Katie Waissel has doubled down on her public criticism of the X Factor and the music industry's welfare protocols in the wake of Liam Payne's death.
Payne died aged 31 on Wednesday due to multiple injuries sustained after a fall from a third-floor hotel room that led to “internal and external haemorrhaging".
Police in Buenos Aires were first called over reports "of an aggressive man who may have been under the effects of drugs and alcohol" at the hotel. Payne's hotel room was left in "disarray", according to police, while alleged photos show white powder and broken facilities.
Payne shot to worldwide stardom after competing as part of One Direction on the 2010 series of X Factor. Following the band's split, he embarked on a solo music career and was vocal about his struggles with substance addiction and rehab stints.
Tributes for the singer flooded in from famous faces everywhere, including all four band members and the X Factor itself.
But when Waissel paid tribute on Wednesday evening, she warned music mogul and X Factor boss Simon Cowell not to comment on Payne's death, alluding to the treatment of the singers during their time on the ITV show.
Liam Payne: Katie Waissel discussed the X Factor star's death on GB News
GB NEWS
"My heart is completely torn to shreds right now, I am at an absolute loss for words," she penned on X on Wednesday. "If Simon Cowell dare put a statement out on the heart wrenching, tragic loss of my dear and darling friend Liam, he would be a fool.
"We all know the truth… and I’ll be sure it all comes out. #justiceforliam," she ominously signed off.
Cowell hasn't publicly responded to Waissel's remarks - although GB News has contacted his team for comment - and in the days after Payne's death, former X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne has similarly alluded to the industry failing Payne.
"Liam, my heart aches. We all let you down. Where was this industry when you needed them?" Osbourne said. "You were just a kid when you entered one of the toughest industries in the world. Who was in your corner? Rest in peace my friend."
My heart is completely torn to shreds right now, I am at an absolute loss for words. If Simon Cowell dare put a statement out on the heart wrenching, tragic loss of my dear and darling friend Liam, he would be a fool. We all know the truth… and I’ll be sure it all comes out.…
— Katie Waissel (@katiewaissel24) October 16, 2024
Speaking to GB News presenters Tom Harwood and Emily Carver on Friday's Good Afternoon Britain, Waissel addressed Osbourne's remarks, claiming "she gained a lot of praise from people behind the scenes in the industry for calling it how she saw it".
Waissel went on to say it was "dislocating and isolating" to go from obscurity to the level of fame the X Factor led to without the - she claims - appropriate support.
She also branded the "fame" from X Factor as unaligned with the trajectory of singers who'd broken into the industry traditionally.
Waissel was then quizzed by Emily and Tom on whether she feels Payne's record label should be "looked into" after Payne was reportedly dropped by Universal Music Group just days before his death.
When asked if "something had gone wrong in terms of the support", Waissel replied by claiming: "I think something went wrong at the very beginning.
"We've seen this systemically, it happened with former X Factor contestants prior to 2010 and post-2010. We have to get to the root of the issue here at the very beginning point.
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Liam Payne died after falling from his hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, ArgentinaGETTY
"So I beg to ask the question; if we'd been given the right mental health support and welfare checks at the very beginning, perhaps we would have then had the resources and tools to navigate the future and digest it in a different way.
"I do also believe that as much as when you go to work and you're an employee, the company has a duty of care both legal and moral so why should that be any different when it comes to artists and labels?"
GB News contacted Syco for a comment but is yet to receive a response.
Elsewhere, fellow finalist Rebecca Ferguson similarly raged at the treatment of young performers in the music industry, alluding to "exploitation" and "profiteering".
