Michaela DePrince, a Sierra Leonean American ballerina for the Boston Ballet, died at 29

Ballerina Michaela Mabinty DePrince of Sierra Leone, who appeared in Beyonce's "Lemonade" music video album and the TV show "Dancing with the Stars," passed away on Friday at the age of 29, according to her family.

Her family then verified the news of her passing in a joint Facebook message after it had first been revealed on her own Instagram page.

“It is with profound sadness we announce the sudden passing of our beautiful sister, Michaela Mabinty DePrince. Michaela touched so many lives across the world, including ours. She was an unforgettable inspiration to everyone who knew her or heard her story,” her family said in its statement.

The reason of death is unknown.

After becoming the youngest principal dancer at the Dance Theatre of Harlem, DePrince went on to perform as a second soloist with the Boston Ballet and the Dutch National Ballet.

Her appearance in the music video for "Lemonade," which accompanied Beyoncé's album of the same name, helped to introduce her ability to a larger audience. When DePrince learned that the singer wanted her in the video, she initially believed it was a prank, but when the singer approached her in person, she was informed it was a "honor" to have her star.

DePrince was born on January 6, 1995, as Mabinty Bangura in Kenema, Sierra Leone. During the civil war, her uncle took her to an orphanage when she was three years old. DePrince's early childhood was marred by the hardships of war; her mother starved to death and her father was slaughtered by rebels.

At the age of four, she was adopted by Elaine and Charles DePrince of New Jersey in 1999, and they registered her in ballet courses. DePrince received a scholarship at the age of 14 to study ballet at the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School.

She became well-known in 2011 after starring in the documentary "First Position." She went on to dance all over the world and became a motivational speaker in addition to joining the esteemed Boston Ballet as a second soloist.

After co-writing "Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina," a memoir about her life with her adoptive mother, in 2014, DePrince became an ambassador for War Child Holland, an organization that supports the mental health and general well-being of children living in conflict areas.

She described how she suffered from malnourishment and was kept apart from the other kids because of vitiligo, a skin pigmentation issue, in her book "Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina."

“This work meant the world to her,” wrote her family in their statement, asking that people donate to the organization in her memory.