Liam Payne‘s tragic death shocked the entire world, and, just as One Directioners are trying to make sense of what’s going on, so are Payne’s close ones. The former One Direction star left a big hole in everyone’s hearts, and Nicole Scherzinger is the latest artist to address his palpable absence.
Payne sadly passed away on Oct. 16 after falling from the third-story balcony of his hotel in Argentina, and since then, many famous artists and people close to the singer shared heartbreaking tributes. The remaining four members of One Direction penned emotional messages for their bandmate and for the rest of their fans.
Joining this growing list of heartfelt messages, Nicole Scherzinger, who met Payne when he auditioned at the U.K.’s The X-Factor, paid an emotional tribute to the singer in a new message.
Nicole Scherzinger last texted with Liam Payne on the day of his death
It took a few days for Nicole Scherzinger to find the words to express her feelings. In a post shared on her Instagram on Friday, Oct. 25, the former Pussycat Dolls star wrote a message that proved their close connection.
The post included two photos with Payne and Kelly Rowland, which seemed to have been backstage at their upcoming Netflix singing competition, Building the Band. The three of them had big smiles on their faces, with Payne making a silly face at the camera in the second one.
Netflix had announced the show in August, with Scherzinger, Rowland, and Payne set to be judges, and AJ McLean as host. All had a history of being in a band — The Pussycat Dolls, Destiny’s Child, One Direction, and Backstreet Boys, respectively — and they were looking for a brand new sensation.
“Dear Liam, I will forever cherish and treasure the time we shared together, from fifteen years ago when One Direction was born, right up until just a few weeks ago,” the former Pussycat Doll began her message. “It was such a blessing to get to work with you recently. We shared the same love and passion for music and I will forever remember the meaningful and joyful conversations we had.”
Scherzinger explained, “It’s been so hard to process that you’re no longer here, but I am grateful to have known your kind heart, sweet soul and character.” She continued, “You brought so much joy, light, and laughter to the lives of those that truly knew you. I will “miss you” my friend and carry you in my heart. My thoughts and prayers are with your family.”
Scherzinger played a key role in One Direction’s formation, as both she and Simon Cowell claimed they came up with the idea of putting Payne, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, and Louis Tomlinson in a band.
Her message comes after Broadway legend Andrew Lloyd Webber, who collaborates with Scherzinger on Sunset Blvd., revealed she last texted with Payne the day of his death.
“I suppose something that hasn’t been said, and I suppose I could say, is that of course she mentored Liam [Payne], from One Direction,” the Broadway composer told Billboard. He fur
He further explained, “On the Wednesday when he died, she was still texting him that day, and [that evening] the reviewers came in [to Sunset], she’d just heard that he died. And the fact that she even did the show at all is extraordinary. I mean she is an amazing, amazing woman. She is without any question one of the finest performers I’ve ever worked with.”
Some of the latest messages to Payne include his girlfriend Kate Cassidy, his sister, and his former partner and mother of his seven-year-old son Bear, Girls Aloud’s Cheryl.