Liam Payne was in the process of walking away from his music firms around the time of his death, according to new reports.
The solo artist and former One Direction member died on October 16 following a fatal fall from a third-floor balcony at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It was later shared by the Argentine prosecutor’s office that the 31-year-old’s cause of death was due to multiple traumas and internal and external bleeding.
Now, it has been reported by outlets like Daily Mail that the late singer was in the process of resigning from his four music firms around the time.
They report that new documents have been published, filed at Companies House. The papers allegedly disclose that on the day of his death, the pop star filed papers to resign from the four companies he channelled his income through for recordings and live shows.
One was called Hampton Music Ltd, which was reportedly valued at £17,300 last year, while another was Hampton Records Ltd, which was estimated by the outlet as being worth around £75,000.
The documents also report that Payne was looking to step away from the live music firm – Long Play Touring LLP – and from Hampton Publishing Ltd too. At time of writing, the exact reasons behind Payne wanting to resign from the firms haven’t been confirmed.
Following news of his death, it emerged that substances were found in the singer’s system at the time of his fatal balcony fall. It was then reported that the Buenos Aires police department had raided the CasaSur hotel in search of further evidence.
Payne’s death has triggered conversations about putting more protections in place for young artists, with songwriter Guy Chambers calling on the music industry to stop putting minors in boybands following his passing.
Payne was 14 when he first auditioned for the X Factor, and 16 when he became a member of One Direction during the show’s 10th season.
Elsewhere, Sharon Osbourne also accused the music industry of “letting down” Payne, while Bruce Springsteen said that the music industry puts “enormous pressures on young people”. Similarly, Victoria Canal shared that, as an artist who feels “desperate” to achieve the success that Payne once had, she feels duped by “the promise of what ‘success’ in this industry is.”
A new petition has since been launched, calling for a new law to safeguard the mental well-being of artists in the music industry. It has surpassed over 100,000 signatures.
Earlier today (October 29) it was reported that Payne‘s first posthumous song will reportedly be released later this week.
