Perrie Edwards has broken her silence on Liam Payne‘s death.
On Monday’s episode of Fearne Cotton‘s Happy Place podcast, the Little Mix star opened up about the loss of the One Direction singer. But what makes the conversation even more heartbreaking is that it was seemingly filmed just one day after his death! Oof!
As Perezcious readers know, the 31-year-old died on the evening of October 16 after falling from his hotel balcony in Argentina. It’s unclear if it was intentional, but he was on a lot of drugs at the time. While opening up the podcast episode, the host made reference to their being “an odd energy” in the room because everyone “woke up to the awful news.” Oh, whoa. What difficult timing. We cannot even imagine having to sit down for a lengthy interview right after walking up to that – especially for Perrie, who was so close to the One Direction boys.
Related: Liam’s Final TV Show May Never Come Out!
Perrie agreed with the host, sharing that she was struggling to process the shocking loss:
“It just feels weird. It’s just so sad. It’s so heartbreaking and my heart honestly hurts for his family, his friends, Cheryl [Cole], and his little boy. It’s just absolutely devastating. I can’t even imagine how they must be feeling right now. I didn’t think it was real when I read it.”
Just like the 1D members, Perrie was put into a girl group with Jade Thirlwall, Leigh-Anne Pinnock, and formerly Jesy Nelson on The X Factor UK in 2011 — the year after the boys came in third place and rocketed to fame. After winning their season, Little Mix had a very similar career trajectory, and then Perrie dated and was engaged to Zayn Malik for several years before splitting in 2015. So, they were all close.
Addressing this, Perrie said that she’d been in touch with the other Little Mix ladies to mourn the loss. It’s unclear if Jesy, who left the band on bad terms, was part of the chat, FYI. Either way, the Power vocalist expressed:
“Us girls were messaging. And I think like Leigh-Anne was like, ‘this is very close to home.’ … Our careers were very aligned. We had a relationship with them. It’s honestly so sad. It made my body feel weird when I saw the headlines. I was like, ‘That can’t be real.'”
Later, she got emotional talking about her former bandmates, noting that Leigh-Anne told her during their group chat:
“In this crazy world that we live in, it’s so nice knowing that we always have each other.”
Aw! We bet they’re leaning on each other a lot as they all grieve this death!
Just like many fans, the Black Magic performer partly blames Liam’s untimely death on the side effects of the spotlight and him not being “looked after enough.” Noting that she’s talked about this death with her therapist, Perrie, also 31, mused:
“We were talking about the whole situation. I think it’s really important for people to look at things like humans and say, ‘Why did they get to this place? Why are they struggling so much? What is it that causes them to feel this way in the public eye?’ I don’t think people in this industry are looked after enough.”
She elaborated:
“They’re put on a pedestal. They get brought up and they’re like this god and then everybody jumps on this bandwagon of like, ‘Yeah, let’s tear them down. It’s like a fun thing to do.’ It’s not fun. These people are human. They bleed the same.”
Oof.
That “tear them down” part is no joke. In the days leading up to his death, the Strip That Down crooner had been slammed online as his ex Maya Henry called him out for their allegedly toxic relationship. Obviously, she had every right to do so, and his death is not her fault. But this can still be a good reminder for the next time the internet starts attacking someone else. You just never know what someone’s going through behind closed doors! Such as how much Liam had struggled with his mental health and addiction in the past. Kindness can go a long way, especially if you don’t have anything productive to add to the conversation. No need to pile on someone!
By the way, the Teardrops artist not being treated well enough has been a common theme in some of his loved ones’ tributes, like his sister Ruth Gibbins who noted:
“I don’t feel this world was good enough or kind enough to you, and quite often over the last few years, you’ve had to really try hard to overcome all that was being aimed at you. You just wanted to be loved and to make people happy with your music. You never believed you were good enough, I hope you can now see this outpouring of love that you never received in your time.”
Fame and fandom can be so complicated. Especially for someone like Liam who reached such massive success at an early age and then had to figure out how to start over on his own — something we’re sure Perrie can relate to as well. She and all of Liam’s loved ones are in our thoughts as they mourn this tragic passing.
Hear Perrie open up about this loss and more (below).
If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, help is available. Consider contacting the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988, by calling, texting, or chatting, or go to 988lifeline.org.
If you or someone you know is experiencing substance abuse, help is available. Consider checking out the resources SAMHSA provides at https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline or check out StartYourRecovery.org
[Image via Happy Place/WIRED/YouTube]
