Zayn Malik postpones US tour after 'heartbreaking' loss of Liam Payne

Zayn Malik has postponed the US leg of his upcoming tour after the "heartbreaking loss" of his former One Direction bandmate Liam Payne.

Payne died, aged 31, after falling from the third floor of hotel balcony in Argentina on Wednesday.

Malik was about to start the US leg of his tour next week - starting with a show in San Francisco on Wednesday.

However, the singer told fans he was postponing the shows - saying: "Given the heartbreaking loss experienced this week, I've made the decision to postpone the US leg of the Stairway to the Sky Tour."

The US part of Malik's tour was due to also visit Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Washington DC, ending in New York on 3 November.

He has told fans on X the dates would be rescheduled for January and the tickets will remain valid for the new dates.

"Love you all and thank you for your understanding," he added.

The 31-year-old did not mention the 11 dates of the UK leg of his tour, which are expected to run from 20 November to 4 December.

On Thursday, Malik paid tribute to Payne, saying he would "cherish all the memories I have with you in my heart forever".

"I lost a brother when you left us and can't explain to you what I'd give to just give you a hug one last time and say goodbye to you properly and tell you that I loved and respected you dearly," he said.

Zayn Malik said he would "cherish all the memories" with Liam Payne

Payne and Malik rose to global fame as part of the boyband One Direction - created on The X Factor TV show in 2010 - and sang together with bandmates Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and Niall Horan.

Malik left the group in 2015 to embark on a solo singing career, and the band later split in 2016.

The cancellation of Malik's US shows comes as, Payne's sister, Ruth Gibbins, earlier on Saturday described her brother as her "best friend" in an emotional Instagram post, in which she said the family would "take care" of his son, Bear.

"My brain is struggling to catch up with what's happening and I don't understand where you've gone," she said.

"I'd drive to the end of the universe to bring you back."

Meanwhile in Argentina, Payne's father, Geoff Payne, on Friday viewed tributes for his son outside the Casa Sur hotel in Buenos Aires.

He was followed by a scrum of photographers as he visited the hotel, prompting fans to shout at the press and attempt to block the building's entrance to stop them entering.

Geoff Payne also visited the morgue in Buenos Aires to officially identify his son. A federal prosecutor previously told the BBC that his body had been "released", meaning no further tests were being carried out and identification could take place.

In an Instagram post on Friday, Girls Aloud singer Cheryl, who was in a relationship with Payne from 2016 to 2018 and shared a son called Bear him, said she was troubled he could access "abhorrent reports and media exploitation" and she could not protect him from it in the future.

"Liam was not only a pop star and celebrity, he was a son, a brother, an uncle, a dear friend and a father to our 7 year old son," she said. "A son that now has to face the reality of never seeing his father again."

“I am begging you to consider what use some of these reports are serving, other than to cause further harm to everyone left behind picking up the pieces."

Since Payne's death, fans in the UK have been gathering at vigils.

On Saturday afternoon fans gathered in Liverpool in memory Payne, lighting candles and placing flowers at the city's waterfront. A vigil also took place in his home city of Wolverhampton on Friday.