Lawyers for Lil Tay’s Mother Address Custody Battle in Statement Following Death Hoax
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Who is behind Lil Tay’s Instagram account now that we know the viral child rapper isn’t actually dead? Earlier this month, a since-deleted post shared to her official account claimed that both Tay Tian, 15, and her brother Jason Tian, 21, had died. The scarcely-detailed rumor was later revealed to have been a death hoax. In the first post to Lil Tay’s social media accounts since she reportedly addressed the situation to TMZ, lawyers for her mother Angela Tian have shared a statement regarding an ongoing custody battle.
“We have been asked to clarify media confusion as to the current state of the family law proceedings, including custody, child parenting and child support,” the statement reads. In an email to Rolling Stone, Fraser MacLean of Vancouver-based firm MacLean Law confirmed that they do in fact represent Lil Tay’s mother and that the post itself is accurate.
More from Rolling Stone
The Plane Lady Meme Cycle Proves the Internet Isn't Fun Anymore
Lil Tay Alive, Blames Instagram Hack for Confusing Death Story
They Sold Porn Star Bathwater and Just Made the Year's Scariest Movie
“Given privacy concerns related to the children, we provide a brief status update on the results in the British Columbia Supreme Court,” the statement continues. “MacLean Law successfully obtained orders for our client that have enabled her daughter to advance her career.”
MacLean Law claims to have successfully acquired primary custody for Angela Tian, stating that Lil Tay’s primary residence will be with Angela and they retain the right to relocate outside of Vancouver should they wish. Tian has also been granted “sole day-to-day and final decision-making powers and responsibilities in the best interests of Tay Tian,” according to the statement.
Christopher Hope, Lil Tay’s father, has been ordered to submit monthly child support payments in addition to other expenses, plus retroactive child support owed dating back to 2014. MacLean Law estimates that the backpay amounts to approximately $275,000.
In an interview with Insider as news of Lil Tay’s alleged death began to circulate, Hope declined to confirm whether or not Lil Tay and her brother had died. In 2018, Lil Tay’s account was scrubbed clean, save for a post on her Instagram stories that simply said “help.” However, around this time, the account was used to share posts containing several allegations of abuse against her father.
In a 2018 interview with The Daily Beast, Lil Tay’s manager Harry Tsang denied the allegations, while Hope himself has denied the claims and reportedly court-ordered Lil Tay to live with him in Canada, where he works as a lawyer based out of Vancouver. His concerns were allegedly rooted in Angela and Jason Tian, her mother and brother, exploiting her. Lil Tay and her mother have denied these allegations.
Best of Rolling Stone
