Former “X Factor” judge Nicole Scherzinger broke her silence Thursday regarding the unexpected death of One Direction alum Liam Payne.
In a letter to Payne, who died Oct. 16 after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Scherzinger wrote about their long relationship, which dates back to when she masterminded the creation of the “X Factor” supergroup that brought together to Payne and his bandmates. worldwide fame in 2010. Scherzinger and Payne reunited in August when they were cast to star in the upcoming Netflix series “Building the Band” with Destiny's Child alum Kelly Rowland and AJ McLean of the Backstreet Boys.
“Dear Liam, I will always cherish and treasure the time we shared together, from fifteen years ago, when One Direction was born, to just a few weeks ago,” the Pussycat Dolls frontwoman wrote Thursday on Instagram.
“It was a great blessing to work with you recently. “We share the same love and passion for music and I will always remember the meaningful and joyful conversations we had,” he added. “It has been very difficult to process that you are no longer here, but I am grateful to have known your good heart, your sweet soul and your character.”
Scherzinger said Payne brought “so much joy, light and laughter” to the lives of those who really knew him and that she would miss him and carry him in her heart.
She and her “X Factor” co-star Simon Cowell helped turn One Direction into the famous boy band after each of the potential members failed to advance as solo artists on the British talent show Cowell produced. The judges felt that Payne, along with Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Zayn Malik, would thrive as a quintet, and the group competed as such in season 7 of the series.
Although One Direction closed the season in third place, Cowell signed the group to his record label Syco Entertainment and they released their debut album in 2011. The boy band became a global phenomenon, drawing comparisons to the Beatles, while releasing the hits “What It Makes You Beautiful” and “Story of My Life.” They released four more albums and launched four headlining tours before disbanding in 2015 after Malik left the group, citing stress among the reasons for their departure. solo careers with varying degrees of success.
Styles, Tomlinson, Horan and Malik fondly remembered Payne last week, paying tribute to their brother despite his internal ups and downs. Cowell and other members of the “X Factor” family, including Payne's ex-girlfriend Cheryl Cole, also commemorated the 31-year-old entertainer in the days after his death.
Scherzinger did not say why it took more than a week to address Payne's death. The singer is currently starring in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical “Sunset Boulevard” on Broadway and has received rave reviews, including a six-minute standing ovation during Sunday's opening night. The famous composer of “Cats” and “Phantom of the Opera” revealed in an interview Thursday with Billboard that Scherzinger had been texting Payne on the day of his death.
“I guess something that hasn't been said, and I guess I could say it, is that of course she mentored Liam from One Direction,” Webber told the outlet. “On Wednesday when he died, she was still texting him that day, and [that evening] the reviewers came in [to ‘Sunset Boulevard’]He had just found out that he had died. And the fact that she did the show is extraordinary. I mean she is an amazing, amazing woman. She is without a doubt one of the best performers I have ever worked with.”
In an appearance Friday on “Good Morning America,” Scherzinger said she and Payne had been “pretty close,” especially with their recent work on “Building the Band.”
“I am heartbroken. “I'm heartbroken for Liam, I'm heartbroken for his family, his loved ones and his friends,” she said. “Liam always led with his heart and with kindness, and I really hope that's how he will always be remembered.”
It's unclear how Netflix will proceed with “Building the Band.” Netflix representatives declined to comment Friday when contacted by The Times.
The show's producers were shocked and saddened by the news of Payne's death, a person close to the show who was not authorized to publicly discuss the matter told The Times. The person also said it is “too early to make decisions” about the competition program, in which Payne served as a mentor.
Deadline reported last week, before Payne died, that filming on the series had wrapped but no premiere date had been announced.
