Zayn Malik has paid an emotional tribute to his One Direction bandmate Liam Payne during the first show of his solo tour.
Malik kicked off his Stairway to the Sky Tour at the O2 Academy in Leeds on Saturday after rescheduling the original opening dates in Edinburgh due to Payne’s funeral on Wednesday.
Following Penne’s death at the age of 31 in Argentina last month, the singer reunited with his fellow bandmates at a private service in Buckinghamshire to pay their final respects.
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Photos shared on social media from Malik’s concert show a message displayed on a large blue screen behind the singer that reads: ‘Liam Payne 1993-2024. Love you brother with a pink heart.
The 31-year-old had previously postponed the US leg of his Stairway to the Sky tour due to the “heartbreaking loss” of Payne.
They later rescheduled the Edinburgh shows, planned for 20 and 21 November, to December due to “unforeseen circumstances”.
Following Payne’s death, Malik said he never had the chance to “thank” his fellow bandmate for supporting him through some of the “most difficult” times of his life.
He said, “I lost a brother when you left us and I can’t tell you what I would do to hug you one last time and say goodbye properly and tell you that I loved you so much and I respected you a lot.” In a statement shared on Instagram.
“I will always cherish all my memories with you in my heart.
“There are no words that can justify or explain how I feel right now, except that I am completely devastated.
“I hope wherever you are right now you are well and at peace and you know how loved you are. Love you brother.”
The singer shot to fame alongside Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan when Simon Cowell put them together to form One Direction on The X Factor in 2010.
Malik left One Direction in 2015, before the group went on indefinite hiatus in 2016, with all members moving on to pursue their respective solo careers.
An autopsy report stated that Payne died on October 16 of multiple injuries and “internal and external bleeding” after falling from the third-floor balcony of the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires.
An investigation into his death has been launched by prosecutors and three people have been charged in connection with the incident.
