Lil Tay is not dead: Teen influencer says her Instagram was hacked; netizens suspect 'publicity stunt'

Lil Tay is not dead. After Lil Tay’s social media account declared her dead, the teen influencer revealed through an Instagram post that she is not dead. She shared this information on Wednesday. Fans and her followers are infuriated and suspect that this entire episode is a “publicity stunt.”

On Wednesday morning, a post on Lil Tay’s Instagram account announced that she and her brother, Jason Tian, had died unexpectedly. “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 previous statement read.

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A few hours after this post, the 14-year-old influencer announced through her verified Instagram account that she and her brother are “safe and alive”.

She said that her “Instagram account was compromised by a 3rd party”.

In a statement provided to TMZ from Tay's family, she says, "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."

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Tay thanked Meta for helping get her Instagram account back and the phoney death statement has since been removed.

Fans doubt ‘publicity stunt’ by Tay and family

Fans and followers of Lil Tay have been raising doubts about her disappearance and this whole episode, calling it a publicity stunt by the teen influencer and her family.

What's still unclear is why it took Tay 24 hours to get the word out that she's alive, especially because she says she was aware her account was hacked ... and was getting phone calls about her "death".

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The death announcement, now known to be fake, had referred to Lil Tay as “Claire Hope.” Several leading US and international publications covered the news of her death, referring to the rapper as Claire Hope.

Lil Tay got her fame as the "World's Youngest Flexer" that rapped and showed off a lavish lifestyle across social media. She's garnered 3.2 million followers on Instagram but hadn't posted on the account since 2018.

(With inputs from agencies)

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