British singer-songwriter Liam Payne has died at the age of 31 after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
According to police, the former One Direction member fell from the third floor of Casa Sur Hotel. The tragedy resulted in “extremely serious injuries.” He was confirmed dead on the spot.
In a 911 call, the hotel manager said that he heard loud noise at the back of the hotel and that a “guest” was destroying the entire room. Police confirmed that they were notified of an aggressive man most likely to be under the effects of drugs and alcohol.
Payne was able to share a few clips via Snapchat an hour before he was found dead. He even captioned it “Lovely day in Argentina ♥.”
Meanwhile, many One Direction fans gathered outside the hotel following the tragic accident.
Fans, called the Directioners, also shared their shock and disbelief on social media.
Payne rose to global fame alongside Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, and Zayn Malik in 2010 when One Direction was formed through The X Factor.
The group became one of the most successful and popular boybands in history. In 2015, One Direction went on an indefinite hiatus. All five members pursued solo careers afterward.
Payne has released hits with fellow musicians such as “For You”, “Polaroid”, “Live Forever”, and “Strip That Down”. The latter peaked at number 3 on the UK Singles Chart and number 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Meanwhile, Payne made a music comeback early this year with the single “Teardrops”.
As a solo artist, the singer had over 18 million singles in under three years after One Direction’s break and amassed over 3.9 billion career streams.