Niall Horan has reflected on the death of Liam Payne, questioning whether he could have done more for his former bandmate and admitting he was “shocked but not surprised” by his passing at 31.
While conversing on Tommy Tiernan Show, the One Direction alum reflected on whether he could have offered more support to the late singer.
Niall said, “You start asking yourself: What could I have done? Should I have looked into things more? Should I have spoken to other people? You go through all of that.”
He acknowledged that he’s still coming to grips with his friend’s death, which involved struggles with substance use.
Niall went on to say, “I knew he’d had a couple of issues... I knew something was going on, but not how deep it was.”
When Tommy offered his condolences and asked Niall how he felt when the death was announced, he said, Shock was definitely the first thing.”
He then recalled, “I’d been playing a gig in Buenos Aires about two weeks earlier, and he happened to be there. We met, had a chat…”
Niall continued, “Then he came back to my hotel during the day for a coffee. Then he came to the gig that night and was in the dressing room beforehand. It was great to see him.”
After finishing his tour in Colombia, Niall learned of his friend’s passing, leaving him in shock. He admitted feeling guilt and struggling to process the loss, reflecting on their close bond and the stages of grief he hasn’t fully worked through.
Notably, Niall and Liam rose to fame on The X Factor in 2010 as part of One Direction, which achieved global success before disbanding in 2016.
