Boss joined "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" as a guest DJ in 2014 and went on to become its executive producer in 2020.
ADVERTISEMENTTributes have been paid to Stephen "tWitch" Boss, the longtime and beloved dancing DJ on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" who has died. He was 40.
Boss was also widely known as a former contestant on "So You Can Think You Can Dance".
His wife, Allison Holker Boss, with whom he shared three children, confirmed his passing in a statement published Wednesday on 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."
Her statement did not include any detail on the cause of his death.
tWitch started his tenure at "The Ellen Show" in 2014 and later was promoted to co-executive producer in 2020. He began his career in the entertainment business in 2008, placing as a runner-up on "So You Can Think You Can Dance."
The dancer-DJ also appeared in films like "Step Up: All In" and "Magic Mike XXL."
His love of dancing 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," Boss 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 posted dance videos on TikTok with his wife, who is also a professional dancer, with their children making guest appearances.
The couple also posted a video of themselves dancing in front of their Christmas tree on their Instagram accounts on Sunday.
