Liam Payne attended former One Direction bandmate Niall Horan‘s concert in Buenos Aires, Argentina, two weeks before Payne’s death.
In a Snapchat video reposted to social media earlier this month, Payne could be seen talking to the camera about hoping to reunite with Horan, 31, at his show on October 2.
“I think we might just go and say hello,” he said in a video. “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 of things with the boy. No bad vibes or anything like that. But just, we need to talk.”
Payne was seen dancing to Horan’s songs in a video posted via social media, and also posted a series of videos singing with on-again, off-again girlfriend Kate Cassidy. Later that night, he posted a photo of himself with Horan via Snapchat, simply captioning it, “Reunited.”
Two weeks later, Payne died after falling from a hotel in Buenos Aires on Wednesday, October 16. The singer fell from the third floor of the CasaSur Palermo Hotel, Us Weekly confirmed.
The Buenos Aires City Police from Station 14B were dispatched during Wednesday afternoon to the hotel where Payne was staying, Us confirmed. The officers acted on a call reporting an “aggressive man who may have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol,” according to the official police report.
“At 5:04 p.m., through 911 and the integrated public security system, we were alerted about a person in the internal courtyard of the CasaSur hotel,” the SAME (Emergency Medical Assistance System) director Alberto Crescenti said in a TV interview via La Nacion.
He noted that seven minutes later, a nearby SAME team arrived on scene and “confirmed the man’s death.”
Crescenti added, “Unfortunately, he had injuries incompatible with life due to the fall, so we had to confirm the death. There was no possibility of resuscitation.”
Fans, friends and fellow celebs remembered the “For You” singer in emotional tributes via social media after his death.
“I am in shock right now,” singer Charlie Puth wrote via his Instagram Story. “Liam was always so kind to me. He was one of the first major artists I got to work with. I cannot believe he is gone…”
Juicy J, who collaborated with Payne and Wiz Khalifa on the 2016 track “You,” wrote via X, “R.I.P. Liam Payne wow I can’t believe it prayers up for the family.”
Horan and Payne rose to fame as part of One Direction alongside Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson in 2010 after they were grouped together by X Factor judge Simon Cowell. The group gained international success almost overnight, releasing five studio albums, including their debut album, Up All Night, Take Me Home and their fifth and final full-length album, Made in the A.M.
1D maintained their superstar status until the band went on hiatus in 2016. All five members of 1D went on to pursue solo careers after they disbanded, with Payne releasing one studio album, LP1, in December 2019. He also released two EPs and 14 singles on his own.
In addition to his solo career, Payne started a family, welcoming son Bear with Cheryl Cole in March 2017. He and Cole split in 2018, announcing their breakup via social media.