Liam Payne's last project: Late One Direction star to appear on new Netflix music show
Liam Payne's final project is being released posthumously next month – and it's a return to his musical roots.
Netflix's "Building the Band," set to premiere July 9, sees the former One Direction member as a judge for a freshly formatted reality TV singing competition.
Payne, who died in October, joins Tony Award winner Nicole Scherzinger of The Pussycat Dolls and Kelly Rowland of Destiny’s Child as they mentor contestants in search of the perfect musical group.
Different from the well-worn formula of shows like "American Idol" or "X Factor," where Payne himself found fame, "Building the Band" draws together singers who, from individual "booths," hear each other perform and attempt to organize themselves into groups based on musical compatibility and chemistry without meeting face to face. Think "Love is Blind," but for music.
The series, hosted by Backstreet Boys singer AJ McLean, will premiere in three batches, beginning July 9 and running through July 23. That it is grounded by celebrities who themselves rose to fame on the arm of boy bands and girl groups is meant to provide a unique perspective as contestants work to blend their voices (and their egos) for the sake of a good performance.
The show's format is perhaps most familiar to Payne, though, who competed on "X Factor" as an individual singer, Simon Cowell, Scherzinger and Louis Walsh combined his talents with fellow contestants Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson to form one act.
The result was One Direction, a record-smashing boy band that revived the group format and captured the hearts of millions of tweens before breaking up in 2016.
Payne's family, who has been outspoken about the damage of media attention in the wake of his death, has reviewed "Building the Band" and is supportive of his inclusion, a release announcing the show confirmed.
When did Liam Payne die?
Payne's death, which shocked fans, has unspooled as a multi-pronged tragedy with details emerging of heavy drug use and a high blood alcohol content. The singer, 31, died after falling from a Buenos Aires, Argentina, hotel balcony in October.
In the aftermath, five people were charged in connection with his death, three with negligent homicide, or unintentional manslaughter, and two with supplying drugs. Among those charged were hotel employees and a friend of Payne's. In February, charges against three of the defendants were dropped − but those accused of supplying the drugs remain legally liable.