AJ McLean Talks Liam Payne's Death -- Through Lens Of His Own 'Addiction' Struggles

perezhilton.com:

AJ McLean recalled Liam Payne being “a light” as they worked together shortly before his death.

In a video obtained by TMZ on Monday, the Backstreet Boys star opened up about the One Direction alum’s shocking death while walking through LAX.

AJ revealed he just finished working with Liam on the upcoming Netflix show Building the Band with Nicole Scherzinger and Kelly Rowland, making this death particularly tough for him, noting: Related: Liam’s Sister Nicola Reveals Heartbreaking Way She Found Out About Death Addressing the other members of 1D, he said bands become like “family,” expressing: AJ, who has his own history of addiction struggles, then took a moment to stress the seriousness of alcohol, drugs, and mental health challenges, urging: Oof.

How harrowing for him to lose a new friend to addiction — especially given their similarities! While he and Liam got close on the show, they never talked about addiction and he did not personally see any warning signs at the time.