The members of One Direction mean a lot to a lot of people, so the surprising death of Liam Payne this week has really resonated. Maggie Rogers is among Payne’s musical peers who have been impacted by the loss, and she decided to pay tribute by covering 1D’s “Night Changes” while performing at Boston’s TD Garden last night (October 17).
As Billboard notes, before the performance, Rogers told the audience, “This week, in particular, I’ve been thinking how precious life is and how quickly things can change.” After explaining how she learned of Payne’s death will preparing to have dinner with an old friend, she continued, “We’re just about the same age. Any time a public figure, especially a musical peer, slips off, it’s really present and I’ve been sending a bunch of love to my friends and my band the last couple days. […] I wanted to just honor anyone who has been touched by [One Direction’s] music or those songs.”
This comes after Payne’s former bandmates and other figures from the music world have shared tributes of their own. Halsey shared an emotional post on Tumblr, writing in part, “i loved one direction with an all-consuming force when i was younger. it hurts deeply to mourn someone you were a massive fan of as teenager, and became a peer of as an adult. […] as a parent, a fellow artist, and a fan, i simply cannot fathom this untimely loss. my heart goes out to his family, friends, and the fans.”
Check out a video of Rogers’ cover above.