Nicole Scherzinger “will forever treasure and cherish her time with Liam Payne.”

CNN
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Nicole Scherzinger was part of Liam Payne's career rise and now she's paying tribute to him.

Payne recently died after falling from the third floor of a hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He was 31.

The group that made him famous, One Direction, was formed on the British reality competition show The X Factor while Scherzinger was a judge.

On Thursday, she took to social media to write: “Dear Liam, I will forever cherish and cherish the time we spent together, from fifteen years ago when One Direction was born until a few weeks ago.”

“It was a blessing to work with you recently,” her post continued. “We shared the same love and passion for music and I will always remember the meaningful and joyful conversations we had.”

Scherzinger added that it was “so hard to process that you are no longer here, but I am grateful to have known your kind heart, sweet soul and character.”

“You brought so much joy, light and laughter into the lives of those who truly knew you,” she concluded. “I will “miss” you, my friend, and carry you in my heart. My thoughts and prayers are with your family.”

Scherzinger, a former member of the Pussycat Dolls, is currently starring in “Sunset Blvd.” on Broadway, which features the compositions of the legendary Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Webber spoke to Billboard about Scherzinger finding out her mentee Payne had died.

“On the Wednesday when he died, she was still texting him, and (that evening) the reviewers (of 'Sunset') came in, she had just found out he had died,” Webber said. “And the fact that she even did the show is extraordinary. I mean, she's an amazing, amazing woman. She is without question one of the best artists I have ever worked with.”

CNN has reached out to Scherzinger's representatives for confirmation/comment.