He was 31.

Payne died after falling from the third floor of a hotel room in Buenos Aires, Argentina, according to state police reports by ABC and CNN.

Liam Payne.

Gareth Cattermole/MTV EMAs 2017/Getty Images

CNN reports that Payne fell from a balcony on Costa Rica Street in the Palermo district.

Payne was born on August 29, 1993, in Wolverhampton, England. He rose to prominence after auditioning for the fifth season of The X Factor in 2010, in front of judges Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole, Dannii Minogue, and Louis Walsh.

Payne previously auditioned for a British television series in 2008 but was eliminated. When he returned two years later, a performance of Michael Bublé's "Cry Me a River" earned him a spot in the newly formed boy band One Direction, which was mentored by Cowell. Niall Horan, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and Zayn Malik round up the quartet.

While they did not win that season of The X Factor, One Direction went on to become one of the best-selling boy bands of all time, with hits including "What Makes You Beautiful," "Night Changes," and "Steal My Girl." After Malik left the band the previous year, the group went on indefinite hiatus in 2016.

Payne later signed as a solo artist with Capitol Records U.K. in 2016, and released his debut single "Strip That Down" featuring Quavo the following year.

In addition to collaborating with other renowned musicians such as DJ Zedd and J Balvin, his music was streamed over two billion times in 2018.

He also released his debut EP, First Time, in August 2018 and his first solo studio album, LP1, the following year. Payne has had several songs hit on the Billboard Hot 100, including "Strip That Down," which reached at number 10. Other hits on the chart included "For You" with Rita Ora, "Get Low" with Zedd, and "Bedroom Floor". His most recent release was the single "Teardrops" earlier this year.

Payne and his ex-girlfriend (and X Factor judge), Cole, have a kid named Bear Grey Payne, who was born in 2017. He was now dating Kate Cassidy, an influencer.

Payne also experienced various difficulties later in his career, including saying on Logan Paul's Impaulsive podcast in 2022 that he will always "dislike" former bandmate Malik, insisting that One Direction was created around him, and claiming to be the most successful solo artist outside of the band. (Many cited Harry Styles as proof he was wrong.)

Payne then apologized for his statements, claiming that he lashed out due to his "own frustrations" with his career. Maya Henry, his ex, has lately accused the singer of harassing her and her family after the couple split in 2022.

The artist had come to Argentina for Horan's concert on October 2 at the Movistar Arena in Buenos Aires. He appeared in numerous fan videos, cheering on his friend's performance and communicating with the audience.

In addition to his kid, Payne is survived by his parents, Karen and Geoff, and two elder sisters, Ruth and Nicola.