Amid the rollout for his new album “Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally.”, Harry Styles opened up about the death of his One Direction bandmate Liam Payne for the first time. In a recent interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Styles revealed that he struggled with the public perception and expectations of how he was supposed to grieve the loss of his friend.
“Full transparency, it’s something that, even the idea of talking about it, I struggle with that a little bit even. I think there was a period when he passed away where I really struggled with acknowledging how strange it is to have people kind of own part of your grief in a way,” Styles told Lowe.
“I have such strong feelings around my friend passing away. And then suddenly being aware [that] there’s maybe a desire from other people of you to convey that in some way, or it means you’re not feeling what you’re feeling or something, you know?”
“It’s so difficult to lose a friend. It’s difficult to lose any friend, but it’s so difficult to lose a friend who is so like you in so many ways,” Styles said. “I saw someone with the kindest heart who just wanted to be great.” The conversation marked his first time speaking extensively about Payne, whom he described as a “super special person”.
“It was a really important moment for me in terms of taking a look at my life and being able to say to myself, ‘OK, what do I want to do with my life? How do I want to live my life?’” Styles continued. “And I think the greatest way you can honour your friends who pass away is by living your life to the fullest.”
Payne, at the age of 31, died on 16th October 2024, from injuries sustained after falling from the balcony of his hotel room in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In the wake of his death, Styles, Horan, Tomlinson, and Malik released a joint statement on Payne’s passing via Instagram, their first upload in four years.
“We’re completely devastated by the news of Liam’s passing. 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,” they said at the time. The group reunited at Payne’s funeral to pay their respects to their former band member.
Watch the full interview below:
