Liam Payne, the former One Direction star, has died at the age of 31 in Argentina after falling from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, police said.
In a statement, police said they discovered Payne’s body after emergency crews responded to a 911 call in the upscale neighborhood of Palermo.
Payne rose to global fame as a member of the much-loved boy band X Factor in 2010, alongside Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Zayn Malik.
Earlier this month, Payne attended a concert in Argentina by former One Direction band member Niall Horan.
According to police in Buenos Aires, officers at the scene initially responded to reports “of a violent man who may have been under the influence of drugs and alcohol”.
When they arrived at the hotel, officials were informed that they had heard a loud sound in the courtyard. Soon after, people discovered the body there. A police investigation has been launched.
Emergency medical services director Alberto Crescenti told local media that Payne had suffered “serious injuries” and that an autopsy would be performed.
Mr. Crescenti refused to answer questions about the circumstances of Payne’s fall from the balcony.
The UK Foreign Office confirmed it had been in contact with Argentine authorities “relating reporters to the death of a British man”. No further details were given.
Payne appeared to have posted on Snapchat just hours before the incident, saying: “What a wonderful day in Argentina.”
As news of his death broke, fans began gathering outside the Buenos Aires hotel where the death occurred, prompting police to block off the entrance.
“I was in the living room when my sister told me that Liam was dead,” a young fan named Violeta Antier told Reuters news agency. “We couldn’t believe it. We came here directly to confirm it was true.”
Ms Antier said she met Payne at a Niall Horan concert just two weeks ago.
Tributes have also poured in online.
“Sending love and condolences to his family [and] loved ones,” socialite Paris Hilton wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “RIP my friend.”
On Instagram, host Dermot O’Leary said he missed Payne very much.
“I remember him coming in at 14 to audition on X Factor and making us fall in love with singing Sinatra,” he wrote alongside a photo of the pair.
“He was always a happy person, made time for people, police, grateful and always humble.”
Payne, born in Wolverhampton, England, first tried his hand at stardom when he auditioned for ITV talent show The X Factor in 2008 – but judge Simon Cowell told him ” Please come back in two years.”
He did just that, impressing the judges even more in 2010, and was placed with four other solo hopefuls at the training stage and One Direction was born.
The group had four UK number one albums and four number one singles and topped the charts worldwide, before announcing a hiatus in 2015.
In 2017, Payne’s debut solo single Strip That Down, which reached number three on the Official UK Chart, and his collaboration with Rita Ora on the song For You – from the Fifty Shades soundtrack Freed – also entered the top 10.
He began a relationship with Girls Aloud star Cheryl Tweedy in 2016 and they had a son, Bear, the following year. The couple broke up in 2018.
Earlier this week, Maya Henry, another former partner, told the media through her lawyer that she had issued a cease and desist letter against the singer. She posted on social media accusing him of continuously contacting her. Liam has not responded to the accusations.
