Zayn Malik pays touching tribute to Liam Payne at show in late singer’s hometown

Zayn Malik paid a touching tribute to “brother” Liam Payne during a concert Friday night in the late singer’s hometown, days after attending Payne’s funeral with their former One Direction bandmates.

Malik was playing a show in Payne’s native Wolverhampton as part of his Stairway to the Sky Tour when he took to the mic to dedicate a song to 31-year-old Payne.

“I’ve been doing something at the end of the show every night, and it’s being dedicated to my brother Liam Payne,” Malik said to the crowd, as seen in videos making the rounds online. “Rest in peace. I hope you’re seeing this. We’re in your hometown tonight, Wolverhampton. This is for you, Liam.”

He then performed an emotional rendition of his song “It’s You,” singing lyrics such as “I won’t cover the scars, I’ll let them bleed … so my silence won’t be mistaken for peace.”

In the days following Payne’s tragic death on Oct. 16, Malik delayed the U.S. leg of his tour by roughly three months, pushing back the start date to late January. He also postponed his shows in Edinburgh earlier this month, which were set to begin Nov. 20 — the same day at Payne’s funeral.

Payne died after falling from the third-floor balcony of his room at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The 31-year-old suffered multiple traumatic injuries resulting in internal and external bleeding that led to his immediate death.

A toxicology report later found Payne had benzodiazepine, crack, cocaine and a drug cocktail known as “pink cocaine” — typically a mix of methamphetamine, ketamine and MDMA — all in his system at the time of his death.

Despite officials initially saying Payne “jumped from the balcony of his room,” suicide was eventually ruled out, with prosecutors attributing the fatal plunge to the effects of the drugs he had taken.

Three people have since been charged in connection with Payne’s death, including a friend identified as Argentine businessman Rogelio “Roger” Nores, as well as an alleged drug dealer and a hotel employee. Nores has been accused of abandonment followed by death, while the dealer and the hotel staffer have been charged for allegedly supplying and delivering Payne the drugs.