Liam Payne‘s family has issued a statement following his unexpected death on Wednesday at 31. The former One Direction member reportedly fell from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
“We are heartbroken. Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul,” the family said in a statement to PA Media, the U.K. and Ireland’s national news agency. “We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”
At the same time, the 911 call from staff at the CasaSur Palermo hotel has been released detailing the events before Payne’s tragic death. According to a transcript translated from Spanish by the BBC, a hotel staffer told emergency services that there was a “guest who is high on drugs and who is trashing the room, so we need someone to come.”
The line then cut out and a second call was made by the hotel employee. Once the call connected, the staffer continued: “We need you to send someone urgently because, well, I don’t know whether his life may be in danger, the guest’s life. He is in a room with a balcony and well, we’re a little afraid that he…”
The employee also informed the 911 operator that staff members were unable to access Payne’s room, hence the need for police assistance. The 911 operator then sent the police to the hotel.
Though Payne was initially reported to have fallen three floors from the hotel, Pablo Policicchio, the communications director for the Buenos Aires Security Ministry, later said in a statement that Payne “had jumped from the balcony of his room.”
Following the news of Payne’s death, tributes poured out from “The X Factor,” Backstreet Boys, Paris Hilton and more. “Britain’s Got Talent,” the show that former “X Factor” judge and one-time One Direction manager Simon Cowell is currently featured on, also canceled its auditions on Thursday due to Payne’s death. “Due to the tragic passing of Liam Payne, we have decided to postpone the ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ auditions,” a spokesperson for producer Fremantle U.K. told Variety. “Our thoughts are with Liam’s friends, family and all who loved him.”
Payne was discovered on “The X Factor” in 2010 alongside his One Direction bandmates Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan. The five musicians auditioned for the show solo, but were put together to form a band and eventually came in third place in the competition. Afterwards, One Direction was signed to Cowell’s Syco Entertainment. The band went on to become one of the highest-selling boy bands in history, selling 70 million records worldwide before announcing an indefinite hiatus in 2016.
After One Direction’s hiatus, Payne signed a solo record deal with Capitol Records U.K. and began releasing music in 2017, beginning with the single “Strip That Down” featuring Migos rapper Quavo. His debut solo album, “LP1,” debuted in December 2019 and he put out a new single, “Teardrops,” in March with a second album on the way.
Payne was open about his struggles with drinking and suicidal thoughts, and just last year stated that he had completed more than three months of sobriety. “I’m sober now, over 100 days,” he told IFL TV. “I feel amazing, I feel really, really good and the support from the fans has been really, really good, so I’m super happy.”
