1 of 5 | Tyler Perry discussed past suicide attempts in a video on Instagram. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI. |
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Dec. 16 (UPI) -- The entertainment world is still mourning the shocking death of dancer/TV personality Stephen 'tWitch' Boss. The former deejay for The EllenDeGeneres Show died by suicide on Tuesday.
While nothing has yet been revealed about the personal struggles that Boss may have contended with, Tyler Perry says that he, too, has been impacted by the star's death. Boss was remembered by many as a positive, affable, warm man, who often appeared in joyful dance videos with his wife, Allison Holker on their social media accounts.
Perry said that he has struggled with his mental health and attempted suicide more than once.
"I, like the rest of the world am shocked by the death of Stephen Boss, tWitch," the media mogul said on his Instagram, via video. "It prompted me to come on to talk to any of you that are going through hard times."
Perry says that while he only met Boss a few times, he always found him to be "such a light."
Perry said he, too, was suffering and in emotional pain when he tried to take his own life.
"I just want to take you back to a time in my life when I tried to commit suicide, a couple of times, because it was so dark, I didn't think it would get any better. I had endured so much pain, so much abuse, sexual abuse, it was all so hard to just move through that I thought the only way to make this better was to end my life."
He continued, "Had any of those attempts happened, I would've missed the best part of my life." Perry is now a multimillionaire mogul who began his career doing gospel plays before he moved into movies.
His films have made him one of the highest-grossing Black filmmakers in movie history and he's one of the first Black people to own a major film and production facility. This helped him become a confirmed billionaire.
His Tyler Perry Studios opened in Atlanta in 2019 with a star-studded grand opening celebration that brought Oprah Winfrey, Whoopi Goldberg, Jay Z and Beyonce, Halle Berry, Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith, and more out to see the unveiling of the studios built on a former Confederate Army base.
"What I realize now, looking back on all those dark times is, sometimes the pain is abuy-in. I know that's hard to understand. Not all the time - sometimes - thepain is a buy-in," he said. "That's the way I had to learn to look at it to get through it. What I mean by that is, all that pain, all that hell, all that struggle, if I had given up, if I had stopped, I wouldn't have seen the better part of my life. I was buying into something; I was paying for something."
He added, "I know that doesn't make sense to a lot of people but for me, it was the way I was able to rationalize it, to be able to move through the pain, knowing that if I could just get through this moment, there's got to be something better."
Perry encourages anyone with suicidal thoughts to call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
"My hope is that if you need help, you reach out. Call this number. God bless you. I'm with you," he said, concluding with, 'Rest in peace, tWitch.'
Tyler Perry arrives at the premiere of "Diary of a Mad Black Woman" in Los Angeles on February 21, 2005. Later that year,
Perry attended the United Negro College Fund's annual "An Evening of Stars" fundraiser. Photo by Francis Specker/UPI |
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