Liam Payne wrote and recorded his final song as a tribute to his love for supermodel Naomi Campbell, the Mail on Sunday can reveal.

The former One Direction star dated Ms Campbell for several months in 2019 and began composing the song ‘Closer to You’ shortly after their break-up.

But he abandoned work on the love song – which opens with a reference to smelling her perfume lingering in the air – until earlier this year when he finally recorded it.

He died believing it would be his next hit.

The Mail on Sunday understands that Liam, who died in October after falling from a hotel balcony in Argentina aged just 31, was extremely proud of the record and, we have been told, Ms Campbell is aware he composed the song in her honour.

A source said: ‘Liam and Naomi dated for three or four months and, like all things with Liam, he took it very seriously. He was an emotional guy. They didn’t have a big bust-up, it was more that they realized their relationship couldn’t last long-term because they were both juggling careers and traveling a lot.’

The split was amicable and they remained friends.

The lyrics talk of his yearning ‘to get closer to you’ and reveal she was the one ‘who walked away.’

He repeatedly pleads: ‘I want to love you.’

He was particularly proud of the opening line of the melody: ’Still smell your perfume in my room….’

The source said: ’Liam joked Naomi’s scent was so distinctive he could always smell it, even long after she’d left.’

The Mail on Sunday listened to a rough-cut of the three-and-a-half minute song which was recorded in Los Angeles in July.

The song was submitted into a Buenos Aires court as part of a 91-page document containing more than 400 files made by lawyers representing Liam’s close friend, Argentine-American businessmen Roger Nores, as part of the ongoing investigation into Liam’s death.

Mr Nores and his girlfriend both contributed lyrics and melody to the song.

Liam traveled to Sweden in August where he recorded the final version of the song with producer and composer Rami Yacoub who penned One Direction’s biggest hit ‘What Makes You Beautiful.’

On the phone in Los Angeles also contributing to the record was Grammy-award winning Swedish record producer Max Martin who wrote ‘Baby One More Time’ for Britney Spears and ‘I Kissed A Girl’ for Katy Perry.

Mr Martin, one of the most successful songwriters in the world, has penned the most number one singles in the Billboard 100 chart after Sir Paul McCartney. His hits include Taylor Swift’s ‘Shake it Off’ and the Backstreet Boys hit ‘I Want It That Way.’

A source told the MoS that Liam was ‘thrilled’ to be back in the studio with longtime mentor Mr Yacoub.

In 2023, Mr Yacoub posted a picture of himself and Liam on Instagram with the caption: ‘I’ve known this wonderful human for almost 13 years. Sorry for torturing you in the booth Liam, but as you all can see on his face, he loves it. Time goes by but some things never change….’

While Liam struggled with addiction issues he appeared sober, drinking nothing stronger than the energy drink Red Bull, when he recorded the final version of ‘Closer to You’ during an eight-hour session which stretched into the night.

He had reportedly been dropped by his record and management companies but believed the song would signal his comeback as a solo artist.

A source said: ‘Liam was thrilled to be back in the studio with Rami and to be working with Max. They’re both legends. He was happy and laughing. He felt this would be his big comeback record.’

Liam and Ms Campbell never publicly commented on their widely-reported relationship which took place when she was 48 and he was 25.

They we’re first spotted together celebrating New Year in Ghana at the start of 2019 and flirted on Instagram, liking and commenting on each other’s posts.

Liam described her as ‘perfection in a person’ and she called him ‘a beautiful soul.’

Ms Campbell has not commented about his death but put a broken heart, dove emojis and prayer hands beneath a photograph of Liam posted by singer Nicole Scherzinger after his fatal fall.

Liam was hoping to launch the song during a 2025 world tour but relapsed on drugs while he was in Argentina waiting for his US work visa to be renewed.

The song, which has an upbeat, catchy melody, contains poignant lyrics about how much he yearns for Ms Campbell.

He reflects about wishing he could be ‘closer to you’ – which ended up being the song’s title.

‘Liam was laughing a lot and was so happy in the studio,’ the friend said.

‘I think everyone who worked on Closer to You hopes it might be released one day so his fans can hear what great music he was making, right to the end.’

Liam died after falling 45 feet from the balcony of the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires on October 16.

His post-mortem revealed he had drugs including crack cocaine in his system while prosecutors revealed he ordered several bottles of champagne and whiskey from room service during his final hours.

Last night Mr Yocoub declined to comment when approached by the MoS in Los Angeles saying Liam’s death ‘hit me hard and I really can’t talk about it.’

Representatives for Ms Campbell and Mr Payne’s estate failed to respond to requests for comment.