Former One Direction star Liam Payne died at the age of 31 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Wednesday after falling from a balcony.
As the star’s ex-partner Cheryl says her son Bear must “face the reality of never seeing his father again,” Liam Payne’s father has watched tributes outside the hotel where his son passed away.
Payne, 31, passed away on Wednesday after falling from the balcony of the hotel room on the third story in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he was staying.
When Geoff Payne visited the hotel in Argentina, a horde of photographers followed him. Fans yelled at the reporters and tried to barricade the building’s entry to prevent them from entering.
After his son passed away, Mr. Payne traveled to Buenos Aires, and in spite of the family’s desire for privacy, the trip from his hotel to the Casa Sur hotel was seen on Argentine
The singer of Girls Aloud, Cheryl, who dated Payne from 2016 to 2018, also condemned the “abhorrent” media treatment that followed his passing.
In an Instagram post, Cheryl wrote: “As I try to navigate this earth shattering event, and work through my own grief at this indescribably painful time, I’d like to kindly remind everyone that we have lost a human being.”
Ruth Gibbins, Payne’s sister, called him her “best friend” and promised the family will “take care of Bear” in an emotional Instagram post on Saturday.
“My brain is struggling to catch up with what’s happening and I don’t understand where you’ve gone,” she said.
Additionally, Cheryl expressed her concern that her seven-year-old son had access to “abhorrent reports and media exploitation” and that she would be unable to shield him from it going forward.
“The fact that Bear will eventually have access to the disgusting reports and media exploitation we have witnessed over the last two days is what is most upsetting to me,” she continued.
“I implore you to think about the purpose of some of these reports, aside from causing more harm.”
Outside the Casa Sur hotel, Geoff Payne took a moment to read tributes to his son and express gratitude to the people who had gathered.
Fans at the location put up a barrier between him and the cameras when he got there; several later told the BBC that they wanted to give him room.
Fans wanted to give Mr. Payne “a moment” to “express his feelings and see how much we love Liam,” according to Bianca Gallorini, who assisted in setting up the temporary barrier.
In order to arrange for his body to be taken back to the UK, Mr. Payne had previously gone to the Buenos Aires morgue to formally identify his son.
“And I want you to know how much love and respect I have for you,” Cowell continued in an Instagram post. All of my tears are a reflection of you.
Kate Cassidy, Payne’s fiancée, also paid homage to the celebrity, calling her “my angel” and stating that she was “at a complete loss.”
She said, “You are everything,” in a statement.
“I want you to know how completely and utterly I loved you.
In Cowell’s statement, he also recalled Payne’s first X Factor audition in 2008, at the age of 14, when Cowell told the budding singer he was not ready and to come back in two years.
“A lot of people would have given up. You didn’t. You came back and within months the whole world would know Liam.
“And you never forgot the fans. I watched you spending so much time with people who had wanted to meet you. You really cared.”
Cowell eventually signed One Direction to his label and masterminded their global success before they split in 2016.
The music mogul also revealed that Payne had visited him last year “just to sit and talk”, adding that they “reminisced about all of the fun times we had together”.
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- ‘Liam called asking for advice on handling fame’
A tribute was also written on Friday by Payne’s bandmate Niall Horan, who expressed his “absolutely devastated” feelings at the “passing of his amazing friend.”
One Direction and singer Katie Weasel, who competed in the 2010 season of X Factor, described the music industry as “very manipulative, coercive, and deconstructive,” claiming that it “sucks the soul out of people.”
The industry “puts enormous pressures on young people,” according to US artist Bruce Springsteen, who told the Daily Telegraph that young people lack “the inner self yet to be able to protect themselves from a lot of the things that come with success and fame.”
Springsteen claimed to have “own wrestling with different things” and to understand this “very well” from personal experience.