AJ McLean was concerned for Liam Payne and sent him a text the day before his death.
The Backstreet Boys member spoke about the text with the Los Angeles Times in an interview published on Thursday, November 1. He told the outlet he had been worried about the singer since they work together on their forthcoming Netflix series Building the Band. The music competition series sees AJ as host with Liam, Nicole Scherzinger and Kelly Rowland as mentors and judges. It follow 50 singers attempting to make a band without seeing each other.
As the two worked together on the show, they became friends and AJ said they chatted almost every day on WhatsApp. But then in early October, their messages stopped when Liam went radio-silent for two weeks. AJ sent him a text saying: “Hey man, are you good?”
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The 46-year-old singer was aware of Liam’s previous struggles with addiction which lead the two to form a close bond over their mutual experiences. They both began their music careers as teenagers, facing the challenges of fame as well as the industry, and fighting substance abuse later in their lives. AJ stated that a “very older brother” feeling emerged for the former One Direction member.
“He was an absolute light, such an old soul,” AJ told outlet. “But you could tell you were talking to someone who had seen some sh–, who had not lived a normal life.”
AJ went on to say that he not think that Liam was taking drugs during the time they filmed their Netflix series. The father-of-two, who celebrated his three-year anniversary of being sober in September, said the two of them spoke “candidly about sobriety, sharing stories and one-upping each other.”
“We could laugh about it all, because if youre still there to talk about it, that means youre moving in a good direction,” he continued.
While AJ didn’t believe Liam was using drugs while filming, Liam seemed to have relapsed in Argentina. The 31-year-old performer fell three-floors to his death from his hotel balcony in Buenos Aires on October 16. An initial toxicology report found there was various drugs in his system like “pink cocaine” and crack.
AJ reflected on the shocking nature of Liam’s passing and the many questions that pop up but how he is learning not to dwell on the questions that won’t ever be answered.
“I feel like there will never be a definitive answer as to why this happened. Thats the most painful thing to sit with. Why now? Why this way?” AJ elaborated. But theres no rhyme or reason when youre hurting and looking for escape.
“I can torture my brain about Why didnt he respond? But I get it. I just hope people remember him the way he was a massive heart and a massive talent,” he said.
