Liam Payne described feeling like a “caged animal” during his time working with Simon Cowell. KATIE HIND uncovers the reasons behind the troubled dynamic in their professional relationship.
For Liam Payne, this moment represented an unparalleled opportunity to escape from “the clutches” of the man who had orchestrated One Direction’s rise to global fame. That man was music mogul Simon Cowell, who had selected the five boys from obscurity to form the band on ITV’s The X Factor in 2010 and had controlled many aspects of their lives for six years.
Notably, it was Liam, then just 22, who chose to sever ties with his former mentor. While bandmates Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, and Louis Tomlinson opted for deals with music labels owned by Sony—One Direction’s label, where Cowell remained highly influential—Liam made a decisive move in a different direction. He accepted a multi-million-pound contract with rival Capitol Records and appointed a new manager.
