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Former NBA player Lamar Odom, who has infamously had many public and life-threatening battles with drug addiction, has weighed in on the recent tragic death of former One Direction musician Liam Payne.
Payne passed away in Argentina at the age of 31 years old on October 16 after falling from a balcony at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel.
According to reports, traces of “pink cocaine” were found in his system. Pink cocaine is a combination of ketamine, MDMA, meth, coke, opioids and caffeine.
Speaking to TMZ, Lamar Odom speculated that Payne could have been hallucinating, which is something that the former NBA champion said he experienced while on drugs, particularly crack.
“Drugs can cause you to hallucinate and if he was in a hallucination state, then who knows what happened,” Odom told TMZ. “If you’re hearing voices, then you know, it’s hard to escape those voices.”
Reports indicate that prior to his death, Payne was acting “erratic” in the CasaSur Palermo Hotel lobby and had to be “carried” back to his room, where he’d later fall to his death around 5 p.m. local time.
Hotel staff reportedly told authorities that Payne was intoxicated and presumed he was “under the influence of alcohol and drugs.”
“We are heartbroken. Liam will forever live in our hearts and we’ll remember him for his kind, funny, and brave soul,” Payne’s family said in a statement following his death. “We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”
Prior to joining One Direction alongside bandmates Niiall Horan, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and Zayn Malik in 2010, Payne broke through on the British reality competition series The X Factor. One Direction released five studio albums between 2011 and 2015: One Direction’s five albums, Up All Night (2011), Take Me Home (2012), Midnight Memories (2013), Four (2014) and Made in the A.M. (2015).
Our thoughts are with Payne’s friends, family, and fans during this difficult time.