And though Payne had made some comments about his former band mates over the years (for instance, he previously said his 2017 single “outsold everybody within the band”), he later clarified that he had come to some realizations in more recent years.
“I think for me, a lot of what I said just came from the wrong place,” he said in a video posted to YouTube July 2023. “I was so angry at what was going on around me that instead of taking a look inwards I decided to take it outwards.”
Nonetheless, as Payne shared amid completing a 100-day stay in rehab, his groupmates were always there for him. “The rest of the boys have really stuck by me,” he continued. “When I needed them most, they kind of came to my rescue.”
Payne went on to note that returning to music also served as another turning point, as he was looking forward to his future.
“I feel like I have a grip on life now and everything that was getting away from me,” he shared at the time. “After I got back out, that process had worked for me, but there were still some little bits left that I kind of had to deal with myself.”
Keep reading for a look back at Payne’s life in photos.
