In the wake of ex-One Direction member, Liam Payne’s tragic death on 16 October 2024, calls are mounting for better safeguards around the management of young people in the music industry. The first of these should be a ban on under-18s boybands – a motion that is receiving assent from several leading figures, including Guy Chambers, the co-writer on many Robbie Williams hits, and Mike Smith, former boss at Warner/Chappell.
It’s a poorly-held secret how mentally damaging music industry culture can be for artists – let alone young people. Publicly floundering under the pressure of the limelight we’ve watched through our fingers Lewis Capaldi, Kanye West, Justin Bieber, Robbie Williams, Brian McFadden, and many, many more. On 16 October, another name was added to this list, Liam Payne, who sadly – like Mac Miller, Kurt Cobain, Nick Drake, or Ian Kurtis – does not survive to tell the tale.
Of course it is impossible to evidence direct causality, but there is a correlation to be monitored. This is an industry that propels its artists to international stardom at such pace they are left depersonalised, powerless, and vulnerable – their private lives eviscerated. A study by Liverpool John Moores University analysed survival rates for 1,000 Western musicians who experienced their first chart success between 1956 and 1999. It found they were three times more likely to die prematurely than their non-famous counterparts. Common causes of death included accidents and narcotics. We must not overlook the fact that clonazepam, an anti-anxiety medication, was found in Payne’s hotel room.
At the tender age of 14, Payne first appeared on X Factor. It is because of talent shows like this that countless young people are obliged to contend with a level of fame very few of us can comprehend. What would it be like to be mobbed every time you leave your house? To be lampooned for your foibles? To be publicly torn down if a performance slips? Part of the parcel of ‘making it’ is an unfettered access to wealth, libation and luxury – all of which a young person’s soft, developing brain, so sensitively attuned to the opinions of others, has little experience in managing. We pride ourselves on protecting youngsters from certain parts of the adult world – be it gambling, the army, marriage or hard labour – so why should fame be any different? Perhaps this is our culture’s blind spot.
Rebecca Ferguson, a 2010 X Factor contestant noted in a statement: “I’ve spoken for years about the exploitation of young stars and the effects – many of us are still living with the aftermath and the PTSD.” In a show of solidarity, some have called for an duty-of-care investigation into Syco, the company behind Simon Cowell and the X Factor.
A new docuseries produced by Louis Theroux, and his wife Nancy Strang – called Boybands Forever – explores this very topic, and is due to air mid-November. It includes interviews with Robbie Williams, Brian McFadden, and others, which shine a light on the boyband phenomenon, born in the 1990s and all-too-alive today. In an interview, Theroux said viewers can expect “searingly honest” accounts from musicians, who share the stark “highs and lows” of fame.
According to Warner’s Mike Smith, 25% of popstars suffer from anxiety or depression. If we are to help artists through these lows, there must be more protection. Beyond the obvious under-18s boyband ban, there is a case to be made for industry-wide contractual measures, aimed at providing artists with emotional support on their journey to stardom. This might include baked-in contractual funds that shoulder the cost of mental healthcare, or ensuring professionals are pulled onto the payroll who can advise management staff on artist welfare matters. While some major labels do indeed volunteer such measures, crucially, they are not yet legislated for.
If anything good at all is to come from Liam Payne’s tragic passing, it will be to tip the balance, and give regulators impetus to chisel greater protection for young artists, actors or celebrities, into civil law.
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