NJ 20-year-olds mourn former One Directioner Liam Payne

Liam Payne, formerly of One Direction —or 1D as one caller put it — died after reportedly falling off a balcony in Argentina.

One Direction was one of the biggest boy bands in the world. He was only 31 and had a 7-year-old son.

The circumstances of his death involved a call to emergency services for reported erratic behavior in the hotel lobby, the destruction of a laptop and the trashing of his hotel room.

I'm not going to speculate what happened, whether he suffered from depression, substance abuse, etc. It did occur to me that as disconnected from pop culture as I can be, many were truly distraught over his death.

Many parents called about their daughters' who ranged from 25-30 years old who were devastated by the news. One caller's daughter took the day off to mourn and she works remotely.

We heard from others who are closer to my age remembering the loss of entertainment icons like Kurt Cobain, John Lennon, and Robin Williams.

One caller brought up Steve Irwin, the Australian TV conservationist guy who was impaled by a sting ray nearly two decades ago.

Have you been impacted by a celebrity death? Is there a celebrity that if they pass, you'll need a moment? Hit me up on the NJ 101.5 app and let me know. We're making a list.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own.

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