The X Factor has paid tribute to One Direction member Liam Payne following his death yesterday (October 16). The 31 year-old died in a fall in a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The British group formed in 2010 during their appearance on U.K. version of The X Factor‘s seventh series. During their six-year career, the group went on to have four No.1 albums on the Billboard 200 and six top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100.
A post on the TV show’s official social media said: “We are heartbroken by the sad passing of Liam Payne. He was immensely talented and, as part of One Direction, Liam will leave a lasting legacy on the music industry and fans around the world. Our thoughts are with his friends, family and all who loved him.”
One Direction went on an indefinite hiatus in 2016 and the five former members – Payne, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson – have all embarked on solo careers in the years since.
According to local police, Payne died after falling from a third-floor hotel room in Buenos Aires. Prior to his death, the police received a call from the hotel following reports “of an aggressive man who may have been under the effects of drugs and alcohol”.
The city’s emergency medical services director Alberto Crescenti told local media that Payne had suffered “serious injuries” from his fall, but declined to answer any additional questions in readers to Payne’s fall.
Payne had released one solo album, LP1, in 2019 and said that work had begun on a follow-up. He is survived by one child, Bear, who he shared with former partner Girls Alouds’ Cheryl Cole.