Tanner Martin is dead at 30: Influencer announces his own death in video weeks after birth of his first child

Daily Mail​

a day ago

The popular influencer Tanner Martin has died at the age of 30.
In a surprising move, it was Tanner himself who delivered the news in a devastating pre-recorded video posted Wednesday to Instagram by his wife Shay Wright.
Tanner bid his fans a final farewell just 41 days after he and his wife welcomed their first child, a daughter named AmyLou.
The couple had documented his difficult journey on social media after he was diagnosed with colorectal cancer five years earlier.
Tanner was as smiley and disarming as ever as he addressed the camera directly.
'Hey, it's me, Tanner. If you're watching this, I am dead,' he began, before easing some of the tension with a laugh at his own gallows humor.
'I had a heck of a life. I decided to make this video announcing my death because I saw someone did that, like, a year or so ago, and I think it's a good opportunity to get all your thoughts out,' he explained.
Despite his bubbly demeanor, his voice was clearly weak and raspy as he spoke about how his wife Shay would cope with his death just weeks after becoming a new mother.
'But you guys, life was awesome. I really enjoyed it while I was here,' Tanner continued.
'Hopefully, I believe there's something after this. I'm excited to meet those people, and hopefully we're hanging out now and making fun of all you nerds,' he said, before noting family members whose deaths preceded his own.
'There's just a lot of people that for the afterlife, I'm excited to see them, and excited to see them not in pain and just happy,' he added.
Even more shocking than the announcement of his own death was how optimistic Tanner managed to be as the end of his time on Earth neared.
'I don't know. I'm like, death is scary, but it's also like a new adventure, you know,' he admitted. 'I'm excited to see what the experience is like, and hopefully it's good.'
He concluded his video by stating that he loved his fans and thanking them for their 'support and helping to make the last years of my life here on earth like fun and enjoyable and helping me be comfortable.'
In her caption, his wife Shay wrote, 'May the force be with you from our angel force ghost🤍 see the next video for his wish.'
The second video Shay shared on Wednesday again featured Tanner in the same room, but he was visibly weaker and his voice was even more frail.
He sat on a sofa wrapped in a thick blanket, and next to him was his snoozing baby daughter AmyLou on a pink pillow.
In the heartbreaking video, Tanner said that his daughter likely would have no memories of him because of how young she would be when he died.
He urged his fans to help his wife and daughter after his death by contributing to a GoFundMe account set up in their name.
Tanner and Shay announced the birth of their daughter on May 15 and shared photos of the new parents each holding the newborn.
A video documenting Tanner's first moments with AmyLou showed nursed handing her to him as he whispered: 'Sweetheart, I've been so excited to meet you. I love you so much ... I've been waiting for this for so long.'
He and Shay announced in November of last year that they were expecting their first child together.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Shay Martin (@tannerandshay)
Tanner was frailer in a second video showing his daughter AmyLou snoozing next to him. He noted that she would likely have no memories of him and asked his fans to contribute to a GoFundMe to help his wife and daughter in his absence
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A post shared by Shay Martin (@tannerandshay)
They also acknowledged concerns about becoming parents shortly before Tanner's expected death.
But both were clearly excited to have a child, and they emphasized that one of their concerns — that Tanner's cancer could possibly be genetic — had mostly been allayed.
According to the Washington Post, Tanner began noticing symptoms of his cancer — initially just stomach aches — in 2020.
But the pain soon grew, and he decided to see a doctor about it after he began having difficulty going to the bathroom as well.
A colonoscopy soon discovered that he had stage 4 colorectal cancer, which had already spread to his liver by the time it was discovered.
By 2023, doctors determined that Tanner's cancer was no longer curable, and they estimated that he might live two to five more years.