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AJ McLean spent a lot of time with late singer Liam Payne in the months leading up to his tragic passing.
The Backstreet Boys icon spoke to US Weekly amid promoting his upcoming Netflix series, Building the Band, in which he stars alongside Kelly Rowland, Nicole Scherzinger, and Payne.
McLean remembers exactly where he was when he received the news of his co-star's death, less than two months after filming wrapped for the show.
"I was literally on a Zoom call with my team. My manager told me what had happened, and I was like, ‘Guys, I got to get off the call. I’m sorry. I’ll catch up with you later.’ I just kind of sat there."
The "As Long as You Love Me" hitmaker called his sponsor before contacting Rowland and Scherzinger.
"All three of us kind of banded together and kind of talked to each other. We were kind of being support for each other."
McLean was with Payne five days a week, sometimes for 14 hours at a time, and referred to his presence as "supportive and positive."
"I had seen Liam in passing at different things, but this was, like I said, the most quality time spent together. We’re doing 12-to-14-hour days for five weeks straight, and he was just an absolute dream. We had very similar wits. He had the British humor, I had the American humor. He was so well-read, articulate, and very supportive and positive. He would obviously find a way to be — I don’t want to say stern — but get his point across in a very constructive manner."
The One Direction alum passed away on October 16, 2024, after falling from a third-story balcony at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, while under the influence of multiple drugs.
He was laid to rest in November and is survived by his parents, Geoff and Karen, his sisters, Ruth and Nicola, and his 8-year-old son Bear.
Building the Band premieres on Netflix on July 9.