One Direction star Liam Payne wrote and recorded his final song as a heartfelt tribute to supermodel Naomi Campbell.
The singer, who died aged 31 in October after falling from the third floor of a hotel in Argentina, dated Campbell in 2019.
It’s claimed that Liam had been secretly working on the song “Closer to You” following their break up.
The track, which he recorded last year, saw him reference Naomi’s perfume which would often leave a lingering smell.
Campbell, 54, is said to be aware of the song which Liam had been “extremely proud” of and believed it was going to be a huge hit.
The Mirror reports that a source close to Payne told the Mail on Sunday: “Liam and Naomi dated for three or four months and, like all things with Liam, he took it very seriously. He was an emotional guy, they didn’t have a big bust-up, it was more that they realised their relationship couldn’t last long-term because they were both juggling careers and traveling a lot.”
In the unreleased track, lyrics include: “I want to love you,” and: “Still smell your perfume in my room...”
The Mail on Sunday claim that Liam had recorded the vocals for the track in July this year at a studio in Los Angeles, three months before his death.
It was submitted to a Buenos Aires court as part of a 91-page document, consisting of over 400 files, made by lawyers representing Roger Nores, a friend of Liam.
It’s believed that Nores and Liam’s girlfriend, Kate Cassidy assisted with the lyrics for the track.
It’s believed that Rami Yacoub, who wrote One Direction’s debut hit, What Makes You Beautiful was one of the masterminds behind the track, which was also worked on by Grammy Award-winning producer Max Martin.
Nores is currently facing an investigation by Argentinian law enforcements – despite him refusing to be questioned.
Alleged drug dealer Braian Nahuel Paiz and Ezequiel David Pereyra, a former employee at the Buenos Aires hotel where Liam lost his life, said they were “retaining their right to remain silent” during their Zoom quiz on Tuesday.
Mr Nores, who has denied claims he abandoned his pal before he plunged from his third-floor balcony at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel, has also declined to testify.
His defence lawyer told the judge he would be submitting a written statement to the court in the coming days, although no more details were given.
The last two suspects, hotel chief receptionist Esteban Grassi and head of security Gilda Martin, were scheduled to be interviewed on Thursday.
Mr Nores told a TMZ documentary examining the life and death of Liam Payne which aired earlier this week that he was “in good spirits and perfectly balanced” the day he died as he refuted claims the singer was acting erratically and was intoxicated shortly before his October 16 fatal fall.
The businessman, fighting accusations he abandoned his pal before his death amid claims he was Liam’s ‘de facto’ manager, has previously protested his innocence after being named locally as one of the men under investigation.
He said in a statement last month: “I never abandoned Liam, I went to his hotel three times that day and left 40 minutes before this happened. There were over 15 people at the hotel lobby chatting and joking with him when I left. I could have never imagined something like this would happen. I’ve given my statement to the prosecutor on October 17 as a witness and I haven’t spoken to any police officer or prosecutor ever since. I wasn’t Liam’s manager. He was just my very dear friend.”
On November 7, a press release from the National Criminal and Correctional Prosecutor’s Office said that the singer’s toxicological results were shared with his family and showed that he had traces of “alcohol, cocaine and prescription antidepressants” in his system.
Reports claim that the Wolverhampton-born star had been attempting to scale the balcony and plan an escape from his room which went wrong.
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