LOS ANGELES — Stephen “tWitch” Boss, a friendly DJ on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and a dancer who found fame on “So You Think You Can Dance,” has died, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office.
He was 40.
CNN reached out to Boss’s representatives, who referred us to a statement from his wife, fellow dancer Alison Holker Boss, shared with People magazine about his departure.
“It is with a heavy heart that I have to share that my husband Stephen has left us,” she said. “Steven lit up every room he walked into. He valued family, friends and community above all else, and ruling with love and light was everything to him. He was the support of our family, the best husband and father and an inspiration to his fans.”
“To say he left a legacy would be an understatement and his positive impact will be felt,” she added. “I am sure that not a day will pass without us honoring his memory. We ask for privacy during this difficult time for ourselves and especially for our three children.”
Holker Boss ended her statement by saying, “Steven, we love you, we miss you, and I will always save the last dance for you.”
Bos, who was born in Montgomery, Alabama, got the nickname as a child when he couldn’t sit still.
He graduated from Lee High School in Montgomery in 2000 and went on to study dance at South Union Community College and Chapman University.
Six years ago he spoke to the writer and ex-footballer Lewis Hawes podcast of the latter and talked about his background, including how he was raised by a single mother and how his relationship with his absentee father helped shape him.
“I’ve always been the, ‘Don’t tell me what I’m not going to do,'” Boss said. “I remember the conversation with [his father] off work in the parking lot and told him, “Hey, I’m joining the dance team.” I’m going to need a show and some money to get the materials,’ and he went on about that … I said, ‘Oh, that means I really have to do it.’
In 2003, The Boss was a semi-finalist on MTV’s “The Wade Robson Project” and was also runner-up on the television talent competition “Star Search.”
Runner-up on So You Think You Can Dance in 2008 marked the beginning of his rise to fame, and he would later return as a judge on the dance competition.
In 2014, Elle DeGeneres tapped him as a DJ on her popular daytime talk show, a position he held until the show went off the air earlier this year. DeGeneres also added him as an executive producer on the show.
He kept in touch with his fans through his popular social media accounts, often sharing videos of himself dancing with his wife.
The couple were star dancers on season 7 of So You Think You Can Dance in 2010 and were romantically involved.
“We shared a dance at the finale of that season of ‘So You Think You Can Dance,’ and we’ve been together ever since,” the boss told People in February.
“There was no dialogue, no conversation or first meeting. Literally, we danced and the very next day we were together, holding hands,” Holker Boss added. “And we never looked back.”
The couple is the parents of three children. Final boss Instagram post on Monday showed him and Holker Boss dancing in front of a Christmas tree.
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