Simon Cowell Pens Lengthy Letter to Liam Payne: 'I Feel Empty'

Simon Cowell , who signed One Direction all those years ago after their appearance on The X Factor , has broken his silence on the loss of Liam Payne .

In a lengthy message shared to Instagram , Cowell shared that he is "devastated. Heartbroken. And I feel empty. And I want you to know how much love and respect I have for you. Every tear I have shed is a memory of you."

Simon went on to recall first meeting Liam, and how he didn't give up when Cowell told a 14-year-old Payne that it "wasn't [his] time." He added, "You came back and within months the whole world knew Liam. And you never forgot the fans. I watched you spending so much time with people who had wanted to meet you. You really cared."

Cowell also remembered the last time he met with Liam, which was last year, "just to sit and talk." Simon explained, "We reminisced about all of the fun times we had together. And how proud you were to be a Dad. After you left, I was reminded that you were still the sweet, kind boy I met all of those years ago. I have met your son, Bear. He has your smile and that twinkle in his eyes you have. And he will be so proud of everything you achieved. And how you achieved it."

Simon ended his letter to Liam by saying, "I always thought the 5 of you in the band as brothers. And reading their messages today I believe you were. And now Liam, I can see the effect you had on so many people. Because you left us too soon."

Read Simon's full note to Liam below.