Liam Payne and Simon Cowell couldn’t have had a more different experience on Monday, October 7. Former One Direction singer Payne was on holiday in Argentina when he was told he was being dropped by his record label. It was another blow for the troubled 31-year-old actor, whose career stalled after the boy band disbanded in 2016.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Cowell had the air of a man without a care in the world. He stood in front of his mansion and recorded himself singing Happy Birthday to celebrate his 65th birthday and shared it on social media. “I’m at an age now where people applaud when you tell them how old you are, and it’s very depressing,” she said. “But I’m alive, I’m healthy, I’m happy.”
The terrible irony of how the pair spent that day was made even clearer by Payne’s untimely death, which occurred just over a week later, after he jumped from the third-floor balcony of his Buenos Aires hotel room following an apparent booze and drug binge. Payne owed much of his fame to Cowell; One Direction was formed in 2010 by the music mogul on The X Factor. What followed were five chart-topping albums, more than 70 million record sales, and unimaginable fame. Payne began his solo career in 2016 by signing a contract with Capitol Records, owned by Universal.
But it was this fame that Payne struggled with the most, leading to addiction issues that have marred much of the last decade. As the initial shock of his death wears off, questions are being asked about why Payne wasn’t more supported and whether Cowell should have taken responsibility for his fate. Cowell’s spokesman did not respond to requests for comment.
Payne was paid tribute by countless people, from his bandmates to other celebrities and even the Prime Minister, but Cowell was initially conspicuous by his absence. Instead, the emperor canceled Britain’s Got Talent auditions scheduled for Thursday in Blackpool. Filming will resume in the seaside town on Saturday, but Cowell will be replaced by former Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli.
Cowell eventually released a statement regarding Payne’s death on Friday evening. “You never know how you feel about someone until a moment like this happens,” she said on Instagram. “Liam, I’m devastated. Heartbroken. And I feel empty. And I want you to know how much I love and respect you. Every tear I cry is in memory of you.”
He added: “I just wanted you to know what I would always tell the thousands of people who ask me. What is Liam like? I would tell them that you are kind, funny, sweet, thoughtful, talented, humble, and focused. And how much you love music. And how much love you truly have for your fans.”
Cowell also revealed that the pair met each other last year “not for a meeting” but “just to sit down and talk.” We remembered all the fun times we had together. And how proud he was to be a father. After you left, I remembered that you were still the sweet, kind boy I met all those years ago.
Katie Waissel, who appeared on The X Factor the same year as One Direction, had such a tumultuous time on the talent show that she sought therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder and retrained as a lawyer, claiming she was going to sue Cowell and company. Syco Entertainment. Waissel, 38, says Cowell was in “crisis mode” following Payne’s death and felt the inevitable questions posed to him could jeopardize his career. “Everyone knows this is about taking advantage of people, but that’s not true. Artists are not commodities and their well-being should be prioritized.”
A former X Factor worker says wannabes are led to believe they’ll be close to Cowell, but the reality of even the most successful performances is very different. “When they went backstage they were nowhere near Simon. “When they won, they never got the support they expected… He was just a soloist, they didn’t know him very well, they didn’t have a relationship.”
Rebecca Ferguson, another former X Factor contestant and outspoken Cowell critic, also added to the chorus by recalling her time with Payne on the show. The two met at Euston railway station and traveled to the London studios. “I can’t help but think of that boy who was hopeful and looked forward to the bright future ahead of him. “If he had not jumped on that train and taken that taxi, I believe he would be alive today.”
But Cowell still has defenders like Intertalent founder Jonathan Shalit, who has worked with stars like Sting and Elton John. “I don’t think we should hold the people who created the X Factor accountable because that was so long ago. “He had an incredible care team when he was under the auspices of The
On the contrary, in Shalit’s account, the nature of fame in the 21st century is disappointing for many stars. “The problem with being famous is that you know everyone but no one; People love you, but no one really loves you. It’s a completely surreal world. “You’re the most popular person in the world, but no one actually cares about you personally.”
Cowell has publicly expressed one regret about how he managed One Direction: he wasn’t more knowledgeable when it came to trademarks, which made launching a reunion tour difficult. “The only thing I regret is that I had to keep this name. I had to own this name. That’s the problem,” he said in a podcast interview in June. “I could have done something [Abba Voyage-style] animation or whatever. However, when you give a name to an artist, that name does not belong to you. That’s my only regret. So if you’re listening, I’ll buy it back from you.”
He added: “If one band member says they don’t want to tour for any reason, that could stop the others. [from] tour. So if I were the owner of the name it wouldn’t be a problem. I can be very naive sometimes, and that’s because I’m very, very naive. So next time that will be part of the deal. I need to own the name. “They can still make most of the money, but I have to own the name.”
Cowell said he advised the One Direction boys to never complain about being harassed by paparazzi or selfie-seeking fans. “This will come with the territory. And the truth is it’s worth it. It’s not even a price to pay, it just comes with it. This is a tough job. You will be well known and lose most of your privacy. If you want to be an accountant, you will not experience any of these problems. It won’t be that fun. Some people want to be accountants. Some people want a more exciting life.”
Cowell’s comments raised eyebrows at the time, as Payne had previously openly revealed his struggles with alcohol and drug addiction, while former bandmate Zayn Malik made no secret of the fact that he developed anxiety and eating disorders at the height of One Direction. reputation.
Maybe they shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Cowell once told Rolling Stone that the thing he wants most in the world is “money.” All the money I can get.” This wasn’t a joke.
Contrary to the best X Factor storylines, Cowell’s upbringing was relatively normal, even prosperous. His father, Eric, was a wealthy real estate agent who managed the property portfolio of the record company EMI; his mother Julie was a ballerina. The family lived in the posh Hertfordshire town of Radlett, and Cowell was sent to the private Dover College.
From an early age, Cowell was determined to make money – a lot of it. As a child, if he saw a Monopoly game slipping out of his hands, he would turn the board over. When he was seven or eight years old, he went around neighbors’ houses and asked if he could clean their cars, mow their lawns, or do anything that might earn him some pocket money.
“Mum and Dad’s policy was that you live at home rent-free, we pay for holidays but when we go on holiday you have to earn your own pocket money,” Cowell said in 2007. money. During school holidays I was always applying for jobs in warehouses, gas stations or on the farm; I was always happier working instead of wandering around.”
So he was happy enough to leave school at 16 and, with his father’s help, got a job at the EMI post office. He moved on to becoming a record producer and left after six years to start an independent record label, Fanfare. He had moderate success, especially with Sinitta’s So Macho in 1985, but went bankrupt in 1989. Punished, Cowell was forced to sell his Porsche and return to live with his parents.
He managed to redirect his career with BMG, where he signed names such as Westlife, Five and Robson & Jerome. Under Cowell’s guidance, the latter took Pulp and Oasis to number one with their cover of Unchained Melody in 1995.
But it was television that established Cowell as an international star. In 2001, he became a judge on Pop Idol and became famous for his unrestrained criticism of artists. Three years later he founded The X Factor and became the driving force behind Britain’s Got Talent, now in its 18th year. Cowell’s Got Talent series has become a global phenomenon and he is almost as famous in the United States as he is in Britain.
Despite his grandiose words, Cowell’s star has faded in recent years. While ITV finally gave up on The X Factor in 2018 after an overwhelming decline in ratings, Britain’s Got Talent continues to falter despite facing the same problem. Syco Music closed in 2020 but last year launched Syco Publishing in partnership with Universal Music to “support and develop global songwriting talent.” It’s home to working artists such as another X Factor alum, Lucy Spraggan, whom Cowell walked down the aisle at her wedding in the summer, and unknown producer John Samuel Gerhart.
Their newest ventures also faltered. The mogul started auditioning for a new Netflix show with the modest title of Simon Cowell: Midas Touch this summer, with the aim of trying and creating the next supergroup. After struggling to persuade any wannabes to audition, the entire project is said to have been scrapped, with Cowell to follow instead as his “pop dream collapses”.
In 2007, he told interviewer Lynn Barber that he was considering retiring in two years, after he turned 50. “It’s a fun but incredibly rigorous program,” he said. “I also think there’s a limit to when people say: ‘I’m tired of you.’ And I don’t think that time is too far away.”
This was more than 15 years ago. But now that might be true.