Editor’s note: Lil Tay clarified on Thursday that her Instagram account was compromised and both she and her brother are actually alive.
Was Lil Tay trying to forewarn the public that she was in danger just before her apparent death?
The 14-year-old social media star and rapper, who was proclaimed dead in a statement from her family Wednesday, left behind a mystifying message in her YouTube bio that read, “help me.”
It is unclear when the cryptic copy was added.
Pvnew has reached out to YouTube for comment.
Many people on social media have interpreted the words to be a reference to the abuse that Tay allegedly experienced at the hands of both her father and stepmother.
In April 2021, her older brother, Jason Tian, created a GoFundMe titled “Save Tay From a Life of Abuse.”
The account shared images of Tay with red marks and bruises all over her face.
“Tay will be on trial in the BC Supreme Court of Canada up against her absentee father Chris Hope, who along with his wife Hanee Hope (previously known as Richanee Alcover), had physically and mentally abused her,” Tian alleged on the site.
“Chris Hope is fighting to permanently gain control of her career as well as custody over her. My sister Tay has been silent on social media for the past 3 years because her absentee father (Chris Hope) served my mother a court order demanding control over Tay’s money, career, and custody, and as a result it was court ordered that my sister had to return to Vancouver, Canada.”
Aside from the alleged physical abuse and mismanagement of funds, Tian also claimed Christopher Hope sent Tay to school with “moldy bread, moldy chicken with little maggots and parasites coming out of it, one month old pizza, leftover soggy white bread with ketchup, cold burnt toast hard as a rock, and sometimes only crackers” for lunch.
This was not the first time Christopher was accused of abuse, as Tay herself made similar claims in an interview with the Daily Beast in 2018.
However, Charles Wong, a spokesperson for the patriarch, denied the allegations at the time and told the outlet in response, “There are only three things he wants to see.
“First, no more crazy videos of cursing from Tay. Second, 25 percent of the gross earnings going to a trust fund dedicated to Tay. The third thing is, there has to be structure in her operation, in her public image.”
Leading up to her apparent death, Tay had been quiet on social media for nearly a year, with her last video on TikTok being posted in September 2022 and her final Instagram post in June 2018.
A shocking statement on her Instagram account was then shared Wednesday that read in part, “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 indescribably pain.” It also claimed Tian had died.
However, questions surrounding the siblings’ deaths began to surface after the Vancouver Police Department told The Post later Wednesday, “We haven’t gotten any reports of either [Tay or Tian’s] death here. As of now, we are not aware and are not investigating.”
Tay’s alleged former rep Harry Tsang also cast doubt on the news, telling the US Sun, “I have been in communication with individuals who have an intimate understanding of the family’s situation.
“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.”
Another alleged manager, who asked to remain anonymous, also told the outlet, “One thing I would question is who posted that statement and why isn’t it signed by anyone from the family.
“Why is it not signed, ‘This is Tay’s mom,’ or ‘This is the dad of Lil Tay,’ or from an official representative? Why is there no attachment?”
Tay’s own father, Christopher, declined to confirm his daughter’s death, telling The Post Wednesday, “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.”
No further details about the alleged deaths have been released at this time.
Tay’s current management team could not immediately be reached for comment.
