Nicole Sherzinger opens up about working with late One Direction star Liam Payne before his death
Nicole Scherzinger has opened up about working with late One Direction star Liam Payne before his death at 31.
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Payne, who was one of the five former members of the beloved boy band, died in October 2024 when he fell from a third floor balcony at a hotel in Argentina.
His death sent shockwaves through the world and prompted a wave of tributes from heartbroken fans.
Sherzinger helped form One Direction as a judge on the X Factor back in 2010.
Prior to his death, Payne filmed as a guest judge on the Netflix competition series Building The Band alongside Sherzinger as a mentor.
The former Pussycat Doll said the competition series shows the late singer "in his element".
It was filmed alongside Destiny's Child singer Kelly Rowland and host AJ McClean.
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Speaking on The View, American actress and singer, Scherzinger, 47, said her favourite memory of the late singer was his "heart".
She said: "When you watch the show, you'll see little glimpses of him after he's talking, or things where you just catch him off guard and it's when he smiles.
"He smiles with his eyes. It's like he's giving you a hug, like he's embracing you and holding you.
"Liam just had such a beautiful, beautiful heart. And I'm so happy that people get to remember him and see him in his light and in his element, giving back because he lived it."
The series has been described as a "music experiment" where 50 singers must form a band without seeing or meeting one another.
Payne was a former member of the pop group, One Direction, which was formed on The X Factor in 2010 with the help of Scherzinger who was a mentor on the series.
The boy band, which consisted of Payne, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Harry Styles, became one of the biggest pop groups in the world, with five albums and four world tours, until they went on an indefinite hiatus in 2016.
Payne went on to launch his solo career and released his debut solo album LP1 in December 2019.
The album included the songs Polaroid with Lennon Stella and Jonas Blue; Strip That Down featuring Quavo; as well as the track For You, with Rita Ora.