Liam Payne Felt He Was in a ‘Scramble to Stay Relevant’
In 2022, Liam Payne spoke about his time in One Direction on Logan Paul’s podcast, Impaulsive. The interview stoked the ire of many One Direction fans, as Payne did not speak particularly kindly about his former bandmates. In 2023, Payne walked back his comments. He saw them as an effort on his part to remain relevant.
Liam Payne faced backlash for comments he made about One Direction
In his conversation with Paul, Payne spoke at length about his time in One Direction. He recalled a backstage fight, when an unnamed bandmate pushed him up against the wall, prompting Payne to tell him, “If you don’t remove those hands there’s a high likelihood you’ll never use them again.”
He also spoke about his fraught relationship with Zayn Malik, saying that while he would always be on his side, there were “many reasons” why he disliked him. When discussing his solo debut, “Strip That Down,” Payne falsely claimed that it outsold the solo debuts of all his bandmates.
“I think it outsold everybody within the band, and I was the last to go [solo],” he said. “And I never expected that.”
After the interview aired, fans went online to mock Payne’s bravado and poke holes in some of his claims.
Liam Payne apologized for the way he spoke about One Direction
After the backlash, Payne stepped away from the public eye and spent nearly 100 days in rehab. In 2023, he addressed his remarks and the regrets he had about them.
“My own frustrations with my own career and where I kind of landed, I took shots at everybody else which is wrong. Obviously, I want to apologize for that, in the first instance, because that’s definitely not me,” he said in a YouTube video. “One of the biggest remarks I made was about the One Direction thing … and a lot of self-protection, I suppose, in that moment, more than anything. The rest of the boys really stuck by me when I needed them most, they kinda came to the rescue. Even Zayn, as well, which is why I did send him a little thank you online. It came across really big-headed didn’t it?”
He said that moving forward, he wanted to focus on his music, not his level of fame.
“I have had a lot of time to recollect over those moments. I kinda had to go away to kinda get better. The whole thing up to that point was just a scramble to stay relevant,” he explained. “I kind of got into this position, and not that I’m ungrateful, I absolutely love my life and I love making music. Now that was the most important. It was going back to the roots of it to find out what it is that I liked doing, why I like making music — because who am I? What do I actually want to say to you guys? It’s a really privileged position that I’m in right now and I actually want to make use of it
His bandmates have released a joint statement after his death
In October, Payne died after falling from the balcony of his hotel room. His former bandmates reconnected to release a joint statement.
“We’re completely devastated by the news of Liam’s passing,” they said, per The Hollywood Reporter. “In time, and when everyone is able to, there will be more to say. But for now, we will take some time to grieve and process the loss of our brother, who we loved dearly. The memories we shared with him will be treasured forever. For now, our thoughts are with his family, his friends, and the fans who loved him alongside us. We will miss him terribly. We love you Liam.”
