The reported death of teen rapper Lil Tay has become shrouded in mystery.
It comes after her former manager shared doubt on a statement confirming the alleged passing of both the 14-year-old social media star and her brother Jason Tian.
The reported death of Lil Tay, whose real name was Claire Hope, was announced by an unnamed person in a social media post on the youngster’s Instagram account on August 9.
READ MORE: Teen rapper Lil Tay ‘dies aged 14 along with brother’ as tributes pour in
However, the influencer’s former manager Harry Tsang has since questioned the “legitimacy” of the post, which did not mention a cause of death.
(Image: @liltay/instagram)
“I have been in communication with individuals who have an intimate understanding of the family’s situation,” Tsang told The Daily Beast
“Given the complexities of the current circumstances, I am at a point where I cannot definitively confirm or dismiss the legitimacy of the statement issued by the family.”
Police in both Lil Tay’s place of birth Vancouver and in Los Angeles, where she had been living with her mother, reportedly have no record of her or Jason’s deaths.
(Image: @liltay/instagram)
Chris Hope, the father of Lil Tay, also refused to confirm her passing when approached.
According to NY Post, he told the publication: “Yeah, you have the right person, but I don’t have any comment right now.
“I’m not able to give you any comment right now. I’m sorry — I can’t.”
When asked if someone else could confirm his daughter’s death, he allegedly responded: “Um, no, not that that I’m aware of.
(Image: @liltay/instagram)
“Sorry, I can’t really comment or give you any help — I’m just going to let you go.”
Suspicions that Lil Tay suffered abuse at the hands of her family, including her father, have also resurfaced in the wake of her reported death.
The accusations emerged against Hope following the creation of a GoFundMe profile page set up by the teen’s older brother, Jason.
(Image: @termanii/Instagram)
A message posted on the site claimed at the time that Hope had been granted “50/50” custody of Tay when she was five.
As a social media influencer, best known for making cheeky remarks about her wealth and frequently used offensive language at a young age., Lil Tay boasted more than 3.3 million Instagram followers.
However, her online posts began to dwindle after 2018, leaving her followers to question her disappearance.
(Image: @liltay/instagram)
At the time, Jason had allegedly started making public allegations of abuse against Hope but her manager Tsang reportedly denied the claims at the time.
In another mysterious move, Lil Tay’s YouTube bio appeared to have been changed, before being switched back.
A screenshot shared on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, was posted by Conscape News.
Alongside a picture of the Lil Tay’s bio, A message read: “SHOCKING BREAKING NEWS: Lil Tay confirms she is not DEAD by changing her YouTube bio.
(Image: @liltay3406/YouTube)
“She then switched it back to her previous one stating: “HELP ME”. This situation is actually getting EXTREMELY SCARY.”
Another Instagram post shared on an account named Termanii also claimed the star and her brother were “not dead”.
It read: “ME AND TAY ARE NOT DEAD.
“WE DONT GOT ACCESS TO THE ACCOUNT. OUR PARENTS WANTS US GONE OFF THE INTERNET BUT WE WILL NOT GO AWAY. THIS IS OUR NEW ACCOUNT (FOR NOW).
“THEY ARE SPREADING MISINFORMATION WE ARE NOT DEAD. THEY’RE THE ONLY ONE THAT GOT ACCESS TO THE ACCOUNT. DO NOT BELIEVE IT
“OUR PARENTS TOOK EVERYTHING AND THEY ABUSED TAY, HARD.
“ALL WE ASK IS TO SHARE THIS POST TO YOUR STORY AND FOLLOW THIS ACCOUNT. MORE UPDATES IN A COUPLE HOURS.”
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The account later took to Instagram Stories to announced that they will be “going live” for fans to “hear the truth”.
A message posted on the profile read: “I HAVE DECIDED TO GO LIVE ON INSTAGRAM AS SOON AS WE HIT 25K FOLLOWERS.
“EVERYBODY NEEDS TO HEAR THE TRUTH WE ARE NOT DEAD.
“SHARE THIS STORY TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE + FOLLOW US”.
At the time of writing, the account was followed by 122,000 Instagram users.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
