Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss’ family speaks out following the release of his wife’s memoir
Stephen “tWitch” Boss died by suicide at the age of 40 in December 2022.
When the late Stephen “tWitch” Boss’ wife Allison Holker, announced her memoir in January and that it would include intimate details surrounding the late dancer, that was the first his family had heard of it.
On Tuesday, Boss’ mother, Connie Boss Alexander and brother Dre Rose, appeared on “CBS Mornings” to share how their family felt blindsided by the roll out of the release.
“I think people deserve the ability to share their story,” Boss’ brother Dre Rose told host Gayle King. “I get that. But to how it was presented and how it was on the cover of a magazine and there was a public, you know, launch or campaign about it, we shouldn’t have to find out about that in the media. We’re a family.”
Holker announced her memoir “This Far” in early January in an exclusive cover story for People magazine. She revealed more of what Boss was going through leading up to his death by suicide in December 2022. In addition to journal entries she found suggesting he was grappling with the aftermath of a difficult childhood, she also discovered a “cornucopia” of drugs hidden in shoe boxes.
“It was very alarming to me to learn that there was so much happening that I had no clue [about],” she told the outlet.
The story almost immediately garnered widespread backlash from his family, friends, the professional dance world, and his fans. Several dancers and performers who have worked with both Boss and Holker, including Courtney Ann Platt, gave lengthy defenses of Boss.
“This is by far the most tacky, classless, opportunistic act I have ever seen in my entire life,” Platt wrote in a post on Instagram that also alleged that Boss’ family and friends, including his mother, were forced to sign NDAs to attend his funeral (something Alexander confirmed during the interview).
Platt also accused Holker of treating Boss’ mother “like garbage this entire time,” and she condemned the memoir and Holker airing out her late husband’s “dirty laundry.”
At the time, Holker said her intent in releasing the memoir was to help others who may be struggling with something similar.
During the “CBS Mornings” interview, Boss’ mother said, “Don’t get me wrong I applaud speaking about mental health awareness, ’cause, of course, there was something going on there at the end that we’re not aware of. It’s why I applaud that.”
However, Alexander is worried her son’s legacy could be at stake.
“If that was the intent of the book, to make people aware, look out for these types of signs, there’s a way to say that in general … without denigrating the memory and the legacy that he built and that’s there for his children, you know, there’s now this question in the air when his name comes up,” she told King.
Both Rose and Alexander disagreed with the assessment that Boss had been abusing substances.
“I don’t believe that there was that type of issue, that type of problem,” Alexander said.
In a statement to CBS Holker said Boss’ mother “has and will continue to be a positive and loving figure in” the lives of the two children she shares with Boss — , son Maddox, 8, and daughter Zaia, 5. She also added that she hopes to “work together to keep Stephen’s memory alive.”
His mother expressed a desire to see the journals for herself.
“Just to feel closer to him, ’cause these are his thoughts,” said Alexander.
She added that if she saw them, she could “maybe get a clearer understanding … of who he was and what he was thinking from time to time. So yeah, I think I would.”
His brother also said he’d like to see them as well.
“I would love to see all of the journals in its entirety,” Rose said. “I think those journals will tell you a lot. I think there’s things in those journals that are good and bad, but I also believe there’s journals about his personal life, his marital life that are in there.”
He noted that he felt there may have been some “cherry-picking” when it came to what has been revealed so far.
“If we’re just gonna be completely honest, talk about it all,” he said.
“There are things that she knows that we didn’t know,” Rose added. “But know that there are things about him that she didn’t know.”
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