Singer Liam Payne appears to have confused his dedicated fanbase after his accent seemed to change after the Oscars event in Hollywood.
Speaking on Good Morning Britain today (March 28), the former One Direction star offered his take on the controversial moment Will Smith bolted on stage and slapped Chris Rock during the Hollywood event.
During a chat, Liam who normally speaks with a broad Wolverhampton accent said: “To sit and watch one of the best emoters that we’ve seen speak from the heart and I’d rather take the beauty out of the situation than the pain. But I had to leave my chair I’ve to be honest with you.”
(Image: ITV)
Speaking to the Daily Star, accent coach Luke Nicholson teamed up with youth travel operator Contiki to share the true reason behind Payne’s sudden change.
He said: “Our accents reflect our identity, given Liam’s extensive travelling, it’s not surprising that his speech sounds more international these days.
“It’s also important to note that our accents change depending on who we are talking to,” which linguists describe as ‘accommodation’.
(Image: Getty Images for Elton John AIDS)
Luke added: “Having friends from different parts of the globe may well influence the way he speaks.
“Although I don’t think WALAA would be the linguist’s choice of descriptor, it’s a helpful reminder that our accents may be influenced by many different factors.”
Luke claims that WALAA is a mixture of Wolverhampton, where he grew up, America where he spent most of his time with One Direction, Latin America, which he described as his favourite place and Australia.
(Image: Contiki)
Meanwhile, language experts at Ling App added: “Accents are hugely musical; stresses, pauses and lilts on words are the real way in which one language speaker distinguishes herself from another.
“We unintentionally mirror others when interacting by copying the other person’s gestures, body language, tone of voice, and accent to bond with others and feel safe in social interactions.
(Image: Getty Images for BFI)
“Liam Payne has been travelling since One Direction began, 12 years ago, and the human brain is still developing right up until the age of 22, spending the majority of his time in America from a young age.”
Taking to Twitter after hearing Liam’s sudden change, fans didn’t hold back as they shared their thoughts, with one saying: “Nah this is an imposter- the way it seems like he’s trying to persuade everyone he’s Liam Payne lmao. This is so weird. Nobody can tell me this is the real Liam… The accent as well my Lordy.”
While a second added: “I’m not even interested anymore in this whole will drama im more concerned about why Liam Payne has a weird accent.”
“Can’t stop thinking about Liam Payne’s weird accent, why does he sound like that. It feels like a BuzzFeed unsolved mystery,” said a third.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
