Harry Styles‘ mom, Anne Twist, is breaking her silence on the death of her son’s former One Direction bandmate, Liam Payne.
Twist, 56, shared a simple but gut-wrenching statement via Instagram on Wednesday, October 16, just hours after Us Weekly confirmed Payne’s death.
“Just a boy…” she captioned the post, which featured a broken heart emoji on a black background.
Followers were quick to offer their condolences, with one social media user writing, “Gone too soon and so young. Forever in our hearts Liam.”
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Additionally, fans urged Twist to take time for herself amid the devastating news, and offered kind words about Payne’s legacy.
“Anne, take care of yourself and please take care of our Harry for us! Mental health is everything! We love you,” another said, adding in a separate comment, “Our hearts and prayers go out to this being of light who left this world today… The brevity of this life is unbelievable and we are left with gratitude for the work and beautiful legacy he left in his generation, and the ever-increasing certainty of the importance of taking care of our mental health and that of those we love! Rest in peace Liam.”
Payne died on Wednesday after falling from a hotel in Buenos Aires. The singer fell from the third floor of the CasaSur Palermo Hotel, Us confirmed. He was 31.
The Buenos Aires City Police from Station 14B were dispatched during Wednesday afternoon to the hotel where Payne was staying, Us confirmed. The officers acted on a call reporting an “aggressive man who may have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol,” according to the official police report.
“At 5:04 p.m., through 911 and the integrated public security system, we were alerted about a person in the internal courtyard of the CasaSur hotel,” the SAME (Emergency Medical Assistance System) director Alberto Crescenti said in a TV interview via La Nacion.
He added that seven minutes later, a nearby SAME team arrived on scene and “confirmed the man’s death.”
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Crescenti continued, “Unfortunately, he had injuries incompatible with life due to the fall, so we had to confirm the death. There was no possibility of resuscitation.”
Styles, 30, and Payne rose to fame as part of One Direction alongside Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson in 2010 after they were grouped together by X Factor judge Simon Cowell.
The group gained international success almost overnight, and released five studio albums, including their debut album, Up All Night, Midnight Memories and their fifth and final full-length album, Made in the A.M., which was released in November 2015.
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1D maintained their superstar status until the band went on hiatus later that year. All five members of 1D went on to pursue solo careers after they disbanded, with Payne releasing one studio album, LP1, in December 2019. He also released two EPs and 14 singles on his own.
Payne also started a family, welcoming son Bear with Cheryl Cole in March 2017. He and Cole split in 2018, announcing their breakup via social media.
