Liam Payne: A teenager thrust into global boyband mania before solo artist fame

Liam Payne’s journey to stardom began when he was just 14 years old at his lesser-known first audition for The X Factor.

The Wolverhampton teenager reached the judges’ house stage and no further in 2008, but came back two years later as Simon Cowell had asked.

At 16, Payne initially auditioned as a solo act but was given a second chance to come back as part of a group at Bootcamp, forming what would become one of the talent show’s biggest success stories – One Direction.

It was a success that was born of talent and hard work. Teachers at St Peter’s Collegiate School in Compton had identified his ability to sing and entertain and he had studied music at City of Wolverhampton College.

The band – comprising of Payne, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson – rose to international fame despite only placing third in the show.

They became one of the biggest pop groups in the world with five albums, four world tours, one movie and a memorable music video for Red Nose Day in 2013 which featured then prime minister David Cameron happening upon them dancing in front of Number 10 Downing Street.

But six years after they were formed, with more than 20 million albums sold, the band were placed on indefinite hiatus with Malik having already left in 2015 to pursue a solo career.

Marking One Direction’s 10th anniversary in 2020, Payne shared a screenshot of a text message he sent to his father on the day he joined the group, reading: “I’m in a boyband.”

“What a journey… I had no idea what we were in for when I sent this text to my dad years ago at this exact time the band was formed,” he said.

In 2016, Payne signed a solo record deal with Capital Records UK.

He said at the time he was “really happy” to have signed with them, adding: “One Direction will always be my family; I’m now excited to show what I can do as a solo artist.”

Over his solo career, Payne released hits Strip That Down and Get Low.

Away from the studio and stage, Payne entered into a relationship with former Girls Aloud star Cheryl, the pair having first met on The X Factor when she was a judge.

In March 2017, the couple announced the birth of their son Bear.

Proud new father Payne shared a photo of himself cradling a baby with dark hair on Instagram, with the caption: “I’m incredibly happy to welcome our new baby boy into the world, it’s a moment that I will never forget for the rest of my life and my favourite memory I have so far.”

The singer would go on to speak proudly of his son in the years to come, saying during one awards ceremony that Bear “constantly inspires” him to be a better person.

In July 2018, Payne and Cheryl announced their split after two-and-a-half years together.

He opened up about their separation in the following months, saying it was tough to break up in the public spotlight and that announcing it was “like breaking up twice”.

In August 2020, Payne got engaged to American model Maya Henry, but the pair split during lockdown and announced the engagement had been broken off in June 2021.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Payne helped provide more than 360,000 meals to people struggling as a result of the outbreak.

He donated to the Trussell Trust charity to support more than 100 food bank centres in Birmingham, Stoke-on-Trent, Coventry, Sheffield, Nottingham and Bristol.

Born in August 1993, Payne was frequently ill as a young child due to issues with one of his kidneys.

In August last year, he postponed his scheduled tour of South America after suffering from a “serious kidney infection”.