Liam Payne's friends were concerned that he couldn't cope after One Direction breakup

Liam Payne's death on October 16 sent shockwaves through the world. The former One Direction band member was just 31-years-old and died after falling off the third floor of his hotel in Argentina.

Just a year prior to his untimely passing, his friends were reportedly concerned that he couldn't handle life after the group's breakup in 2016.

"His lifestyle has been on a bit of a downward spiral for a while," a pal told the Sun in September 2023 after he was rushed to hospital with severe kidney pain during a trip to Lake Como, Italy.

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"Liam struggled so much in the band due to the heavy workload and being in the spotlight," the friend continued. "He was just a normal lad before One Direction, so living life in this bubble felt alien to him and the restrictions really took their toll."

"His partying since the band's break could well be a reaction to this," they said.

One Direction consisted of members Niall Horan, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson. The group found fame on the singing competition X Factor in 2010 and they were mentored by Simon Cowell.

The teen idols released albums such as Midnight Memories, Up All Night and Take Me Home. The band took a hiatus in 2016, however, Zayn first left the group a year earlier in the middle of their music tour. After the split, Liam released his solo single Strip That Down in 2017.

Last year, Liam opened up about his mental health after hitting "rock bottom." He took to Instagram in July 2023 and told fans he was struggling.

"I know in my last video I mentioned I'd been diagnosed with a couple of conditions and not to go into too much detail but one of them I have is, there's a lot of manic things in my life which you guys saw," he said.

He added: "But the other side of it is and that kind of feels like when when I would lose my sobriety in these moments that were super low and I felt like that today. And it's isolating the two things and seeing them separately and like I know what they are now."

"Luckily I have some amazing people around me that kind of look after me but I am sure they can see it in me too that I'm 'not really here."