Lil Tay announces she's alive; know what made her famous
What's the story
Controversial internet influencer Lil Tay is alive. Almost 24 hours after her death was confirmed to Variety following an Instagram post, her family confirmed to TMZ that she was alive.
"I want to make it clear that my brother (Jason Tian) and I are safe and alive," read the statement.
Netizens commented that this was something they expected and it was a publicity stunt.
Tay's statement
Tay's family claimed that the account was hacked
"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," read the statement.
"My Instagram account was compromised by a third party and used to spread jarring misinformation regarding me."
It mentioned her legal name as Tay Tian (previously it was Claire Hope).
Netizens' reactions
Netizens speculated it was publicity for Tay's social media comeback
In the now-deleted post on Tay's Instagram that claimed that she and her brother were dead, there were mixed reactions from the netizens.
While some of them expressed shock regarding the news, most of them speculated that it was a publicity gimmick for Tay's grand comeback on social media after she went radio silent five years ago. There was no official explanation given.
Twitter Post
Twitter Post
Wait.. So is this Lil Tay is "dead" business just a hoax to drum up publicity for her?? And she is actually alive??
— Heel vs Babyface (@heelvsbabyface) August 11, 2023
Who's Tay?
What made Tay go viral?
Tay became famous as the "world's youngest flexer of the century" after she flexed her apparent rich lifestyle in viral videos.
It mostly featured her rapping while holding stacks of money and luxurious cars that she claimed to own at age nine.
She used to flaunt her LA apartment and repeatedly reminded her audience that they cannot afford a similar lifestyle through her songs.
Tay's collaborations
Tay collaborated with several celebrities
She garnered 3.5M followers on Instagram even though she hadn't posted anything since 2018.
Following her viral videos, she released her debut single Money Way in 2018, appeared in American rapper Chief Keef's music video, was spotted with the American rapper and influencers known as the Catch Me Outside girl, rapper Bhad Bhabie, and collaborated with YouTuber Jake Paul, among others.
Tay's controversial parents
What was Tay's parent's role in her controversial life?
Reportedly, Tay is stuck in an alleged custody battle between her parents.
Her mother claimed that Tay's father wanted her custody because of her fame and money and her brother is accused of making her viral.
In April 2021, Tay's brother appeared on Instagram claiming to raise money for her legal defense. He claimed that her father was abusive "physically and mentally."
Twitter Post
Twitter Post
It's only an amazing thing that that Lil Tay is alive (and hopefully well), but we should continue the conversation about little kids being exploited and abused for content and profit by their older siblings and parents
— Jaz 🫶🏽 (@renaissanceqtpi) August 10, 2023