Liam Payne "keeps it all together" for One Direction as he is so level-headed.

The 'Little Things' heartthrob recently denied rumours he is dating British singer Leona Lewis, with the pair claiming that they are just friends.

In an interview with You magazine, Lewis gushed about the star's best qualities.

She said: "Liam is really sweet and lovely – very talented, and he is writing songs now as well. I feel like he is the one that keeps it all together for 1D. He is grounded, he comes from a stable home and he is very aware of what is going on in the music industry outside what he is doing, which I like.

She added: "We talk a lot because we have a lot in common. We are friends."

Lewis is famed for her sweet nature and rarely attracts any unwanted attention.

She explained: "I think a lot of people in this industry did kind of dismiss me because they thought I was too nice. People would say, 'Oh my God, why are you so polite, why don’t you do anything interesting or scandalous like take drugs?'

"It’s weird in the music industry because you are damned if you do the bad stuff and damned if you don’t."