Harry Styles pours his heart out in touching tribute for former One Direction bandmate Liam Payne

Harry Styles has poured his heart out in a touching tribute for his former One Direction bandmate Liam Payne after his tragic death.

Payne, 31, died on Wednesday after falling from a balcony at the Casa Sur hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

His former bandmate Styles shared a heartbreaking tribute to his Instagram on Friday morning.

“I am truly devastated by Liam’s passing,” he wrote.

“His greatest joy was making other people happy and it was an honour to be alongside him as he did it.

“Liam lived wide open, with his heart on his sleeve, he had an energy for life that was infectious. He was warm supportive and incredibly loving.

“The years we spent together will forever remain among the most cherished years of my life. I will miss him always, my lovely friend.

“My heart breaks for Karen, Geoff, Nicola and Ruth, his son Bear, and all those around the world who knew and loved him, as I did. - Harry.”

Styles’ heartfelt message comes after the joint statement he released with Zayn Malik, Niall Horan and Louis Tomlinson earlier on Friday.

One Direction found global success after Simon Cowell brought together Payne, Styles, Malik, Horan and Tomlinson on Britain’s X Factor talent show in 2010.

Local media broke the news of Payne’s death, reporting that the singer’s body was found after he fell 14m from a third-storey balcony.

It is understood an incident occurred around 5pm, with emergency services quickly surrounding the hotel.

It was reported that officers were called to the Casa Sur hotel after a manager reported an “aggressive man” who may have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Security Ministry of Buenos Aires municipality spokesperson Pablo Policicchio told The Associated Press Payne “had thrown himself from the balcony of his room”.