Liam Payne dead: The cheeky lad from Wolverhampton who stole Cheryl’s heart & became millionaire with One Direction fame

SEVEN years as a member of One Direction propelled Liam Payne to global stardom.

But 14 years after Simon Cowell first united the five young strangers including Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Harry Styles, the pop star tragically died in Argentina.

The 31-year-old was in Buenos Aires for Horan’s tour when he tragically plunged from the third floor of his hotel balcony, TMZ reports.

Liam stole the nations heart when he auditioned for The X Factor back in 2008, as well as Cheryl‘s who was on the judging panel.

Liam James Payne was born August 29, 1993, to mum Karen, a nursery nurse, and Geoff Payne, a fitter.

His early childhood was not particularly easy as he was born with a scarred and dysfunctional kidney.

Up until the age of four he was forced to undergo regular tests and to help cope with the pain, he had 32 injections in his arm in the morning and evening.

Pictures from that time show an adorable and cheeky looking little boy and in one snap from the family album he can be seen winking at the camera.

Other photographs from his family album show he had musical talent from an early age even being pictured with a mic.

Liam previously revealed that he was bullied at secondary school but after taking up boxing lessons he soon grew out of any puppy fat.

At 16, Payne initially auditioned as a solo act but was given a second chance to come back as part of a group at Bootcamp, forming what would become one of the talent show’s biggest success stories – One Direction.

The band rose to international fame despite only placing third in the show.

They became one of the biggest pop groups in the world with five albums, four world tours, one movie and a memorable music video for Red Nose Day in 2013 which featured then prime minister David Cameron happening upon them dancing in front of Number 10 Downing Street.

But six years after they were formed, with more than 20 million albums sold, the band were placed on indefinite hiatus with Malik having already left in 2015 to pursue a solo career.

Marking One Direction’s 10th anniversary in 2020, Payne shared a screenshot of a text message he sent to his father on the day he joined the group, reading: “I’m in a boyband.”

“What a journey… I had no idea what we were in for when I sent this text to my dad years ago at this exact time the band was formed,” he said.

In 2016, Payne signed a solo record deal with Capital Records UK.

He said at the time he was “really happy” to have signed with them, adding: “One Direction will always be my family; I’m now excited to show what I can do as a solo artist.”

Over his solo career, Payne released hits Strip That Down and Get Low.

Away from the studio and stage, Payne entered into a relationship with former Girls Aloud star Cheryl, the pair having first met on The X Factor when she was a judge.

Liam got together while Cheryl was going through her divorce to second husband Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini at the beginning of 2016.

Despite their age difference they looked completely infatuated with each other when the couple made their red carpet debut at Cannes in May 2016.

Liam even paid a sweet tribute to his former girlfriend by getting a tattoo of her eye on his arm.

The pair welcomed their baby on March 22, 2017.

The Sun revealed in May 2017 that the couple named their son Bear.

However in February 2018, The Sun broke the story that Liam’s constant travelling to promote his solo career had placed a huge strain on the relationship.

By July 2018, Cheryl and Liam made the decision to split.

Payne released his debut solo album LP1 in December 2019 which included the singles Polaroid and Familiar.

However the Wolverhampton-born singer seemed to struggle with life outside the band.

Liam was brutally honest about his health issues in recent years.

He admitted that he spent time in a US wellness clinic after he “hit rock bottom”.

He also told how a mystery respiratory illness left him floored in 2021.

Liam admitted turning to alcohol and drugs to hide how he struggled to cope with One Direction’s dizzying levels of fame — which would spark panic attacks and high levels of exhaustion.

In 2021, he blamed a “pills and booze phase” for bloating his face to “ten times the size” while also revealing he used to guzzle the contents of his mini bar when band chiefs checked the lads into hotels to keep fans at bay.

He came across as erratic in interviews by making bizarre claims, including that Cowell built One Direction around his talents and that his solo career has been the most successful of all his bandmates.

Liam also made strange comments about his romance with Cheryl, saying their split was partly down to their son Bear.

Since breaking up with Cheryl, Liam’s love life had been just as turbulent as his health worries.

He was linked to supermodel Naomi Campbell, 54, in 2019.

He had an on-off, three-year relationship with ex-fiancée Maya Henry which was said to have ended for good in May, 2022.

Then pictures emerged of him with his arms around American model Aliana Mawla.

The star had arrived in Argentina on September 30 with his most recent girlfriend Kate Cassidy.

He was seen at Niall’s show dancing and meeting fans on October 2.

A source later confirmed to The Sun that Liam had died.

Liam was staying at Hotel CasaSur in the neighbourhood of Palermo, local media report.

Liam’s final post on social media was put up on his Snapchat only minutes before his death and showed him and Kate.

He had posted earlier in the day talking about riding horses, playing polo and looking forward to returning home to see his dog.

“It’s a lovely day here in Argentina.”