Liam Payne, an English singer widely known for his work in One Direction, passed away on October 16th, 2024, at 31 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Sources state that Payne fell from his Argentinian hotel room balcony and passed due to multiple traumas and internal bleeding (ABC News). One Direction is a UK pop band active from 2010 to 2016, with hits such as ‘What Makes You Beautiful’, ‘Story of My Life’, and ‘One Thing’. When the band broke up in 2016, all 5 of the members—Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Louis Tomilson, and of course Liam Payne—went off to do their solo work. Since the band was so influential, many students at Greenwood have been mourning the loss of the pop icon.
William Terry, a sophomore, confessed his emotions about hearing of Payne’s passing. “I cried for at least an hour last night. That says enough…People are bringing this up in therapy right now. And I might be one of them soon.” William mentioned that the death of Liam has seriously impacted the other band members: “It is horrible because he was very close with a lot of them and they’re all like brothers. Imagine having four brothers and one of them just dying one day and you hear nothing about it until it happens.” He hopes that the other band members continue with their solo careers and collaborate to pay tribute within the next few months. William also never considered the band unable to fully reunite again as they disbanded in 2016. “I’m sad. I don’t know if they’re ever going to.”
Gracie Smith, a junior, deems herself a huge One Direction fan. “I spent my whole childhood listening to them, doing karaoke to their music, and had all their CDs.” The One Direction fans have been affected as the band’s chances of reuniting once more may be slim to zero. “They’re going to reunite at his funeral and that’s going to be terrible,” Gracie said that the band members are probably not taking the loss of Liam very well as “they spent their whole childhood growing up and singing together.” Gracie agrees with William that Harry, Louis, Niall, and Zayn should work together to create a song to mourn the loss of their best friend.
Jameson Porter, a sophomore, didn’t listen to One Direction on his own, but rather with his sisters growing up. Jameson hopes that the band’s solo artists continue to release music and that the death of their ‘brother’ doesn’t slow them down. “I think it’s kind of sad because it would have been cool to see them one more time,” which is clearly what fans have longed for since the band’s dispersion. Jameson gave one piece of advice to fans of Payne. “They just gotta get over it at some point.”
Many people are shaken up about the sudden death of Liam Payne. Not only has it affected the band members, but it also has caused grief in fans on a global scale, including here at Greenwood High School.
