‘Our song takes on a whole new meaning for me now’: Rita Ora reacts to her friend and collaborator Liam Payne’s untimely passing

Rita Ora has joined a chorus of musicians in sharing a tribute to Liam Payne following the tragic news of his untimely death at the age of 31. 

The former One Direction bandmate died after falling from the third floor of his hotel room while holidaying in Buenos Aires. Payne suffered serious external and internal hemorrhaging as a result of the fatal balcony fall, and his body was discovered by authorities in the courtyard of the Casa Sur Palermo hotel in which he was staying.

Ora, who collaborated with Payne on the song “For You,” took to social media to commemorate her friend, saying the news of his death left her “devastated.” The singer previously performed their duet just hours after Payne’s death at a concert in Osaka, Japan, though she reportedly struggled to get through the song without breaking down. 

Ora’s subsequent message on X also made reference to her and Payne’s 2018 collaborative single. “Our song ‘For You’ takes on a whole new meaning for me now,” she wrote. The track was one of the first to be released by Payne following One Direction’s disbandment in 2018 and was featured on his debut solo album LP1. It was also featured on one of Ora’s albums and appeared on the soundtrack of the film Fifty Shades Freed.

“[Payne] had the kindest soul, I will never forget,” Ora wrote, before reflecting on her experience collaborating with him. “I loved working with him so much – he was just such a joy to be around on and off stage.” The musician concluded her touching message by saying the news of Payne’s death “breaks my heart,” and sending well-wishes to his grieving family. 

Members of Payne’s family shared a press statement reacting to the news, remembering their relative as “kind, funny and brave soul” and requesting privacy and space during “this awful time.” Both Ora and Payne’s families join the outpouring of grief that has been widely felt across the music industry and beyond in the days since Payne’s death. 

Fellow One Direction stars Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson each shared tributes describing their former bandmate as “a brother” while remaining members Harry Styles and Niall Horan were included in a joint statement shared to the band’s Instagram page before Styles shared a touching tribute on his Instagram. Elsewhere, musicians like Halsey, Charlie Puth, Ty Dolla $ign, Zedd, and Jedward were among those to reflect on Payne’s legacy in touching statements. 

Beyond the music world, notable names like Paris Hilton, James Corden, and Styles’ mother Anne Twist also paid tribute to Payne. It all comes amid a flurry of new developments surrounding the singer’s death, with fans recently discovering the Snapchat videos posted by Payne just moments before he passed away. 

Meanwhile, the calls made to police by hotel staff in the lead-up to Payne’s fall have also come to light, with authorities responding to employees’ concerns about an aggressive guest who was potentially under the influence of drugs and alcohol. The nature of Payne’s fall is still unknown, and police are currently investigating the circumstances around his death. Weeks prior, Payne revealed his plans to travel to Argentina to attend Horan’s concert, and his appearance at the event was questioned by some fans.