Zayn Malik, a former member of One Direction, has written a moving tribute to his bandmate Liam Payne following Payne’s tragic passing at the age of 31.
On October 16, Payne was discovered deceased at a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, after reportedly falling from the third-floor balcony of his hotel room.
Payne gained fame as a member of the British boy band One Direction, which included Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, and Niall Horan.
The group was formed on the reality competition show The X Factor in 2010 and quickly rose to become one of the most successful boy bands of all time. They announced a hiatus in 2016, a year after Malik left the group.
Following the release of a joint statement on One Direction’s Instagram page, Malik shared a personal tribute to Payne on his own Instagram account.
Accompanied by a nostalgic photo of the two together, Malik expressed, “Liam, I have found myself talking out loud to you, hoping you can hear me. I can’t help but think selfishly that there were so many more conversations for us to have in our lives.”
“I never got to thank you for supporting me through some of the most difficult times in my life. When I was missing home as a 17-year-old kid, you would always be there with a positive outlook and reassuring smile, letting me know you were my friend and that I was loved.”
“Even though you were younger than me, you were always more sensible than me. You were headstrong, opinionated, and gave no f***s about telling people when they were wrong.”
“Even though we butted heads because of this a few times, I always secretly respected you for it.”
“When it came to the music, Liam, you were the most qualified in every sense. I knew nothing in comparison; I was a novice child with no experience, and you were already a professional.”
“I was always happy to know, no matter what happened on stage, we could always rely on you to know which way to steer the ship next.”
“I lost a brother when you left us and can’t explain to you what I’d give to just give you a hug one last time and say goodbye to you properly and tell you that I loved and respected you dearly.”
“I will cherish all the memories I have with you in my heart forever. There are no words that justify or explain how I feel right now other than beyond devastated.”
“I hope that wherever you are right now, you are good and at peace, and you know how loved you are.”
Malik ended his heartfelt tribute with, “Love you bro.”