Update 2, Aug. 9, 2023:
Lil Tay’s death announcement was a hoax. The troubled 14-year-old updated her Instagram page on Wednesday evening:
“We are not dead me and my brother had everything taken from us please repost and get this out there my parents are sick people.”
Her brother also updated an Instagram page with a similar message.
Update, Aug. 9, 2023:
Lil Tay’s sudden “death” might be hoax. Neither Los Angeles nor Vancouver, Canada police have any record of her passing.
News of the viral star’s “sudden and tragic” death was posted on her Instagram page on Wednesday. But social media users questioned whether it was a hoax.
The statement read:
“It is with a heavy heart that we share the devastating news of our beloved Claire’s sudden and tragic passing. We have no words to express the unbearable loss and indescribable pain. This outcome was entirely unexpected, and has left us all in shock. Her brother’s passing adds an even more unimaginable depth to our grief.”
The post also revealed that her 21-year-old brother Jason Tian had passed away. No cause of death was given.
The statement said both deaths are “still under investigation.” But police in California, where Tay lives, and Canada, where her father lives, have no record of either deaths.
A social media user claims he witnessed them die in a car crash, according to The Mail.
Tay’s father, Christopher Hope, declined to comment when contacted by DailyMail.com on Wednesday.
Tay’s former manager Harry Tsang has since said he “cannot definitively confirm or dismiss the legitimacy of the statement,” according to The Mail.
The aspiring rapper, whose real name is Claire Hope, was best known for her fake Internet persona as a trust fund kid with access to lavish penthouses, luxury cars, and private jets.
A Canadian blog busted her as a fraud in 2018 before her mother, a real estate agent named Angela, was fired for giving Lil Tay access to vacant penthouses to shoot videos.
Originally published on: Aug 9, 2023 at 1:17 PM:
Viral YouTube star and aspiring rapper Claire Hope, aka Lil Tay, died suddenly at age 14, according to a message posted on her Instagram account.
“It is with a heavy heart that we share the devastating news of our beloved Claire’s sudden and tragic passing. We have no words to express the unbearable loss and indescribable pain. This outcome was entirely unexpected, and has left us all in shock.
The statement mentioned Claire’s brother also passed away and his death “adds an even more unimaginable depth to our grief.” Both of their deaths are under investigation.
Lil Tay went viral in 2018 at age 11 by pretending to be a millionaire trust fund kid living in million-dollar penthouses.
She was dubbed “InstaBrat” on Instagram where she flaunted cash and luxury cars. She gained over 3 million Instagram followers.
But Lil Tay was busted when a Vancouver, Canada blog broke the story that Lil Tay was a fraud.
Her mom, a real estate agent named Angela, was fired after her employer saw Lil Tay yelling profanities in a penthouse that was supposed to be vacant and listed for sale on Realtor.com.
As a real estate agent, Lil Tay’s mom had access to high end vacant properties that she didn’t own.
“There is no place for this sort of activity in our industry. Angela has only been a realtor with our brokerage firm for only six months,” the agency told Dailyhive.com.
Tay’s first Instagram account was deleted in 2018. She returned to Instagram to pay tribute to slain rapper Xxxtentacion, making his picture her profile icon.
