Liam Payne, former member of boy band One Direction, dies

Liam Payne, the iconic former One Direction member, has been found dead in a hotel in Buenos Aires. The singer, songwriter and guitarist had travelled to Argentina with his girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, to attend former One Direction bandmate Niall Horan’s concert. The tragic news, initially confirmed by local media outlets such as La Nacion, has quickly resonated on international news platforms, including Reuters. Although details are still unclear, several sources point to a fall from the third floor as the cause of the artist’s death. The musician was staying at the CasaSur hotel in the capital and was found dead in the hotel’s inner courtyard.

At just 31, Payne became a global phenomenon after debuting on the hit British series The X Factor in 2008. It was in 2010 that he joined Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Zayn Malik, forming One Direction, the band that swept the charts and became a pop music icon. Following the group’s disbandment in 2016, which left a legacy of awards and millions of records sold, Payne took a step forward in his solo career in 2017 with the hit ‘Strip That Down,’ in collaboration with Quavo. His debut album, LP1, released in 2019, saw him collaborate with big names like J. Balvin and Zedd. Although he was scheduled for a South American tour in 2023, he was forced to cancel due to a kidney infection. The music world has lost a true talent.

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