Netflix’s Building the Band has become an even more special project for Nicole Scherzinger following the passing of her fellow judge and personal friend, Liam Payne.
The Pussycat Dolls singer will sit down with Willie Geist for a special conversation on the Sunday, July 27, episode of Sunday Today. In a sneak peek of the interview, Scherzinger got emotional while reflecting on working with Payne on his last major project before his tragic October 2024 death at the age of 31.
“What did he bring to that set and to that show, as you got to know him better, personally?” Geist asked, to which Scherzinger replied, “Well, you know, I put One Direction together, so it’s come full circle for us. And then, it’s full circle for Liam because he had the success with One Direction. And what did he bring? He brought the personal experience. He’s lived it.”
Scherzinger later stopped mid-sentence after getting choked up. “He’s very joyful in the show, watching the show,” Geist said of Payne as she composed herself.
Scherzinger went on to share, “I’m so excited for people to see this show because Liam just shines in the show. He’s just a natural, beautiful, bright light. Anyone who knows him, he is a very kind, giving heart, and he gets to give back. He’s been there with One Direction, he’s done it all, and he’s able to give really good advice from a very personal place, and he’s great at it. He just shines on the show, and he brings a joy to the show and a sweetness.”
The actress — who recently won this year’s Best Leading Actress in a Musical Tony Award for Sunset Boulevard — said she was “blown away” by Payne on the competition show, stating, “I was like, ‘Wow, he really knows what he’s talking about.’”
Now, Scherzinger is “happy that people get to remember him in this beautiful light where he’s shining” through the Netflix competition series. Geist agreed, noting that Building the Band “will be beautiful for his fans” to watch.
“Everyone’s complicated. It’s called humans, it’s the human spirit and soul,” Scherzinger continued. “And I just wish, I could only just pray for people to be more compassionate and understanding because everybody at some point in their life, if not right now, is going through something, and you just never know.”
Payne died late last year after falling from his third-floor hotel balcony in Buenos Aires. Multiple reports confirmed that he had alcohol and drugs in his system at the time of his death, which was ruled as an accident.
Payne rose to fame as a member of One Direction on The X Factor UK in 2010, along with fellow members Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, and Louis Tomlinson. Scherzinger was a judge on the series at the time and is credited with pairing the five boys together. The group went on to release a total of studio albums, the last of which did not feature Malik after his 2015 departure from the band.
Payne appeared as a judge on Season 1 of Netflix’s Building the Band — which premiered earlier this month — along with Scherzinger, Kelly Rowland, and host AJ McLean. “When we came together to film Building the Band, we never imagined we’d soon be saying goodbye to our friend Liam Payne,” McLean says in a message played at the beginning of the show’s first episode.
He added, “Liam is a guest judge in later episodes, and through his presence, we see his deep love for music and his unwavering commitment to helping others find their voice. It’s through that spirit that we dedicate this series to Liam and his family.”
Earlier this week, Netflix released a behind-the-scenes clip of Payne singing and dancing along with fans to One Direction’s What Makes You Beautiful during filming.
Sunday Today With Willie Geist, Sundays, 8 a.m./7c, NBC
Read the original article here