Who is Jason Tian? Li'l Tay's brother was slammed over GoFundMe fundraiser after he was exposed for 'coaching' child rapper
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: On August 9, a statement posted on Lil Tay's official Instagram page revealed that the 14-year-old YouTube star and her brother, Jason Tian, has both reportedly died. The statement which mentioned that Tay's family has "no words to explain the unbearable loss and indescribable pain" they are feeling over her tragic and sudden death also stated that Tian's passing added "an even more unimaginable depth" to their grief.
The family also said that the circumstances surrounding both Tay and Tian's deaths "are still under investigation." Meanwhile, Tay's father, Christopher Hope, refused to confirm her death despite the official statement and also refrained from commenting on Tian's passing. No immediate cause of either of the siblings' deaths were made available to the public along with the statement.
Back in 2018, Lil Tay, who garnered online popularity for bragging about her expensive assets and massive earnings, was allegedly fighting a legal battle against her father. Through a string of photos, her brother Jason Tian alleged that Tay's father had sought custody of the influencer to demand money and control over her career.
He then set up a GoFundMe account in her name to fund the legal fees. It grabbed people's attention, but not in the best way. Many were skeptical, as they took to social media to claim they will believe it only when Tay herself addressed them.
Who is Jason Tian?
Lil Tay's brother came into the spotlight after the young rapper's Instagram account sparked worry by informing fans there was 'bad news' about her. Amid concerns about where Tay has been and what might have happened to her, Tian, who allegedly runs Tay's account on Instagram, detailed the upsetting development in her life, where he claimed Tay would begin 'fighting for her life in the Supreme Court of Canada'.
Tian shared a video allegedly from 2018, where Tay could be seen staring at her phone in distress, nearing tears. "This was the moment in 2018 my mom showed Tay the court order from her abusive father demanding custody, money and control over her career. Starting today, she will be fighting for her life in the Supreme Court of Canada," Tian allegedly wrote in the caption of the post. He added, "Tay has no money left to pay lawyers for fighting for her freedom, her father has stolen everything from her."
Why the internet doesn't trust Jason Tian
Fans have been worried about the tiny influencer, but when Tian posted a link of a GoFundMe page with a goal of $150,000, people grew suspicious. "ALL FUNDS raised through this GoFundMe will go towards Tay’s legal fees to give her the fighting chance in court to save her from a life of abuse.. Towards her future, and freedom," read the caption of the account.
So far only $12,690 have been raised out of the end goal of the fundraiser account, and spotting the public's hesitation in donating, Tian followed it up with another post on Instagram, where he pleaded: "Nobody is donating and I understand it is because there is stigma around my name and I am hosting the fundraiser for my sister," but he insisted "GoFundMe has a 100% guarantee policy that eliminates fake fundraisers, Tay has been beaten and abused by Chris Hope and Hanee Hope and I do not want to see it happen again."
Jason Tian coached Li'l Tay on what to say
This comes just years after YouTuber NessGod had alleged in a seven-minute exposé that Li'l Tay's outrageous loud mouth personality on social media was a creation of her brother. Tian used to allegedly rap under the stage name “Rycie", dabbling mostly in diss tracks. Ness God alleges when he couldn't find fame and fell obscure, he deleted his account and went radio silent for a while before his big comeback in the form of his little sister.
NessGod alleged Tian coached and trained her, and Tay's personal acting skills created what the public knows as Li'l Tay today. Their mother, Angela Tian, also told Buzzfeed: “He is the one, only one [who] did an excellent job for her, he guided her, did everything for her without anybody else involved". Soon a video Tay being coached on what to say and how to pull off this new persona also went viral, and in another someone could be heard prompting her to hurl profanities at the camera. Tay has since denied these claims in an appearance on ABC News, where she claimed “It’s all me."
Lil Tay being coached what to say by her brother... SAD! pic.twitter.com/lJi7o2AXnp
— KEEM 🍿 (@KEEMSTAR) May 21, 2018
'Need to hear this come out tays mouth'
This has prompted to a recent surge in skepticism as fans want Tay to address her legal woes. "I just hope they aren’t joking if not i hope everything goes well," one person replied in the comments section of Tian's post. "I need to hear this come out tays mouth," wrote another. In photos shared by Tian, Tay can be seen with multiple marks on her back, bruises on her cheeks and more.
While Tian claims these are all abuses suffered from her father, social media users remarked that these "photos legit look like allergic reactions, personally stay shouldn't be in any of y'alls care. She needs a real home with a loving family." Tay's father is yet to respond to any of these allegations publicly, but it's been reported that the little entertainer, her mother, and her brother have been at odds with her father for quite a while now and things are only getting worse.