Liam Payne's tragic last words about son Bear on 31st birthday two months before shock death

Liam Payne last spoke publicly about his young son as he celebrated his 31st birthday, just two months before his shock death. The former One Direction star has died after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires.

Payne was enjoying a holiday in Argentina alongside his girlfriend, Kate Cassidy, with the pair attending Payne's former bandmate Niall Horan's gig in the country earlier this month.

In the hours before his death, Payne reportedly posted a video on Snapchat saying: “It’s a lovely day here in Argentina." According to police in Buenos Aires, officers were initially responding to reports “of an aggressive man who may have been under the effects of drugs and alcohol”.

READ MORE: Liam Payne was 'proud dad' before tragic death as fans support Cheryl and son Bear

Local police said the singer fell from the third floor into the courtyard of the Casa Sur Hotel in the Palermo neighbourhood of Argentina’s capital, before medics confirmed his death.

Payne was one-fifth of boyband One Direction, alongside Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Harry Styles. They were formed in 2010 after they individually auditioned for The X Factor. After becoming one of the biggest pop groups in the world with five albums and four world tours, One Direction went on indefinite hiatus in 2016.

Payne, who was born in Wolverhampton, released his debut solo album LP1 in December 2019, which included the songs Polaroid, Familiar and Strip That Down featuring Quavo. The song was one of two tracks that reached the top 10 in the UK official charts, alongside For You with Rita Ora from the film Fifty Shades Freed – which the duo performed at the Brit Awards in 2018.

Payne was previously in a high-profile relationship with Girls Aloud singer Cheryl between 2016 and 2018 and the couple had a son, Bear, in 2017. The couple split the year after Bear's birth and after two years together but continued to co-parent.

The couple have kept their son out of the spotlight but have given little glimpses of life with Bear in the past as well as spoken about him in interviews. The last, in August, appears to have been in an Instagram video uploaded as he marked his 31st birthday in August.

The late star told his followers: "I didn't get any dad socks yet though. I'm going to speak to my son in a little bit which I'm really excited about. Bless him. He's getting so big now. He's a big boy and he looks like a mini me. As if we needed any more me in the world."

He added at the time: "So, I like to give him those moments and it's important, he needs that in his life. He needs his dad in his life, and I'm happy he looks at me like a superhero, and I'm hoping to keep it that way."