Ex-One Direction boyband member Liam Payne uttered a controversial statement during a podcast interview and implied that his son, Bear, ruined his relationship with ex-girlfriend Cheryl Cole.
The 28-year-old pop singer was only 23 when he had his son with Cole. He told Logan Paul in his podcast show that he was not prepared to become a father but he felt plunged into the situation "for the right reasons," per Daily Record.
Payne went on to explain that he was left with Bear for 24 hours after his birth because Cole had a medical emergency and was bleeding profusely. So, he was prompted to step up and learn to be a dad with zero experience. This made Payne feel that it was the "coolest thing ever" to have the baby all to himself for the first 24 hours of his life.
Liam Payne Called Daddy Warbucks
However, Payne's admission about his ruined relationship had the public reacting on social media. The singer drew even more backlash from the interview when he said that he has set up companies for his son to own or sell in the future.
He also stated that he has "full autonomy" over his life following his break up with Cole, who is 10 years older than him, while she takes care of their son, who recently celebrated his fifth birthday.
One fan, who is also a dad, said that the pop singer's parenting style is comparable to "Daddy Warbucks," the rich but absentee father from "Annie." He said that Payne views being a dad without any responsibilities because he can substitute this with money, per News.Com.Au.
Another parent on social media said that Payne should not have said those things about his son or Cole out loud because he is implying that it's Cole who's the only parent raising Bear.
However, Payne said that he sees his son at least two or three times a week. He told People that he pours all of his attention on Bear 100 percent whenever they are together.
The young dad said that Bear "needs his dad in his life" and loves the fact that his son looks up to him "like a superhero." Payne also said that he and Cole threw their son the biggest birthday party attended by 30 of his friends from school.
Payne and Cole dated in 2016 and soon after she was pregnant with their baby. The couple decided to split in 2018 when Bear was nearly a year old. They have agreed to be co-parents.
Liam Payne's New Girl
Meanwhile, Payne has also been in the headlines because of his new relationship with Aliana Mawla soon after his breakup with fiancée Maya Henry. Mawla, however, issued a statement denying that she was the third party in the split. Henry has also pleaded with the fans to stop sending her photos of Payne and Mawla together.
Payne and Henry started seeing each other after his split with Cole but they didn't make their relationship public until 2019. They got engaged in August 2020 but were marred with rumors of a rocky relationship.
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