The late Liam Payne was best known as a member of one of the biggest boy bands of all time, but he also proudly wore the title of Dad.
The former One Direction member and ex-partner of Cheryl Cole welcomed son Bear in March 2017 — and while Payne largely kept his son away from the public eye, he often spoke fondly of their relationship.
On Wednesday, October 16, 2024, Payne died at the age of 31 while in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Us Weekly confirmed. The singer was staying at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel when he fell from the balcony of his third floor hotel room, according to Buenos Aires City Police.
According to Buenos Aires emergency services chief Alberto Crescenti, Payne suffered “serious injuries” that were untreatable by the time first responders arrived at the scene.
Keep reading for everything Payne said about fatherhood and his relationship with Bear prior to his tragic death.
September 2017
Liam Payne Samir Hussein/WireImage
During an appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden, Payne explained how his son’s name came to be.
“When he was born, I think one of the midwives said it, he had this thing where if [newborns] don’t have a good cry they get fluid in their lungs, which is quite serious,” Payne said.
Payne then imitated a gravely noise that Bear made after his birth, which terrified the singer.
“I had like 10 doctors coming in and the guy was just like, ‘Dude, I’m not being funny. There’s nothing wrong with him,’” Payne recalled. “He just likes to make a lot of noise. That’s carried on ever since. So he just became Bear.”
Payne added, “Children live out their name. He’s humongous.”
December 2017
Nine months after Bear was born, Payne said becoming a father changed his life “in every single way.”
“It’s the first thing you think about in the morning and the last thing you think about at night,” he told Entertainment Tonight.
Payne expressed excitement about Bear’s first Christmas and shared a helpful tip that another parent provided him.
“He’s only going to be interested in the wrapping paper,” Payne joked, “so buy the shiniest one!”
July 2018
While Payne acknowledged he “always wanted to be a young dad,” he admitted juggling fatherhood and his music career was tricky.
“I didn’t really expect that I’d ever be in this place,” Payne told People. “When I’m at home, I’m a dad. Then when I [work], I see all these crazy things.”
Payne joked that he had been going by the nickname “Dada Montana,” referencing the Disney Channel hit Hannah Montana.
“It just goes by so quickly,” he lamented. “He was already huge when he was born. I walked past a baby in the park and was like, ‘Mine was never that small!’ He was always massive. I look at him, like, ‘Where’s my little baby gone already?’ He’s walking around the house, pretending his teddy [bear’s] a phone. He’s awesome. And a lot of fun. I love spending time with him.”
Liam Payne and ex Cheryl Cole first crossed paths in 2008 but didn’t start their romance until much later. In 2008, Payne auditioned to be on X Factor for the first time at age 14. Cole was one of the judges alongside Simon Cowell, Dannii Minogue and Louis Walsh. “Let’s address the elephant in the […]
Payne gave the interview just weeks after he and Cole announced their split, and he revealed Bear was living full-time with his mother.
“Babies want their mom. I would never have wanted to get in the way of that,” he said. “It was actually easier to go out on the road just knowing he wanted his mom. Now he looks at me and points at me like, ‘Here’s this fun guy!’ He knows.”
April 2021
Payne said that coparenting with Cole had been a “fantastic” experience.
“I mean, Cheryl is literally the best person to coparent with,” he told Glamour UK. “No stress involved. It’s very, very relaxed, and we spend a lot of time on FaceTime. And it’s been really lovely, and I’m closer to them than I’ve ever been before, actually, which is really, really nice.”
March 2022
Shortly after Bear’s 5th birthday, Payne gave an update on their relationship.
“I see him two times a week, three times a week sometimes,” he told People. “I make sure when I see him, he has 100 percent of my time. I make sure that I’m not on my phone or dicking around somewhere else.”
Payne added, “I like to give him those moments and it’s important. He needs that in his life. He needs his dad in his life. I’m happy he looks at me like a superhero, and I’m hoping to keep it that way.”
March 2024
Earlier this year, Payne shared a photo via Instagram of the back of Bear’s head looking up at a billboard featuring an ad for Payne’s new song “Teardrops.”
“I want to be on a billboard one day daddy 🐻 ❤️,” Payne captioned the photo.