What to Know
Liam Payne, who was one of the five members of One Direction, died on October 16, 2024 after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He was only 31 years old. Authorities said he had “traces of alcohol, cocaine and a prescribed antidepressant” in his system at the time of his death. Simon Cowell, who formed One Direction on the X Factor, said during a recent interview that he did question how the band’s fame might’ve played a role in Liam’s death.
“You ask yourself that question: ‘Could I have done anything more? What would’ve happened to Liam if he hadn’t been in the band?’ I don’t know,” Simon admitted during the Rolling Stone Music Now podcast.
Simon saw Liam a year before his death.
While on the podcast, Simon spoke about the last time he saw Liam. Liam stopped by Simon’s house, and the two men spoke about fatherhood. At the time, Liam appeared to be doing well. But, of course, now Simon questions whether he missed any warning signs or could’ve done anything to help the late musician.
“I wish I could turn back the clock, of course, to that day he came to my house,” he said. “When I spoke to him that day, if I’m being honest with you, I felt really good about him. I thought, ‘Wow, you seem in a really good place.’”
He also remembered talking to Liam about how he could step back from music if he wanted to. “I remember saying, ‘Music is not everything, by the way. You’re in a position where you can decide when you want to put something out and when you don’t want to put something out. But don’t let it run your life anymore. Find something else that you’re passionate about that will bring you happiness,'” Simon recalled.
After hearing about Liam’s death, he questioned that last interaction.
The last time Simon saw Liam, he “didn’t feel worried about him after he left.” But then, a year later, the news of Liam’s death hit him hard. “Of course when I heard the news, probably the only person apart from when I lost my mum and dad, when it hit me really, really bad, someone who’s not family,” he said. “This is really, really tough.”
It also made him think back to their last interaction. He can’t know exactly what was going on with Liam, but he does know what Liam’s parents have told him.
“All I know is having spoken to his mom and dad recently, all they kept telling me was he was so proud of what he had achieved,” Simon said. “That music and succeeding to him was everything.”
In 2019, Liam shed light on how joining One Direction impacted his mental health. When the band formed, he was just a teenager. He spoke about drinking to cope with the demands that come with being in an extremely popular band, and also admitted that the experience was “toxic” at times.
“When you’re doing hundreds and hundreds of [concerts] and it’s the same 22 songs at the same time every single day, even if you’re not happy, you’ve got to go out there. It’s almost like putting the Disney costume on before you step up on stage and underneath the Disney costume I was pissed quite a lot of the time because there was no other way to get your head around what was going on,” he told Men’s Health Australia. “I mean it was fun. We had an absolute blast but there were certain parts of it where it just got a little bit toxic.”
When Liam died, some people blamed Simon.
Podcast host Brian Hiatt asked Simon if he’s read comments from people who think he’s too blame for Liam’s struggles. Simon admitted that he doesn’t really engage with that content because he doesn’t want to “torture” himself like that.
“I don’t read any of this stuff because if I did, you would just torture yourself,” he said. “The idea that you are essentially responsible for somebody’s life 10 years after you’ve signed someone? You can’t do that. You can’t live with them. I always say to anyone, ‘I’m always here if you need me.'”
