Liam Payne made a spectacular debut solo performance on stage at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, 10 June, singing his new single Strip That Down in front of an 80,000-strong audience at Capital's Summertime Ball. The former One Direction singer's first performance as a solo artist went down very well with the crowd gathered the annual one-day music festival, and taking to Instagram later that night, the new dad thanked his fans for an amazing night.
"Thank you for your incredible support!" the former boybander gushed. "It's a moment I'll never forget." Liam was joined at the event by his former bandmate, Niall Horan, who also took to the stage a couple of hours later to perform his solo material in front of the screaming audience. If either of the singers were feeling nervous about taking the spotlight alone, the didn't show it - but it was undoubtedly a nervewracking time for both of them. This time last year, their fellow 1-D pal Zayn Malik dropped out of the same event at the last minute citing performance anxiety.
PHOTOS: Fans went wild for this throwback photo
"To all those people who have been waiting to see me perform at the Capital Summertime Ball today...I flew into the UK last night to appear in my home country in front of my family, friends, and most importantly my UK fans," he wrote shortly after his cancellation was announced. "Unfortunately my anxiety that has haunted me throughout the last few months around live performances has gotten the better of me. With the magnitude of the event, I have suffered the worst anxiety of my career. I cannot apologise enough but I want to be honest with everyone who has patiently waited to see me, I promise I will do my best to make this up to everybody I've let down today."
While Cheryl's boyfriend Liam must have been feeling the pressure, his performance did not convey it - and he even took the time before he went on stage to go on a trip down memory lane in the hallways of the hallowed music venue. Taking to Instagram, baby Bear's dad shared a photograph he came across as he hung out backstage that made him feel nostalgic!
"Throwback!" he captioned the snap of him and his 1-D bandmates on stage at the same event previously. And while fans took to social media in droves to tell Liam how 'proud' they were of his debut solo performance, many also begged the boyband hunk to reunite with his bandmates and return to the Summertime Ball stage en masse.