The Netflix show opens immediately with a tribute to the late singer by host AJ McLean, and it serves as one of many emotional tributes to Payne that have come after his death. He addresses the fact that the show was filmed before Payne passed away in October,

The circumstances around his death remain under legal scrutiny. Two Argentine men, Braian Paiz and Ezequiel Pereyra, are still in pre-trial detention, accused of supplying cocaine to Payne. Both deny selling drugs, insisting any drug use was shared, not transactional, according to the Daily Mail.

AJ McLean revealed he kept a recording of his final conversation with his late 'Building the Band' costar Liam Payne. "I've not deleted it. I've kept it on my phone as a constant reminder of who he was.

Netflix’s “Building the Band” paid tribute to Liam Payne during episode 1. Payne, who died at age 31 in October 2024, posthumously appears as a judge on the reality competition series. At the start of the premiere episode, host AJ McLean acknowledged Payne’s death.

Netflix made a major change to Liam Payne's final TV role as the show opens with a tribute to the late One Direction singer

And in the opening moments of the competition series’ first episode, AJ McLean — who hosts Building the Band — paid tribute to his late friend. “When we came together to film Building the Band, we never imagined we’d soon be saying goodbye to our friend Liam Payne,” the Backstreet Boys member tells the camera.

The 10-part musical competition show “Building the Band” was released by Netflix on Wednesday after the streaming giant says Payne’s family was consulted and is “supportive of his inclusion.” Host AJ Mclean dedicated the entire series to Payne and his family.