Former Internet Child Star Lil Tay Alive After Death Hoax

Editor's note: This article has been edited to reflect that the news of "Lil Tay" passing has been ruled a hoax by TMZ after an update from Lil Tay, real name "Tay Tian," confirmed that she is alive.

Former internet child star and rapper Lil Tay, real name Tay Tian and not "Claire Hope" as reported by many yesterday, has been the subject of a viral death hoax.

On Wednesday, August 9th, 2023, the Lil Tay Instagram account posted an update that appeared to be written by her family announcing she and her brother had died.

The statement said her brother, Jason Tian, who went unnamed in the statement, also purportedly died.

Lil Tay rose to viral fame in late 2017 as a brash and vulgar child rapper bragging about her wealth. She attracted controversy and notably feuded with Danielle Bregoli and Woah Vicky before disappearing from social media in mid-2018.

Later that year, her Instagram account alleged that her father had abused her. She has been largely absent from social media ever since.

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A post shared by Lil Tay (@liltay)

The cause of the unconfirmed death of both her and her brother was also unconfirmed, as the statement said the circumstances were "under investigation."

The star's allegations of parental abuse and the joint deaths of Lil Tay and Jason Tian led some on social media to suspect foul play, though that was also unconfirmed.

Lil Tay's age has also never been disclosed, but she claimed to be 9 years old at the time of her initial rise to viral fame, which would currently make her around 14 years old.

Until Thursday afternoon, the Instagram post was the sole confirmation of her passing and details were still largely unknown, with much speculation swirling online about a potential hoax.

According to The Daily Beast last night, both her father and former manager refused to confirm Lil Tay's death.

Around noon EST on August 10th, TMZ then reported a statement from Lil Tay that she is alive and the Instagram post was a hoax, as neither she nor a member of her family has control of the Instagram account. She also stated her legal name is Tay Tian, not Claire Hope. She said:

"I want to make it clear that my brother and I are safe and alive, but I’m completely heartbroken, and struggling to even find the right words to say. It’s been a very traumatizing 24 hours. All day yesterday, I was bombarded with endless heartbreaking and tearful phone calls from loved ones all while trying to sort out this mess."