Zayn Malik’s Liam Payne Tribute: How Close Were the One Direction Legends?
- A month after Liam Payne's shocking death, Zayn Malik has embarked on his first tour as a solo artist.
- Malik paid a tribute to his late friend towards the end of the first two shows of his concert.
- The Stardust singer shed light on his bond with Payne in an emotional tribute.
The English-Irish boy band, One Direction, may not be active anymore, but they were once the greatest team that the world had ever seen. Besides the heartache of their indefinite hiatus, the band gave the world five phenomenal musicians: Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson, and Niall Horan.
Fans were hoping that One Direction might reunite and perform again when they were older, but as fate would have it, band member Liam Payne had to bid adieu to the world a little too soon. Zayn Malik recently embarked on his first solo tour and he has made sure to pay tribute to Payne after his show.
Zayn Malik Paid Tribute to Liam Payne at His Stairway to the Sky Tour Concerts
Malik was all set to embark on the U.S. leg of his Stairway to the Sky tour when tragedy hit. On October 16, news broke that his former bandmate and friend, Liam Payne passed away. The Better singer announced on X that the U.S. leg will have to be postponed to January.
Malik began the UK leg of his tour a couple of days ago and took the opportunity to remember Payne during the first show of his Stairway to the Sky Tour on Saturday at O2 Academy in Leeds, England. The words “Liam Payne 1993-2024 Love you bro” followed by a red heart appeared on the screen as his track Stardust played. Malik sang the last song of his concert after that track was over.
He paid tribute to Payne during his concert in Manchester as well. An update account for the singer posted a picture of the tribute on X:
Last week, Malik attended Payne’s funeral along with his former bandmates, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, and Louis Tomlinson. The past few weeks have been undoubtedly incredibly tough for the Payne’s family, friends, and fans.
Zayn Malik Opened Up About His Bond with Liam Payne In His Tribute
When the band was formed in 2010, the band members were teenagers and young adults. In many ways, they had the time of their lives together for five years. From selling out arenas to selling millions of albums worldwide, they achieved a lot of fame and success in very little time.
In March 2015, it was announced that Malik was parting ways with the band. The singer insisted that there was no tension between him and the other band members. Later, he revealed that it was a lack of creative control over the work they did that led him to make this decision. He embarked on his solo career soon after and has released four studio albums so far.
A day after the news of the Sunshine singer’s death first broke, all four members of the band released a joint statement from the band’s official social media account. Additionally, they paid individual tributes to Payne. Besides posting a picture of himself with Payne sleeping on a tour bus, Malik wrote in a heart-wrenching Instagram post:
I lost a brother when you left us and can’t explain to you what I’d give to just give you a hug one last time and say goodbye to you properly and tell you that I loved and respected you dearly. I will cherish all the memories I have with you in my heart forever. There is no words that justify or explain how I feel right now other than beyond devastated.
Malik also stated that although he was the older one between the two of them, Payne had been the more sensible one when they were in the band. He also mentioned that they might have had some disagreements due to varying opinions, but he always “secretly” respected the Remember singer for standing up for the right thing.
