Ed Sheeran urges others to ‘be kind’ following death of Liam Payne

Ed Sheeran has urged others to “be kind” as he paid tribute to Liam Payne following his death aged 31.

Musicians and famous faces have been remembering the singer after police in Argentina said he died falling from the third-floor balcony of a hotel in Buenos Aires

Payne rose to fame aged 16 as part of One Direction, who went on to become a global sensation after they finished third on The X Factor in 2010.

Alongside a black-and-white photo of Payne smiling shared to Instagram, Sheeran wrote: “At a loss for words.

“My thoughts are with his family and loved ones, every memory I have with him is a great one, just such a heart-breaking situation. Be kind. X”

Williams, who first met Payne when the singer auditioned for the singing competition the first time round aged 14, told BBC Breakfast, “I feel with the music industry there isn’t enough duty of care.

“I’ve been through my own trials and tribulations, which has been well documented, and there was nowhere for me to look at, I just had my family and friends and my loved ones to hold me up.

“And I feel like with Liam, it’s the same. He did have, obviously, a beautiful family, but you’re out there alone in this crazy, crazy world where there’s a lot of vultures, I’m not going to lie to you. It’s very, very tough to navigate sometimes.”

He added that during his time on The X Factor he was able to “learn a lot” but he felt you are left “on your own” afterwards and that “nothing prepares you for the pandemonium that ensues”, particularly for someone who experienced superstardom on Payne’s level.

The JLS star said they went on to have “some really emotional, deep conversations” over the years and he thought of him as a “beautiful soul”.

“He really showed me that he’s not about this famous celebrity life, actually the reason why he was doing what he was doing, and I related to him, was because we both had a passion and a love for singing and music, and what a great singer he was,” he added.

Boyband JLS previously said Payne felt like their “original fifth member” when he auditioned alongside them in 2008 and they “always knew he’d go on to achieve great things”.

“Our hearts go out to his mum and family, his little boy and all those around the world who will miss him so very deeply. Gone way too soon brother, Rest in Peace.”

Craig Revel Horwood remembered Payne as a “lovely person” and said he thought the singer had a “very bright future” ahead.

The Strictly Come Dancing judge, who met the singer when they appeared on The Jonathan Ross Show together, told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “Thirty-one is just no age and I just hate that.

“He was a lovely, lovely, lovely person backstage, when Shirley (Ballas), Motsi (Mabuse) and myself were on Jonathan Ross with him.

“He was just adorable and he had what I considered a very bright future.

“And someone that young leaving the world so soon or early, before their life has come to fruition.

“I mean, I was 30 when I stopped dancing and then I changed my career entirely. And I just think of myself at that age and the life he could have had ahead of him is, it is frightening, isn’t it?

“And it’s super, super, super sad. So my heart pours out to his family.”

THE STANDARD