Lizzo Says Liam Payne Wasn’t One Direction’s ‘Frontman’ on TikTok: ‘Who Lied to That Poor Boy’

“From what I’ve heard, part of the reason One Direction was made was because of Simon [Cowell]’s promise to me,” Payne recently said on the Impaulsive podcast

Lizzo has some words for Liam Payne.

In a TikTok posted over the weekend, the “About Damn Time” singer offered her opinions on multiple trending pop culture stories, from why she hasn’t watched Stranger Things Season 4 to someone throwing cake at the Mona Lisa.

At one point in the clip, Lizzo, 34, responded to Payne’s recent claim that Simon Cowell built One Direction with him at the forefront during their time on The X Factor.

“From what I’ve heard, part of the reason One Direction was made was because of Simon’s promise to me,” said Payne, 28, on a recent episode of Logan Paul’s Impaulsive podcast.

“So he kind of started with my face and worked out around the rest,” continued the “Strip That Down” singer. “I’ve never told this story before.”

In response to his comments, Lizzo said on TikTok, “I don’t know who lied to that poor boy, but he was not the frontman.”

According to a Rolling Stone interview with Cowell, 62 — which was conducted in 2012 for a planned One Direction cover story but went unpublished until 2020 — Payne did audition for The X Factor once before he was chosen to join the group and received early support from the show’s creator.

“Well, I’d auditioned him before on The X Factor, when he was 14, and he didn’t make it. Funnily enough, he didn’t have much support from the other judges, but I’d always backed him,” Cowell told the outlet. “And then he didn’t quite make it because he was too young the first time.”

BURBANK, CA – NOVEMBER 22: (L-R) Musicians Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne, and Harry Styles of the band One Direction during the “One Direction iHeartRadio Album Release Party” hosted by Ryan Seacrest at the iHeartRadio Theater Los Angeles – Clear Channel’s new music and events venue located at The Burbank Studios in Burbank, CA (Photo by Christopher Polk/Getty Images for Clear Channel)

“And then when he came back the second time, I was really proud of him because he really made an effort and he wanted to prove a point — and he was good when he came back and did his audition,” continued the former American Idol judge. “And then I was gutted during the phase I described earlier on, when he just fell apart on this particular song.”

“But I always knew that with confidence he would be a valuable member of this band, so I had no hesitation in bringing him back,” he added.

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