“I’ve Been Afraid To Share My Feelings Publicly”: Ashton Irwin Of 5 Seconds Of Summer Issued A Heartfelt Statement Admitting He Feels “Super Confused” By Liam Payne’s Death

    After Louis Tomlinson discovered 5SOS online and invited them on tour, it was reported that all five One Direction members had a financial stake in the Australian band.

    Ellen Durney
    by Ellen Durney

    BuzzFeed Staff

    The members of 5 Seconds of Summer — who supported One Direction on three world tours — are speaking out about the death of Liam Payne.

    5 Seconds of Summer on the red carpet
    Denise Truscello / Getty Images for iHeartRadio

    The 31-year-old former One Direction star died on Oct. 16 after falling from a third-floor balcony at a hotel in Buenos Aires.

    Liam Payne in a plaid shirt smiles and flashes a peace sign while outdoors
    Marc Piasecki / GC Images

    Reports claim that shortly before Liam’s fatal fall at around 5 p.m. local time, staff at the hotel made two calls to emergency services asking for support with a “guest who has had too many drugs and alcohol.”


    An autopsy report later showed that Liam died of “polytrauma and internal and external bleeding” sustained by his fall. Toxicology test results also suggested that he had multiple substances in his system at the time of his death, including a mix of recreational drugs known as “pink cocaine.”

    Along with Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, and Niall Horan, Liam was best known for being a member of the British-Irish boy band One Direction, which was formed on The X Factor UK in 2010.

    Five members of One Direction on stage, wearing casual outfits with jackets, smiling at the camera
    Kevin Mazur / WireImage

    Before they split in 2016, One Direction embarked on four headlining world tours. On three of those tours, they were supported by the Australian band 5 Seconds of Summer, often known as 5SOS, which consists of Ashton Irwin, Luke Hemmings, Michael Clifford, and Calum Hood.

    Darren Mccollester / Getty Images for IHeartMedia

    As the story goes, 5SOS were first invited to open for One Direction on their Take Me Home tour in 2013 after Louis discovered the Aussie band on YouTube. It’s widely recognized that 5SOS, who formed in Sydney in 2011, were fast-tracked to global fame thanks to the platform touring with 1D gave them.

    Five Seconds of Summer on stage
    Jeff Kravitz / FilmMagic for iHeartMedia

    5SOS’s first three studio albums, released in 2014, 2015, and 2018, all topped the Billboard 200 chart. 

    Over the years, Ashton, Luke, Michael, and Calum have shown continuous love and appreciation for all the 1D band members whom they developed friendships with over the years of touring the world together.

    Mark Davis / Getty Images

    Notably, in 2014, Billboard reported that all five OG One Direction members had a financial stake in 5SOS after it was found that they each owned a share of London-based company 5SOS LLP. 

    And so, in the aftermath of Liam’s sudden death, it came as no surprise to fans that the members of 5SOS issued a heartfelt joint statement on Oct. 18, writing that they were all “devastated” to learn of his passing.

    Image with text tribute from 5 Seconds of Summer expressing gratitude and love for Liam, acknowledging his influence and kindness
    @5sos / Instagram / Via Instagram: @5sos

    “We love you, Liam, and we will never forget the influence you had on our lives,” began the statement, which was posted to Instagram with a photograph of the two bands together. “You truly believed in us for that we are forever grateful. We don't know if we thanked you enough.”

    I’m sorry, but I can’t identify or describe the people in the image
    @5sos / Instagram / Via Instagram: @5sos

    They continued: “You were always so kind to us. It was an honor to begin our journey with you, we will never forget your presence in our lives. There was such a bright light in you, we always saw that. We are so devastated the world put that light out. We hope you’ll always be singing up there.”

    Three days later, on Oct. 21, 5SOS frontman Luke announced to fans via social media that he’d made the “difficult decision” to cancel the upcoming dates of his solo tour.

    Edward Berthelot / Getty Images

    Though he did not mention Liam’s recent passing in his message to fans, Luke said he couldn’t go on with the rest of the tour “without sacrificing” his health.

    And now, Ashton has taken the time to personally address Liam’s death in a series of posts on X, where he admitted that he feels “super confused” by the tragic news.

    Raymond Hall / GC Images

    “Been thinking on my times with Liam and how kind he was to me,” the drummer wrote in the first of three posts he shared on Oct. 22. “Wether [sic] backstage, passing by at an airport, he always made the time, I feel super confused by his passing and I’m finding it so hard to sum up the way it feels, such a massive loss for many.”

    Been thinking on my times with Liam and how kind he was to me, wether backstage, passing by at an airport, he always made the time, I feel super confused by his passing and I’m finding it so hard to sum up the way it feels, such a massive loss for many.

    — Ashton Irwin (@Ashton5SOS) October 22, 2024
    Twitter: @Ashton5SOS

    Sending love to Liam’s family and former bandmates, Ashton looked back fondly on the time he spent supporting One Direction on tour.

    such a sunken heart feeling, my thoughts are with his family, partner, and the other 1D guys, and all of you. I feel at times I had a front row seat back in the day to watching Liam light up lives with his performances with the band. Gone to soon. This is just horrible

    — Ashton Irwin (@Ashton5SOS) October 22, 2024
    Twitter: @Ashton5SOS

    In the final post, Ashton admitted that he had been “afraid to share [his] feelings publicly” before concluding that he feels “really really thankful for those early days touring” with Liam and One Direction.

    I’ve been afraid to share my feelings publicly cause it terrifies me, but all I’m trying to say is at the end of the day, I am really really thankful for those early days touring with him and seeing the world the way we did was a dream come true

    — Ashton Irwin (@Ashton5SOS) October 22, 2024
    Twitter: @Ashton5SOS
    “Seeing the world the way we did was a dream come true,” he added.

    As it stands, neither Calum nor Michael have individually addressed Liam’s passing. But we’ll be sure to update you if they do.

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