Lulu says she 'could have easily ended up like Liam Payne'

Watch: Lulu admits she 'could have easily ended up like Liam Payne'

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Lulu has admitted that she "could have easily ended up like Liam Payne" if dealing with the pressures of fame at an early age had gone differently for her.

One Direction star Payne died on 16 October aged 31 after he fell from a hotel balcony in Argentina. He had previously spoken about his struggles with addiction after finding worldwide fame on The X Factor as a teen.

Shout singer Lulu, who has spent 60 years in the music industry, described Payne's death as "a kick in the gut" and said she would address her own issues in dealing with fame in her autobiography and a forthcoming biopic.

What, how, and why?

Lulu has spent 60 successful years in the music industry, reinventing herself many times after early success including singing the James Bond theme The Man with the Golden Gun and duetting with Take That on Relight My Fire.

But the Shout singer told Lorraine on Tuesday that she felt Liam Payne's recent death as "a kick in the gut" as she thought she could "easily have ended up" like him.

Payne, who died earlier this month aged 31 after a fall from a hotel balcony in Argentina, had spoken in the past about struggling with addiction issues as he tried to deal with becoming a global superstar overnight as a teen on The X Factor.

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Lulu told Lorraine host Ranvir Singh: "When Liam died, it was such a kick in the gut and a reminder that this could have been you, this could have been you, this could have been you."

Singh asked her: "Did the pressure ever get too much for you?"

Lulu replied: "You have to read the book. I'm not saying anything, in a serious way. I'm an optimistic person, so I'm very fortunate. These are pat answers that I've said for years - I've had really good people around me, but the actual true story of my life will be in the memoir and it will be in the biopic, because I've never been as vulnerable as I've allowed myself to be at this point in time.

"I mean, it's about time. I didn't just put on a brave face, I told the truth. But it isn't going to be a misery, it's going to be kind of a success story that I didn't end up like Liam because it so easily could have happened.

"A lot of my friends ended up that way, a lot of my peers ended up that way."

Lulu reveals how she coped with pressures of fame

Explaining how she had managed six decades in the spotlight, as well as the ups and downs of her career, Lulu credited meditation with keeping her mental health in a good place.

She said: "All I can say to anybody - never mind if you're interested in meditation, get interested. It will change your life, it will allow your mind to reboot. It's not that it's easy, but if you keep at it, like anything, it's worthwhile. It will change your life and it will give you an opportunity to be objective about problems that come up in your life and how to deal with them."

As Singh asked her how she had navigated fame and going through less successful periods of her career, she added: "What you just asked me, how did you deal with them - meditation is the answer to all of that and then it helps you choose the right people to be around. I've had a few people around me who have been rubbish, but you know what? They haven't stayed around. I got rid of them."

Lorraine airs on ITV1 at 9am on weekdays.

Anyone feeling emotionally distressed can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org