Liam Payne shared how he wanted to be remembered two years before his death (
Image: Getty Images)
Two years before his tragic death, Liam Payne shared how he wished to be remembered.

The One Direction star died aged 31 last month after he fell from the third-floor balcony of his hotel room at Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Liam, who shot to fame in the boyband after auditioning on The X Factor, suffered “serious injuries that were incompatible with life”.

The initial toxicology report found traces of designer drug pink cocaine in his system. He had been holidaying in the country with his girlfriend Kate Cassidy, 25, though she returned home to Florida before his shock death. Liam’s father Geoff immediately flew out to Argentina to help bring his son’s body home in order for a funeral, which is expected to take place this week.

In May 2022, Liam opened up on how he wanted to be remembered. Speaking at VeeCon, a pop culture, NFT, and Web3 conference at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Liam shared: “Honestly, just being a nice guy. I would rather be known for being a nice guy than anything else.”

Addressing a large crowd, Liam added: “I always hated the term ‘role model’, we were 16-year-old boys in a band that were dumping water on each other on stage every night. Very early on, I was like ‘you can’t really be a role model if you are still learning, don’t follow me because I am learning with you’.”

Liam’s funeral is expected to take place this week ( 
Image:
Getty Images)
He also credited son Bear, seven, with changing how he wanted to be known by people. “It is trying to give everybody the time they deserve with you if that’s the thing they are excited about,” Liam said. “It doesn’t matter what they say or do, you have just got to give your time and effort into those people because it comes back. I would rather be known for being nice than anything else.”

Last week it was confirmed that Liam’s body was able to return to the UK. Respected Argentinian daily La Nacion reported that Geoff was personally informed of the news in a recent meeting with prosecution chief Andres Madrea. It stated: “All the documents are ready for the former One Direction singer to return to his homeland so a funeral can take place there next week.

“When Geoff Payne reached Argentina on October 18, he was told the repatriation process could take between four and five days, but because of the circumstances surrounding his son’s death things took longer than expected.” Funeral plans are yet to be made public, but it is believed there will be a private celebration of Liam’s life.

It is unclear if Liam’s former bandmates – Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Zayn Malik – will attend. A source told Radar Online: “Liam’s funeral is going to be packed with A-listers as he was so well-loved in the showbiz community, and so many of them are so sad about his tragic death. His family want to keep his farewell low-key and respectful, as it’s what Liam would have wanted as he was so down to earth. But there are going to be a series of song tributes from some very big acts as he loved singing and making music until the end.”