Tisha Taylor, later known as Tisha Taylor Murphy, was the wife of comedian and actor Charlie Murphy. She died on 13 December 2009, at the age of 40, after a two year battle with cervical cancer. The couple had married in 1997 and had two children together, Xavier and Eva, and Charlie spoke about her loss publicly in several interviews over the years that followed.

If you’ve come across her name while reading about Charlie Murphy, whether through Chappelle’s Show or his own death in 2017, here’s what’s actually documented about Tisha Taylor’s life, her marriage, and the illness that led to her death.

Who Was Tisha Taylor?

Tisha R. Taylor was born on 9 September 1969 in New Jersey. Detailed information about her parents, siblings or upbringing hasn’t been widely reported, which fits the pattern of someone who largely stayed out of the public eye even while married to a well-known comedian. She worked as a voice-over actress before her death, lending her voice to television and commercial work, though specific credits from that career aren’t widely documented.

She and Charlie Murphy are reported to have met on a boat while she was having dinner with friends. Beyond that detail, most of what’s publicly known about her centres on her marriage, her family, and the years after her cancer diagnosis, rather than an independent public career of her own.

Tisha Taylor Age: How Old Was She?

Tisha Taylor was 40 years old when she died in December 2009, having been born on 9 September 1969. That makes her roughly forty years and three months old at the time of her death.

Charlie Murphy and Wife: Their Marriage

Charlie Murphy and Tisha Taylor married on 12 August 1997, giving them 12 years together by the time she died. Murphy later described the relationship in stark terms in an interview with journalist Tim Teeman, saying there were things he wished he’d had the chance to tell her before she passed away, and reflecting on how a relationship spanning that many years inevitably includes words said in anger that aren’t truly meant.

He’s also described her as an especially organised person, telling BlackDoctor.org that by the time she died, she’d already made her own funeral arrangements, sparing her family that particular burden during an already difficult time.

Charlie Murphy Children: Xavier and Eva

Charlie Murphy and Tisha Taylor had two children together: a son, Xavier, born in 1999, and a daughter, Eva, born in 2006. Xavier was 10 years old when his mother died, and Eva was around 4 at the time. Murphy also had a son from an earlier relationship, considerably older than Xavier and Eva.

After Tisha’s death, Murphy spoke about the difficulty of raising his two younger children largely on his own while continuing his career, telling Hot 103 at the time that although he had help from a nanny, “the nanny is not mommy.” Xavier’s age when he lost his mother, 10, was also the same age Charlie himself had been when he lost his own father, something Murphy later said helped him relate to what his son was going through.

Tisha Taylor Murphy Cause of Death

Tisha Taylor Murphy died of complications from cervical cancer. She was diagnosed in 2007 and battled the illness for roughly two years before her death. According to a statement from Murphy’s publicist at the time, she “passed away peacefully on Sunday with family at her side after facing the challenges of cancer for the past two years.”

Murphy later gave a personal account of learning about her diagnosis, telling BlackDoctor.org that he came home to find her crying in their children’s room, where she told him the news. He described cervical cancer as, in his words, treatable when it’s caught early, which is part of why he later spoke about her story publicly, hoping it might encourage others to stay on top of routine screening.

When and Where Did Tisha Taylor Die?

Tisha Taylor Murphy died on 13 December 2009, at the family’s home in New Jersey. Reports from the time describe her passing as peaceful, with family by her side, and the Murphy family publicly asked for privacy in the statement released afterwards.

Charlie Murphy Wife Died: How Charlie Spoke About the Loss

Charlie Murphy didn’t shy away from discussing Tisha’s death in interviews over the years that followed, even while keeping most of the day-to-day details of his grief and his children’s lives private. In the years after her death, he described her as the best thing that had happened to him and spoke candidly about how the loss reshaped his priorities, particularly around parenting his two younger children.

He continued his stand-up and acting career in the years after her death, remaining best known for his work on Chappelle’s Show, but interviews from this period consistently show him weaving her memory into how he talked about family and fatherhood.

Charlie Murphy’s Own Death in 2017

Charlie Murphy died on 12 April 2017, at the age of 57, following a battle with leukaemia, eight years after Tisha’s death from cervical cancer. He was the older brother of actor and comedian Eddie Murphy, and also had a half brother, Vernon Lynch Jr.

His death drew wide tribute across entertainment media, much of it noting the earlier loss of Tisha as part of the fuller picture of what the Murphy family had been through in less than a decade. Some sites incorrectly reference “Tisha Taylor 2017” as though that were her death date, but that year actually marks Charlie’s own death, not hers. Her death remains correctly dated to December 2009.

FAQ

Who was Tisha Taylor?

Tisha Taylor, later Tisha Taylor Murphy, was the wife of comedian and actor Charlie Murphy. She was born in New Jersey in 1969, worked as a voice-over actress, and married Murphy in 1997.

What was Tisha Taylor Murphy’s cause of death?

She died from complications of cervical cancer. She was diagnosed in 2007 and passed away on 13 December 2009, after a two year battle with the illness.

How old was Tisha Taylor when she died?

She was 40 years old, having been born on 9 September 1969 and dying in December 2009.

Did Charlie Murphy’s wife die before or after him?

Before him. Tisha Taylor Murphy died in December 2009, and Charlie Murphy died eight years later, in April 2017, from leukaemia.

How many children did Charlie Murphy and Tisha Taylor have?

They had two children together, a son named Xavier, born in 1999, and a daughter named Eva, born in 2006. Murphy also had an older son from an earlier relationship.

Where did Tisha Taylor Murphy die?

She died at the family’s home in New Jersey, with family by her side, according to the statement released by Murphy’s publicist at the time.

Is “Tisha Taylor 2017” a mistake?

Yes, this is a common mix-up. Tisha Taylor Murphy died in 2009, not 2017. The year 2017 refers to Charlie Murphy’s own death from leukaemia.

What did Charlie Murphy say about his wife after her death?

He spoke about her with warmth in several interviews, describing her as the best thing that had happened to him and reflecting on how her death reshaped his approach to fatherhood and family.