Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss, DJ on Ellen DeGeneres Show, dies aged 40

Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss, the popular dancing DJ on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, has died at the age of 40.

His wife, Allison Holker Boss, confirmed his death in a statement published on Wednesday via People.com.

“It is with the heaviest of hearts that I have to share my husband Stephen has left us,” she said.

“Stephen lit up every room he stepped into. He valued family, friends and community above all else and leading with love and light was everything to him.

“He was the backbone of our family, the best husband and father, and an inspiration to his fans.”

No further details on the cause of his death were included in the statement.

The dancer-DJ started his tenure at The Ellen Show in 2014 before being promoted to co-executive producer in 2020.

DeGeneres announced she would end her talk show following the conclusion of its 19th season in 2022, with the show airing its final episode on 26 May.

Boss was also runner-up on the 2018 series of So You Think You Can Dance and appeared in films including Step Up: All In and Magic Mike XXL.

Alongside his wife, the Alabama-born star hosted Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings on Freeform and Disney+ from 2018 to 2020.

Boss’s passion for dance permeated through all aspects of his life as he aspired to emulate greats like Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire.

“My personal opinion: The greatest of all time had to be Gene Kelly, man. Gene Kelly, because he’s a guy’s guy. I love Fred Astaire, but Fred Astaire was so smooth, and it was great. He was so classy,” he said in an interview with the Associated Press in 2014.

“But Gene Kelly – he could be like somebody’s dad, who just decided to get up off the couch and dance around and clean the kitchen up.”

Boss’s death was first reported by entertainment news site TMZ.

He is survived by his wife and three children.