HEALTHLiam Payne Previously Spoke About Experiencing Suicidal Thoughts Prior to Sudden Death
Liam Payne previously spoke in past interviews about experiencing suicidal thoughts prior to his death.
Before Liam Payne's shocking death at 31, the star was open about the struggles he endured throughout his successful career.
Liam Payne died on October 16 in Argentina after falling from his hotel balcony.
In a 2021 episode of “The Diary of a CEO” podcast, the singer revealed he had experienced suicidal thoughts during his time in the band One Direction.
“I was worried how far my rock bottom was going to be,” he admitted. “Where’s rock bottom for me? And you would never have seen it... There is some stuff that I have definitely never, never spoken about. It was really, really, really severe. And it was a problem. And it was only until I saw myself after that, I was like, 'Right, I need to fix myself.'”
In 2019, the singer expressed how he struggled with handling the 'level of fame' that he had in his teenage years with One Direction.
Additionally, in a 2019 interview with Men's Health Australia, Payne spoke about the pressures that came with One Direction's booming career.
“It’s difficult when you have the level of fame that we had in the band,” he shared. “There have been a lot of people in trouble with mental health that aren’t really getting the help that they need ... You know what the traps are, and if you are lucky enough, like me, to be able to get out of that scenario and back into a sense of normality, then you know it’s a bit different.”
He also had been honest about turning to alcohol to cope with life in the spotlight.
“I was [drunk] quite a lot of the time because there was no other way to get your head around what was going on,” he said. “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.”
During his time with the band, Liam Payne said he resorted to alcohol to forget about being in the spotlight.
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By 2023, Payne was working toward a healthier life, celebrating six months of sobriety and sharing his journey on YouTube.
“I was watching this beautiful symphony, I was having a drink, and I thought, 'You know what? This isn't really serving me at all,'” he recalled, referring to a moment he had while attending Hans Zimmer's concert in January of that year. “I just kind of feel like I've got more of a grip on life and everything that was getting away from me. I just feel like I've got more of a handle on it.”
Payne’s time in rehab and his efforts to seek help earlier in 2023 signaled his intent to turn things around.
Reflecting on his progress, he told fans, “It's good to be in this position. I definitely don't need those things anymore. The party's over.”
Yet his passing underscores the depth of his challenges, casting a shadow over even the positive strides he had made.
Maya Henry, 24, Payne’s ex-fiancée, also recently shed light on his ongoing struggles, as OK! previously reported.
In an interview released just days before Payne’s death, Henry recalled trying to support him during difficult times.
“There was one time I was trying to get him help and he was not taking it. He would text my mom, ‘I’m not doing well, have Maya contact me,’” she shared on “The Internet Is Dead” podcast on October 15. “And it’s just always the same cycle.”
Maya Henry and Liam Payne got engaged in 2020 but called it quits in 2021.
Henry described what she saw as manipulation during their relationship, noting that Payne frequently reached out with concerning thoughts. “He would always message me ever since we broke up, like ‘Oh, I’m not well.’ He would always play with death and be like, ‘Well, I’m gonna die. I’m not doing well,’” she said.
Her comments suggested that Payne's struggles with mental health persisted even after their breakup, with these interactions resurfacing around events like the release of her book in 2024.
“He called my mom, ‘I think I’m not going to be around much longer,’” Henry, who was engaged to the boy band member in 2020, added.
Unfortunately, it seems like Payne couldn't get to a good place. On October 16, Payne fell from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, leading to his death, local authorities confirmed.
