In the statement, Lil Tay's family spoke of their "unbearable loss" and revealed her brother had also died.

However, the rapper's father Christopher Hope told news website Insider he could not confirm whether the social media star had actually died.

He told the publication he could not comment on the Instagram post and declined to answer when asked if his daughter - whose real name is Claire Hope - was alive.

Harry Tsang, the youngster's former manager, told Insider the situation called for "cautious consideration" and also could not confirm or deny the news.

The website said Los Angeles Police Department and the county medical examiner - as well as Vancouver Police Department - had no information on an investigation into the death of anyone by her name.

The youngster, whose account has 3.4 million followers, rose to fame online as she bragged about her wealth and posed in expensive cars.

She was only nine years old when she appeared in videos calling herself the "youngest flexer of the century" - a flexer is somebody who likes to show off.

Lil Tay - who lived with her family in Vancouver, Canada - would also swear and call her critics "broke-a** haters".

The statement posted on her official account described her death as "sudden" and "entirely unexpected", and that it followed the death of her brother Jason Tian, 21, who reportedly helped produce her videos.

The statement did not reveal how the siblings died and said both deaths were now "under investigation".

It read: "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 indescribable pain.

"This outcome was entirely unexpected, and has left us all in shock. Her brother's passing adds an even more unimaginable depth to our grief.

"During this time of immense sorrow, we kindly ask for privacy as we grieve this overwhelming loss, as the circumstances surrounding Claire and her brother's passing are still under investigation."

In an interview with Good Morning America on ABC News in 2018, Lil Tay denied claims she was influenced by her family to make the videos.

She claimed she enjoyed what she was doing.

Lil Tay's mother Angela Tian, a Vancouver estate agent, reportedly once said she never expected her daughter and son to get such wide attention.

Ms Tian defended the videos and said they were comedy but that many people did not understand it.

Prior to the post announcing her death, there had not been a post on Lil Tay's Instagram account since 2018.

She had been at the centre of a custody battle between her parents, according to Variety.