Harry Styles is opening up about the death of his former One Direction bandmate Liam Payne.
During his March 4th appearance on Apple Music 1’s The Zane Lowe Show, the Grammy-winning artist admitted he’s still processing the loss — over a year after Payne tragically passed away at the age of 31.
“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, 32, said. “It’s like, I saw someone with the kindest heart, who just wanted to be great. 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?’ And I think the greatest way you can honour your friends who pass away is by living your life to the fullest.”
News of Payne’s death broke on October 16, 2024, after he fell from the third floor of a hotel in Palermo. Fans worldwide were heartbroken, though Styles felt pressured by them to speak out earlier than he felt ready to do so — even after issuing a joint statement with the band as well as a personal tribute at the time.
“I think there was a period when he passed away where I really struggled with kind of acknowledging how strange it is to have people kind of, like, own part of your grief in a way,” he told Zane Lowe.
Styles recalled thinking, “I have such strong feelings around my friend passing away. And then suddenly being, you know, like aware of 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.”
