Liam Payne dead: One Direction star dies aged 31

Former One Direction star Liam Payne has been found dead.

The singer, 31, reportedly fell from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, according to media reports in the South American country.

Alberto Crescenti, head of the state emergency medical system, said on Argentina’s Todo Noticias TV channel that Liam fell into a courtyard of the Casa Sur Hotel in the Palermo neighbourhood of Argentina’s capital, AP said.

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Liam, who was part of the original One Direction line-up, found fame in 2011 after appearing on The X Factor. He enjoyed world stardom alongside his bandmates Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Niall Horan.

Liam is said to have been holidaying in Argentina with his girlfriend Kate Cassidy. In recent weeks, he has been documenting his travels in the country and attended the concert of his former bandmate, Niall.

Police, firefighters and ambulances were seen outside the hotel building where Liam is reported to have died. Police are said to have been called to reports of a man acting aggressively at the hotel who could be under the effect of drink or drugs.

A body was found in an internal patio of the hotel. The police were called to the hotel by the hotel manager.

It's believed that Liam fell from around 13 or 14 metres and suffered "very serious injuries incompatible with life."

After becoming one of the biggest pop groups in the world with five albums and four world tours, One Direction went on indefinite hiatus in 2016.

Liam, who was born in Wolverhampton, released his debut solo album LP1 in December 2019 which included the singles Polaroid and Familiar. He and Girls Aloud singer Cheryl share a son Bear, born in 2017, having been in a high-profile relationship between 2016 and 2018.

In August last year, Liam postponed his scheduled tour of South America after suffering from a “serious kidney infection”. He said the infection was something “I wouldn’t wish on anyone” and he had been instructed by doctors to “rest and recover”.

In August, Liam was announced as a judge on a new Netflix show alongside former Destiny’s Child singer Kelly Rowland and The Pussycat Dolls star Nicole Scherzinger.

The stars were to judge attempts to create a band, looking at the contestants’ chemistry as they formed groupings in the musical competition series.