Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole and Sharon Osbourne paid tribute to late One Direction singer Liam Payne, who rose to fame on the U.K. reality competition 'X Factor' for which they served as judges. 'You never really know how you feel about someone until a moment like this happens,' Cowell wrote in a statement posted Friday on Instagram. 'Liam, I am truly devastated. Heartbroken. And I feel empty. And I want you to know how much love and respect I have for you.
' Girls Aloud singer Cheryl Cole also served as a judge during One Direction's season and later began dating Payne; they had son Bear in 2017. Cole broke her silence on her ex's death on Friday, asking for respect in the wake of her family tragedy. 'As I try to navigate this earth shattering event, and work through my own grief at this indescribably painful time, I’d like to kindly remind everyone that we have lost a human being,” she wrote in a statement on Instagram.