Liam Payne finds it "hard" to watch back his controversial interview with Logan Paul, and has apologised again for his comments, admitted he lashed out because of his frustrations with his own career.
The 'Strip That Down' hitmaker appeared on the Youtuber's podcast over a year ago, where he caused a stir by claiming he would always "dislike" former bandmate Zayn Malik, declared having a child had "ruined" his relationship with Cheryl Tweedy, and insisted that One Direction were formed around him and he had outsold all their solo efforts with his own debut single.
Reflecting now on the backlash he experienced, Liam admitted he was lashing out in the wrong place because of his "own frustrations" at his career.
He said in a video message to fans posted on YouTube: "A lot of what I just said came from the wrong place. I was so angry at what was going on around me and instead of taking a look inwards, I decided to look outwards at everybody else. And I just think, yeah, I just took it out on everybody else."
He added: "Obviously one of the biggest remarks I made was about the One Direction thing, and [there was] a lot of self-protection I suppose in that moment more than anything... It came across really big-headed, huh? It was hard for me to watch back. I think in those moments when you make these videos, you don't realize the impact that your words might have on other people."
Despite his negative remarks about his former bandmates, Liam praised the group for sticking by him and helping "rescue" him from the rut he found himself in.
He added: "Even Zayn as well, which is why you know I did send him a little thank you online."
And the 28-year-old star - who revealed he has been sober for more than three months - thinks the backlash from the interview helped "save" him.
He said: "It's probably one of those life-changing moments that saved my life in a way, and without it, I wouldn't have gone through a lot.
"It was tough to read some of the stuff online. I think thick skin's quite fake. No matter what you read, it still hurts. And you know, as I said, a lot of it was warranted and people just trying to protect the people they're fans of."
Liam - who has six-year-old son Bear with former partner Cheryl - went on to take part in a program that required him to detox from his phone, which he found hugely beneficial.
He said: "I didn't have my phone for nearly 100 days. I didn't connect with the outside world at all, and it was kind of prepping me for that moment. Upon leaving actually the hardest part was turning the phone back on."
