Liam Payne is “sorry to anyone who got offended” over his song Both Ways, after the track was accused of “fetishizing bisexuality.”
The raunchy record, which features lyrics including, “Flipping that body, go head, I go tails, sharing that body like it’s our last meal,” was met with backlash from fans, and led to the hashtag #liampayneisoverparty trending on
Twitter.
Addressing the controversy in a new interview with Britain’s Daily Star, the former One Direction star insisted he didn’t mean to cause offence, saying: “I am sorry to anyone who got offended by certain songs or different things on the album, for sure.”
“It was never my intention with any of the writing or things I was doing,” he explained. “I was just challenging myself in different areas.”
The father-of-one said it was a “moment in time,” adding that a lot of the songs he was sent were sexually suggestive following the success of his debut solo single, Strip That Down.
“I was pigeonholed into this kind of thing and, of course, I am a young guy I am interested in that sort of stuff, I like the idea of the songs and the grooves or certain vibes so I was like, ‘OK, let’s go for it,’” he added.
While Payne’s record LP1 stalled at a disappointing No. 17 on the U.K. charts, fans are convinced he is set to reunite with his former One Direction bandmates for the group’s 10th anniversary later this year, after he, Niall Horan, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson all re-followed former member Zayn Malik on Twitter — five years after his sensational departure from the band.