Liam Payne’s death was an ‘eye-opener’ says Boyzone’s Keith Duffy
Liam Payne’s death was an ‘eye-opener’ says Boyzone’s Keith Duffy
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Boyzone’s Keith Duffy has said Liam Payne’s death was an ‘eye-opener to everybody in the music business’, adding that artists should have access to mental health support. Appearing at the world premiere for new docu-series Boyzone: No Matter What, Keith, 50, reflected on what it was like to be in a boyband in the 1990s.
![[Liam Payne dressed up for an event]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_235363732-8d4a.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
‘Boybands have been known to be used as puppets and a marketable commodity that have a shelf life, but fame comes alongside that,’ he told the PA news agency. ‘And I think the great loss of that young man from One Direction is an eye-opener to everybody in the music business.
![[Mandatory Credit: Photo by Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock (15120657p) Shane Lynch, Keith Duffy and Ronan Keating 'Boyzone: No Matter What' documentary premiere, London, UK - 27 Jan 2025]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_237588345-e869.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
‘It’s all well and good to make money from young guys in a band. It’s all well and good to promote their brand and their music. ‘Somebody needs to take care of their mental state. Somebody needs to take care and make sure that they’re OK. They need to be kind.’.
![[Boyzone Pre-Tour Gig - Backstage]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/GettyImages-80079046.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=594)
One Direction star Payne died from polytrauma aged 31 on October 16 after falling from the third-floor balcony of a hotel in the Argentine capital Buenos Aires. Five people have been charged with manslaughter over his death. Also at the premiere on Monday was Keith’s bandmate Ronan Keating, who said filming the three-part Sky series was like ‘therapy’.
![[19/12/98 PA File Photo of Boyzone with the Record Of The Year award in London. (Left to right) Mikey Graham, Ronan Keating, Keith Duffy, Stephen Gately and Shane Lynch. See PA Feature SHOWBIZ TV Quickfire Keating. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ TV Quickfire Keating. PA Photo. Picture credit should read: Stefan Rousseau/PA Archive/PA Images. NOTE TO EDITORS: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ TV Quickfire Keating.]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SEI_237521181-8228.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
‘It took hours and hours and hours to film this,’ he told PA. ‘And it took hours for us to actually get into that head space. ‘So the first hour might be quite light, but after two, three, four, five, six hours of talking about it, it’s incredible, it’s like therapy.
