Liam Payne says ZAYN was "the best singer in One Direction"

6 November 2019, 17:17

Sam  Prance

By Sam Prance

Liam Payne also discussed his relationships with ZAYN, Harry Styles, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson in a new interview.

Liam Payne has opened up about being in One Direction and revealed that he thinks ZAYN was the best singer in the band.

Liam Payne has been getting extremely candid about his time in One Direction in recent interviews. Speaking to Jessie Ware on the Table Manners podcast, he explained that they were so overworked that staying in the group "would have killed him". He also told Men's Health Australia that "there were certain parts of the band where it just got a little bit toxic". He added that he was "pissed a lot of the time because there was no other way to get your head around what was going on".

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Now Liam has spoken about One Direction reuniting and ZAYN, Harry Styles, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson.

Liam Payne says ZAYN was "the best singer in One Direction"
Liam Payne says ZAYN was "the best singer in One Direction". Picture: Karwai Tang/WireImage, Karwai Tang/WireImage

In an interview with GQ, Liam was asked about ZAYN's anxiety, and he said: "For ZAYN, he loves music and he's an amazing talent. He genuinely was the best singer in One Direction, hand on heart, out of all of us...but for him to get to a point where, you know, he can't step on a stage? It's a lot. I mean, he's doing great. His streaming numbers are ridiculous but I do think he misses out on the performance side a bit, you know. He can't seem to get past that part."

Liam added that he wanted to reach out to ZAYN: "I didn’t want him to feel like he was going through this all alone in some ways, or that we were all out to get him. We're the only people who know what you're going through. The only five people who know what you are going through were all in a room together once, and you left – fair enough – but you don’t want anyone going through such evils for no reason."

However, he explained: "But it got to a point with me where I wouldn’t know where to begin with Zayn. I hope he has good people around him, but I don’t at this stage think it’s anything the rest of us can solve." Liam then said: "We haven’t really heard from him since he left. He didn’t even say goodbye, if I am being honest. It was a really sordid scenario, from our side certainly. A bit strange. It’s difficult."

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As for whether or not he stays in touch with the other boys, Liam told Wired: "I keep in touch with most of them. I think other people just want their space." He then said: "Some of us, we didn't really have that much in common except for that we had a job together. Now that we don't have that job together anymore, there's not really any real reason for us to talk. Which is fine. That's just the way people are, really."

Speaking to Jonathan Ross, Liam also said: "Louis' been through so much in the last few years ever since the band ended and whenever I have a problem or whenever he has a problem, we always call each other about it and make sure we check in." He went on to explain: "I speak to Niall every so often, I haven't spoken to Harry in a long time now and ZAYN left so I haven't seen him since."

Liam did also confirm that he would be up for a One Direction reunion, but he said: "We haven't really spoke as a collective though. I don't think for at least the next two years it's gonna happen." He also said that he doesn't think ZAYN would get involved: "I don't think that'll happen. If he didn't want to be here, then he shouldn't be here, which is fine. I don't want to mess with his stuff."

Who do you think was the best singer in One Direction?