Lil Tay accused of orchestrating death hoax to 'rekindle' fame and career

Lil Tay’s former manager Harry Tsang believes the teenage influencer death hoax was perpetuated by none other than herself.

The rapper, 14, announced death along with her older brother Jason Tian via an Instagram post on Tay’s account on Wednesday, August 9.

However, within a day, the influencer emerged from hiding to tell TMZ that she was alive and well, citing that her social media account had been hacked to spread fake news.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Tsang expressed doubts over the truthfulness of Tay’s statement to the outlet, claiming, "My rationale for this perspective is twofold: firstly, the restoration of a compromised account on platforms like Meta/Instagram typically does not necessitate a 24-hour timeframe."

"Secondly, the actions of Liltay’s brother, renowned for his propensity for extreme measures, lead me to hypothesize an alternative motive behind this occurrence," he continued.

He went on to hypothesize the intentions behind the alleged stunt, alleging they are "rooted in an endeavor to illicitly extract funds from devoted supporters and unwitting bystanders."

"Simultaneously, if the underlying motive is indeed to rekindle Liltay's prominence within the public sphere, I contend that such actions demonstrate a certain degree of irresponsibility," added Tsang.

Since the death announcement was posted on the influencer’s defuncted Instagram page, the self-proclaimed "youngest flexer of the century" has gained over 200,000 new followers.

She had previously been declared "missing" by her fans and followers after she went MIA on her socials in 2018.