ワン・ダイレクションのメンバー、ペインさんの死に「打ちのめされている」

【ブエノスアイレスＡＦＰ＝時事】英男性アイドルグループ「ワン・ダイレクション」のメンバーで歌手のリアム・ペインさん（３１）がアルゼンチンの首都ブエノスアイレスのホテルから転落死したことについて、バンドのメンバーらは「完全に打ちのめされている」と語った。（写真は、英男性アイドルグループ「ワン・ダイレクション」のメンバーで歌手のリアム・ペインさん）
　家族からも悲しみの声が上がり、音楽業界やファン、さらには英首相官邸からも追悼の言葉が寄せられた。
　アルゼンチンでの検視結果によると転落時には「意識がもうろうとしていた、もしくは完全に意識を失っていた可能性がある」ことが示唆された。
　バンドのメンバー、ナイル・ホーランさん、ハリー・スタイルズさん、ルイ・トムリンソンさん、そしてゼイン・マリクさんは「リアムの訃報に完全に打ちのめされている。みんなが落ち着いたら、もっと話すことがあるだろう」とＳＮＳでコメントした。
　「今はただ、愛する兄弟の喪失を悼み、悲しみを受け入れる時間を取りたい」
　スタイルズさんは別のインスタグラムへの投稿で、「何よりも他人を幸せにすることが（リアムの）最大の喜びだった」と振り返り、「共に過ごした年月は、私の人生で最も大切な時間として心に刻まれるだろう。とても寂しい。愛する友よ」とつづった。
　またトムリンソンさんも「リアムは私が一生求めていた優しい兄弟だった」と述べ、「リアムこそがワン・ダイレクションの最も重要な存在だった。若い頃からの経験、完璧な音感、ステージでの存在感、そして作曲の才能など。すべてに感謝している」とたたえた。
　ペインさんの遺体は、ホテルスタッフが救急当局に２回連絡した後で発見された。リークされた音声によると、スタッフは「薬物とアルコールを摂取し、部屋を破壊しているゲストがいる」「ゲストの命が危険にさらされているかどうかは分からない。ただ、バルコニーのある部屋にいるので、命に関わる行動を起こさないかが心配だ」と報告していた。
　滞在していたのはホテルの３階の部屋で、バルコニーの高さは地上約１４メートルだった。転落時は一人だった。
　日刊紙クラリンは１６日、ホテルの部屋内部とされる写真を公開。アルミホイルとライター、白い粉が置かれたテーブル、そして画面が壊れたテレビが映っていた。
　検察によると、部屋からは「麻薬とアルコール飲料」と見られる物質が発見され、また家具などが破壊されていた。医療および毒物検査の結果はまだ公表されていない。
　グループは、マリクさんが脱退した２０１６年に無期限の休止を発表。ただ、解散はしていない。
　ペインさんは近年、アルコール依存症と名声に対する苦悩について公にしていた。２０２３年にはユーチューブに投稿した動画で、リハビリに時間を費やし、飲酒をやめる努力について話し、「自分が誰だか分からなくなってしまった」と述べていた。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2024/10/18-17:03）

The members of hugely successful pop group One Direction said Thursday they were completely devastated by the death of bandmate Liam Payne, who fell from the balcony of his Buenos Aires hotel room at the age of 31.
Family members said they were heartbroken as condolences poured in from the world of music, fans and the office of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Singer Rita Ora interrupted a concert saying she can't even sing. NSYNC said the bandmates were deeply saddened. And the Backstreet Boys as well as Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood were also among those who paid tribute to the British singer.
In Argentina, an autopsy suggested that Payne had not tried to stop his fall on Wednesday, and may have fallen in a state of semi or total unconsciousness before his death.
We're completely devastated by the news of Liam's passing, and when everyone is able to, there will be more to say, One Direction bandmates Niall Horan, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik said on social media.
But for now, we will take some time to grieve and process the loss of our brother, who we loved dearly, they said.
In a separate tribute on Instagram, Styles said Payne's greatest joy was making other people happy.
The years we spent together will forever remain among the most cherished years of my life. I will miss him always, my lovely friend, he wrote.
Tomlinson described Payne as the kind brother I'd longed all my life for.
Liam was in my opinion the most vital part of One Direction, he said on Instagram.
His experience from a young age, his perfect pitch, his stage presence, his gift for writing. The list goes on. Thank you for shaping us Liam.
Payne was found dead after hotel staff called emergency services twice to report a guest who is overwhelmed by drugs and alcohol, and destroying his room, according to leaked audio.
I don't know if the guest's life is in danger. But he has a room with a balcony and we're a little afraid that he might do something life-threatening, an employee said.
- Family remembers 'brave soul' -
Payne, the father of a seven-year-old boy shared with Girls Aloud star Cheryl Tweedy, had spoken publicly about struggles with alcohol and coping with fame from an early age.
He had been staying in a room on the Casa Sur hotel's third floor, with a balcony overlooking a rear patio that was about 14 meters (45 feet) high.
Post mortem results indicated that he was alone at the time of the fall and was going through an episode of substance abuse, prosecutors said.
The singer suffered multiple traumas and internal and external hemorrhaging, they said.
Payne's family issued a statement saying they would remember him for his kind, funny and brave soul and asking for privacy.
Mikey Graham, a member of 1990s Irish boy band Boyzone, suggested that record companies have psychologists on their books from now on in his memory as a duty of care for the vulnerability of their young talent.
Fame can be very damaging especially in today's world, he wrote on X.
- 'Adolescence lost' -
The Clarin newspaper published photos Wednesday of what it said was the interior of Payne's room, with white powder on a table next to a piece of aluminum foil and a lighter, and a television with a broken screen.
The prosecutor's office said substances that appeared to be narcotics and alcoholic beverages had been found in the room with pieces of furniture and other objects broken.
The results of medical and toxicological tests on Payne's body have not been made public.
One Direction began in 2010 when the then teenagers appeared on the British television contest The X Factor.
They went on to release an album of radio-ready songs each year in time for the holiday shopping season and became one of the highest-grossing live acts in the world.
In 2016, after Malik left, the group said it was on an indefinite hiatus but not splitting up.
Payne's first solo single Strip That Down peaked at number three on the UK charts and number 10 on the US Billboard top songs list.
But in recent years, he had spoken openly about struggles with alcoholism and fame.
In a 2023 video posted to his YouTube account, he said he had spent time in rehab and discussed his efforts to stop drinking: I kind of became somebody who I didn't really recognize anymore.
Last year, he said he was working on a second solo album and released a single this March.
Distraught fans -- most in their 20s and 30s -- gathered near the scene in Buenos Aires soon after news of Payne's death was announced Wednesday, many crying.
I feel like it's a part of adolescence lost, said Lena Duek, 21.
Starmer's office offered sincere condolences to Payne's family and friends.
In Codsall in England, where Payne's parents live, residents voiced a mixture of shock and sadness on Thursday.
I think everybody's talking about it because everybody knows Liam. Knows of Liam... because he was one of us, Maria Davies, 67, told AFP.
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