A 14-year-old rapper and social media star who was reported to have died has said she is in fact safe and alive.

A statement on Lil Tay’s Instagram account on Wednesday, purportedly from her family, said she and her brother had both died.

But the TMZ website quoted her as saying her account had been “compromised” and used to spread “jarring misinformation” about her and her sibling.

In a statement provided by her family to TMZ, she said: “I want to make it clear that my brother and I are safe and alive, but I’m completely heartbroken, and struggling to even find the right words to say.

“It’s been a very traumatising 24 hours. All day yesterday, I was bombarded with endless heartbreaking and tearful phone calls from loved ones all while trying to sort out this mess.”

Read more: Mystery surrounds ‘death’ of teen rapper

She added: “My Instagram account was compromised by a third party and used to spread jarring misinformation and rumours regarding me, to the point that even my name was wrong. My legal name is Tay Tian, not “Claire Hope”.”

She said she had now got back her Instagram account and the fake statement had been removed.

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