Love Island’s Ovie Soko has exclusively told MailOnline that he believes reality shows should have age restrictions to protect the welfare of younger contestants, following the tragic death of Liam Payne at the age of 31.
The basketball star, 33, who appeared on the ITV2 show in 2019, said it was unfair for teenagers and early 20s to be ‘judged for their silly mistakes’ in front of an audience of millions.
His comments come after music mogul Simon Cowell came under pressure over aftercare for young artists who suddenly shot to fame after the X Factor boss helped pick One Direction and went on to manage them.
He told MailOnline: ‘There should perhaps be an age restriction because someone who is a young adult is still a young adult.’
“They’re going to make young mistakes and I don’t think it’s always fair for someone that age to be held accountable for something they do when they’re young and stupid.”
Love Island’s Ovie Soko, 33, has exclusively told MailOnline that he believes reality shows should have age restrictions to protect the welfare of younger contestants, following the tragic death of Liam Payne at the age of 31.
The One Direction singer fell from the third floor in the courtyard of the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires last week (photo 2020)
His comments come after music mogul Simon Cowell came under pressure over aftercare for young artists who suddenly rose to fame (Liam and Simon photo 2017)
When asked if there was anything he would have done differently on Love Island, Ovie said: “I don’t think so, I think it was a good experience for me.”
“I really can’t complain, I was quite privileged when some people got a bad wrap and a bad experience when I had it pretty easy.”
He joined fellow celebrities in calling for better care for younger stars, while Katie Waissel called for a negligence and duty of care investigation into Simon’s record company following Liam’s death.
The 38-year-old singer, who auditioned alongside Liam in the 2010 series of X Factor, singled out the music mogul in two statements accusing music bosses of focusing on “profit rather than people”.
Before going even further and citing an “urgent need for change in the music industry,” she called for an “immediate investigation” and “new laws” to protect stars
Katie’s comments come after fellow contestant Rebecca Ferguson also said that the PTSD caused by ‘taking advantage of young stars’ had ‘finally claimed its first victim’.
Liam first auditioned for the X Factor in 2008 at the age of 14, before returning two years later to become a member of One Direction.
Speaking at the Pride of Britain Awards, Beverley Knight said: ‘We need more care for young people in the music industry. He was originally 14, 15 when he started, the 1D boys were babies! And as minors there should be so much more care, so much more attention.
The basketball star, 33, who appeared on the ITV2 show in 2019, said it was unfair for teenagers and early 20s to be ‘judged for their silly mistakes’ in front of an audience of millions.
Film said: ‘There should perhaps be an age restriction because someone who is a young adult is still a young adult’ (pictured on Love Island in 2019
Ovie finished in third place alongside India Reynolds
Liam first auditioned for the X Factor in 2008 at the age of 14, before returning two years later to become a member of One Direction (pictured at the age of 16 in 2009)
‘In the theater there are supervisors for children up to 18 years old, we should also have that in music.
‘Children must be protected, they cannot just be a means to make money or generate money. They can’t do that, they need to be protected, their mental health needs to be taken care of first and foremost.”
While fellow singer Chesney Hawkes said he hoped Liam’s death would bring about positive change in the industry, commenting on the way reality shows have created ‘victims’.
Saying, “Going through this case is not easy. I feel for Liam and his family. You are really being spit out, this company, and I think there needs to be more support for artists. Especially artists who go on these reality shows where they are very famous for a minute and then they get spit out.
He joined fellow celebrities in calling for better care for younger stars, while Katie Waissel (pictured) called for a negligence and duty of care investigation into Simon’s record company
Katie’s comments come after fellow contestant Rebecca Ferguson also said the PTSD caused by ‘taking advantage of young stars’ had ‘finally taken its first victim’
Simon was a judge on
‘We all know that there were casualties from that machine. And I hope that with a tragedy like this, there will be some kind of hope that the company will take care of these people.”
Liam fell from the third floor in the courtyard of the Casa Sur Hotel in Buenos Aires last week.
He has been candid about how One Direction’s global fame changed his life and affected his relationship with drugs and alcohol, once admitting: ‘I don’t know if I’ve hit rock bottom yet.’
In conversation with Stephen Bartlett on the Diary of the CEO 2021 podcast Liam admitted: “I was scared of how far my rock bottom would be. Where is the low point for me? And you would never have seen it. I can hide it very well’.
‘I don’t even know if I’ve hit him yet. I can make that choice now and choose my last moment as my low point, or I can reach a whole new low point.”
He admitted that he had suffered from ‘social anxiety’ and ‘stress’ for years due to being famous, and discussed the strain on his mental health while not having the freedom to go anywhere as a boy band member.
They became one of the biggest pop groups in the world, but six years after forming, with more than 20 million albums sold, the band went on indefinite hiatus.
While Liam opened up about how One Direction’s global fame changed his life and affected his relationship with drugs and alcohol (pictured 2011)
He admitted he suffered from ‘social anxiety’ and ‘stress’ for years due to being famous, and discussed the strain his mental health was under (pictured in 2023)
The band have revealed how they went straight from The left for the show and I never came home.’
To mark One Direction’s tenth anniversary in 2020, Payne shared a screenshot of a text message he sent to his father the day he joined the group, which read: “I’m in a boy band.”
“What a journey… I had no idea what was in store when I sent this text to my dad years ago, right at the time the band was forming,” he said.
Liam had spoken in recent years about his journey to sobriety, and how his drinking started when the global mania for the boy band meant they were often stuck in hotel rooms, where alcohol was readily available.
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