Who is Cooper Noriega? Tributes pour in as TikTok star dies at 19
TikTok sensation from California, Cooper Noriega, known for his lip-sync videos and comedy skits, has died at the age of 19.
The public figure was found dead in a Burbank parking lot on Thursday. His cause of death remains unknown. The Los Angeles Medical Examiner has requested for “more investigation” into the matter.
Prior to his death on Thursday, the teenager had posted a video on TikTok to his 1.7 million followers. In an uncanny coincidence, the caption read:
“Who else b thinking they gon die young af.”
Four days before his passing, Noriega had also announced on social media that he wanted to create a Discord server where people could discuss mental health. In a TikTok video, he said:
“If you're really into getting your emotions out, or whatever, come join. I created [the server] because of how much I love you guys and how much I struggle with it myself. I would like to use the influence I've been given to create a space built on spreading awareness and normalizing talking about mental illness.”
News of Noriega’s death was made public by Barstool Sports’ BFFs podcast, who shared a black and white photo of him on social media. Noriega had appeared on the show on June 1.
Things to know about Cooper Noriega
The California-native blew up on the internet in the spring of 2019. He was best known for his comedy-skits and lip-syncing videos. He also had his own YouTube channel and was fond of modelling.
The social media star was passionate about mental health and also planned to create a clothing line based on the same. In March 2021, he revealed that his creation, The 28 Club, was going to be a positive fashion community. He added:
“It’s a fashion line revolved around hope instead of fear and that’s kind of the culture we want to have around it.”
The rising star had also shared in the past that his “goal” was to:
“eventually open a rehab where people aren’t traumatized at the end of their recovery and where the staff members are [trustworthy] people.”
Along with having over a million followers on TikTok, he had amassed 47,000 followers on Instagram. He had also collaborated with musicians Jxdn and Nessa Barrett in the past.
Tributes pour in for Cooper Noriega
Following the influencer’s untimely death, devoted fans took to social media platforms to pay tribute to the young star. Several netizens were shocked by the tragic news. A few tweets read:
GoFundMe page created for Cooper Noriega
A GoFundMe campaign has been created by Noriega’s family and friends to help with the funeral costs and to honour “his dream to help people with mental health and addiction.”
The fundraiser also read that the TikToer had many goals for himself and wanted to help people “of all ages around the world.”
At the time of writing this article, the fundraiser had made $1,204.
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Upasya Bhowal