Ed Sheeran Expresses his Grief: A Heartfelt Tribute to Liam Payne, Former One Direction Member
Trigger Warning: This article contains references to death.
Liam Payne’s fans around the world and other celebrities are mourning his sudden death and Ed Sheeran happens to be one of them. The musician shared a heartfelt and emotional post dedicated to the late singer.
The Galway Girl vocalist shared the post on Instagram on Friday, October 18. The post included an attached black-and-white picture of Payne, in which he is smiling. In the caption, Sheeran expressed sending his thoughts to his loved ones and family.
The singer wrote, “At a loss for words. My thoughts are with his family and loved ones, every memory I have with him is a great one, just such a heartbreaking situation. Be kind. X.”
His fans also offered their respective condolences in the comments section of the post. Many shared the broken red heart emoji to express their sadness over this news. A person wrote, “Sorry to hear about your loss! Sending love and prayers.”
Before sharing a post remembering the Bedroom Floor vocalist, the Perfect singer shared the official post of One Direction’s statement about Payne’s death on his stories along with a red heart emoji.
It appears that the two musicians were close friends. They not only shared a personal bond but also collaborated professionally. According to the Daily Mail, Sheeran wrote four tracks for the band, including their song, Little Things.
When the band members parted ways, he and the late vocalist collaborated to write Payne’s first viral solo song, Strip That Down, which became a major success.
The late singer never shied away from praising Sheeran. On Nick Grimshaw’s Radio 1 show, he reportedly said that he felt “blessed and honored” that Sheeran wanted to write a track for him. He expressed his sincere gratitude while speaking about him.
In a 2017 interview with Z100, he also spoke about the Shivers singer, calling him one of the “nicest” people to be around.
Payne then shared a funny story about Sheeran’s quirky nature. He revealed that once, he, Sheeran, Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, and his parents were all in an elevator together.
He said, “This is a really random story. It was a party we had just done a gig for and he joined us on stage.” Then when they all went in the lift, “he just kept going turning around to me going, “Bass.” And that’s all he was saying. “Bass.” So that’s one of my favorite party stories.’”
Along with Sheeran many other celebrities also reflected on memories with the late singer. One Direction members including, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, and Niall Horan shared their respective tribute posts as well.
The singer was found outside of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina on October 16, 2024. He was just 31 years old.
ALSO READ: Why Was Liam Payne Called ‘Daddy Direction?’ Sweet Story Behind Late Singer’s 1D Era Nickname Explored