A Celebration of Stephen “tWitch” Boss, the beloved DJ on the Ellen DeGeneres and “So You Think You Can Dance”

Stephen “tWitch” Boss, the longtime and beloved dancing DJ on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and a former contestant on “So You Think You Can Dance,” has died at the age of 40.

“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 love of our family and the inspiration to his fans.

“To say he left a legacy would be an understatement, and his positive impact will continue to be felt,” she added. “I am certain there won’t be a day that goes by that we won’t honor his memory. We would like for our privacy to be respected during this difficult time.

“Twitch was someone I’ve looked up to for years, and I was a little star struck when I first met him,” Morrison, an alum of Fox’s “Glee,” wrote. We connected so deeply in such a short time about so many things, but also about being fathers. He loved his family so much he was proud of his tribe.

The first dance partner of the Hip Hop Nutcracker, Lewis Howes, stayed with his wife Allison Holker Boss

He graduated from Lee High School in Montgomery in 2000 and later studied dance at both Southern Union State Community College and Chapman University.

When Lewis Howes was a football player, he spoke with the author about his background including being raised by a single mom and how he shaped him as a person.

“I have always been that type ‘Don’t tell me what I won’t do,’” Boss said. “I remember talking to [his father] outside of his work in the parking lot and telling him ‘Hey, I’m joining the dance team. I’m going to need some shows and some money to get supplies’ and he went on this tangent…I was like ‘Oh, that means I’m really supposed to do this then.’”

The man who first found fame on “So You Think You Can Dance” and went on to star in projects like Disney+’s recent “The Hip Hop Nutcracker,” often shared videos of himself dancing with his wife, fellow professional dancer Allison Holker Boss, and happy times with their three children.

He had worked as a DJ on the show before it stopped airing this year. Boss was also a coexecutive producer of the show.

“We shared a dance at the wrap party of that season of ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ and we have been together ever since,” Boss told People in February.

There was no discussion, no first hangout, and no dialogue. Literally, we danced and we were together holding hands the very next day,” Holker Boss added. “And we never looked back.”

Gene Kelly: the greatest dancer of all time, or what happened to Fred Astaire in “The Hip Hop Nutcracker,” said Boss

The dancer-DJ also appeared in films like “Step Up: All In” and “Magic Mike XXL” and was featured in Disney+’s “The Hip Hop Nutcracker,” released this year. He was a judge for the 17th season of the dance competition show, as well as being runner-up on “So You Think You Can Dance”.

My personal opinion was that Gene Kelly was the greatest of all time. Gene Kelly is a guy’s guy. I love Fred Astaire, but Fred Astaire was so smooth, and it was great. Boss said in an interview with the Associated Press in 2014; he was so classy. “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.”

Source: https://www.npr.org/2022/12/14/1142813117/stephen-twitch-boss-ellen-shows-dancing-dj-dies

The Twinkle Eye of Boss: A Memomory of a Great Dancer and a Long-Lived, Enigmatic Hero

“I have no words man. His family should find resolution in this dark time. May we all find peace of mind in our everyday lives. Everyday is a winding road “You may never know who is on the edge, but you just might do it,” wrote Questlove.

Editor’s Note: If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts or mental health matters, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255 to connect with a trained counselor or visit the NSPL site.

After his death was announced on Wednesday, those who paid tribute to him only focused on his professional accomplishments and not the man they cared about.

Mary Murphy, judge and choreographer from the dance competition series, shared in a statement to CNN that her “soul is crying and aches on a cellular level.”

Murphy shared that there was something about Boss that made her want to meet him. I call it twinkle eye because of his eyes shining so bright. His smile lit up the stage every time he stepped foot on it!”

She remembered that she told him to work hard and come back, but on his third attempt, he nailed his solo. It was a defining moment in the dance career of the company.

“It’s heartbreaking to hear that someone who brought so much joy to a room, was hurting so much behind closed doors,” Justin Timberlake wrote in a tribute on Instagram. Over the course of two decades, I have known Boss and he always lit everyone up. You just never know what someone is going through.”

Leah Remini, who acted as a judge on “SYTYCD” alongside Boss, said he was “the guy who played and interacted with his fans in the audience during commercial breaks, and he encouraged all the contestants when the cameras weren’t rolling.”

He was a great example of overcoming adversity. Keeping a happy smiling face for the public, despite our true feelings, is one of the problems in our industry. “I can’t imagine what extraordinary demons drove him into feeling that the only option he had was to end his life. My thoughts are now with his wife, Allison and his children.”

A statement from 19 Entertainment and Dick Clark said Boss would always be remembered for the light and joy he brought into our lives.

Chmerkovskiy’s brother and fellow dancer Maksim Chmerkovskiy wrote that he was at a loss for words, and that “I have so much to say, but I just want to hold on to the memories I have and not try to wrap my head around this.”

Billy Porter asked readers to check their friends. Even the strong ones and the happy ones. We don’t know what people are doing.

As many others did, singer-songwriter Ciara shared a clip of herself dancing alongside Boss (for Ciara’s, it was backstage at the “Ellen” show). She wrote in the caption that she was “crushed to hear the news” of his passing.

The star of ” Home Town” had a good time with Boss and his wife, Allison, when they were filming Ben’s Workshop.

Remembering Holker Boss: A Memorandum to the Founder and Founder, Annihilating, and How to Tell Ellen about it

The death of Boss has stirred a lot of shock and confusion about how it can be done given his joy in his work.

He has changed the lives of every single person he has met. That’s why I had to post, so that the world knows the gravity of this loss,” Chynoweth wrote.

“Seeing my whole industry and his loved ones sharing how much he impacted our lives. She wrote that he inspired a lot of dancers with his talent, kindness, intelligence, and charisma. He made us believe in ourselves by giving us warmth and support. He has been my friend for a long while and it hurts to know that he hides his true feelings.

“He spoke out against police violence and used his platform in smart ways as he could,” King wrote. “After the murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor he sought advice from many of us on how to speak to Ellen about it and how she could possibly use her show to talk about it. ⁣My wife and I just loved his joy. And dancing. And energy.

“You don’t have to be of a particular status or anything to actually commit a kind act and have that do its ripple effect,” he said at the Industry Dance Awards in October. A lot of people put a lot of priority on helping other people when it’s not really important.

During the height of the swine flue, he and Holker Boss did a lot for their followers on social media.