From cheeky 14-year-old to global star, the rise and tragic death of Wolverhampton’s Liam Payne

“I should really concentrate on my work but I think too much about singing. It’s a dream, I would love to do it.”

And with a cheeky nod to Cheryl Cole midway through his version of Frank Sinatra’s Fly Me To The Moon, the Bushbury lad had the entire jury eating out of his hands. Even at the age of 14, he demonstrated an uncanny talent for performing in front of crowds.

Still, it’s fair to say that no one in the room that day – least of all the teenager himself – would have imagined the rollercoaster ride that awaited them. Global stardom, both as a member of One Direction and as a solo artist, a relationship with Cheryl that would result in a son, and a career as a music producer would all have seemed fanciful to the 14-year-old in 2008.

Today marks the first anniversary of the star’s death after the tragic events in Buenos Aires on October 16, 2024. Still a young man, with immense personal wealth and a remarkable career behind him, the world was truly his oyster. He could be almost whoever he wanted to be.

Yet it was also a career that seemed to have ended before it even started, with Cowell rejecting teenager Liam on no less than three occasions. After passing his first audition in 2008, Liam was initially sent home by Cowell after the boot camp stage. But the music mogul quickly turned around – due to the record’s scratchy sound effect – and called him back for an extended stay at his home in Barbados. But it was there that Cowell concluded Liam was simply too young and sent the heartbroken youngster home – but with the message to return in a few years, when he had finished his exams.

When he returned in 2010, Louis Walsh seemed to remember little about him. Once again, he made it through the first stage of the competition – with Cowell telling him he might have “Michael Bublé shaking in his shoes” – but was rejected once again at the “training camp” stage, one of the few that Cowell felt had failed to live up to their initial potential.

“Each of them individually had really good auditions,” Cowell later revealed.

“We had high hopes for two or three of them in particular, but it all kind of fell apart at one of the final stages.”

But Cowell said he immediately had a nagging feeling that he might regret letting them go. This was Liam’s second chance at fame, so he was unlikely to return for a third audition.

“When they left, I had a bad feeling that maybe we shouldn’t have lost them and maybe we should do something else with them,” he said.

“And that’s when the idea came up that we should see if they could work as a group. We invited those five guys back. Those were the only five we were interested in.”

One Direction, made up of Liam, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson, were reportedly Cowell’s tips for winning the competition. In the event, they finished third, behind winner Matt Cardle and runner-up Rebecca Ferguson, but Cowell still gave them a contract. And they proved to be the show’s most enduring act that year, selling 75 million records, winning nearly 200 awards, including seven British ones, and all becoming multi-multimillionaires. Collectively, they earned more than the Beatles. Less outgoing than Harry Styles, Liam was the group’s de facto leader, the one who held everything together, fielding questions from the media and co-writing more than half of the group’s third and fourth albums.

As with most pop groups, tensions eventually showed and Malik broke ranks in 2015 to pursue a solo career. The group never officially broke up, but stopped performing in 2016, with the members each going their separate ways.

By this time, Liam had already begun to branch out, co-writing the song I Won’t Break for former X-Factor judge Cheryl, which featured on her fourth album, Only Human. The same year, he remixed One Direction songs You & I and Steal My Girl. He also co-wrote The Night We Met for Irish boy band Hometown in 2015 and collaborated with American rapper Juicy J in 2014 and 2016.

In 2017, Liam released his debut solo single, Strip That Down, which saw immediate success, reaching number three in the UK and number ten on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song, written by Ed Sheeran and featuring American rapper Quavo, received multi-platinum certifications on both sides of the Atlantic. The following year, he released For You, a collaboration with Rita Ora which became a worldwide success, receiving gold or platinum certifications in several countries.

His solo studio album, LP1, was released in December 2019 and made the UK Top 20, but was less successful in America. Nonetheless, in the first three years of his solo career, Liam sold over 18 million singles, 2.4 million albums and amassed 3.9 billion online streams.

By 2016, Liam was also in a relationship with Cheryl – who had by then dropped her ex-husband’s last name – and they had a son born in March 2017. Their relationship ended the following year, but they appeared to remain on good terms, with Liam moving to Chalfont St Giles to be closer to his son. At the time of his death, he was in a relationship with influencer Kate Cassidy.

Liam spoke openly about his drug and alcohol problems, candidly admitting to the pressures of fame. In 2022, he revealed that he spent 100 days in rehab in Louisiana. On the day of his death, he reportedly confided his problems to another hotel guest.

His brilliant career had made him rich beyond his wildest dreams, but he was also known for his generosity and philanthropy. As well as his public fundraising efforts for charities such as Clic Sargent and Unicef ​​and his personal donations to The Way youth center in Wolverhampton, it was also revealed that he often spent many nights on crowdfunding sites, ensuring people reached their goals. Although he grew up in Wolverhampton, he was a keen West Bromwich Albion supporter.

Liam was still in the prime of his life when he tragically plunged to his death from the balcony of his hotel in Buenos Aires, where he was watching his former bandmate Niall Horan in concert. It is tragic that we will never know what the years to come will have in store for him.