SERIALously - 323: 5 Disturbing Updates in Singer D4vd & Celeste Hernandez Case | Teen Girl’s Body Found Decomposed in Tesla

Starting point is 00:00:00 Where there's smoke, there is usually fire. And when there's a dead body in someone's car, that is some serious smoke. You go on his YouTube channel, he's got over 2 million subscribers. He has over 3.5 million followers on TikTok, 2 million on Instagram. Billions and billions of streams on Spotify. A decomposed body was just found in a Tesla registered in his name out in L.A. I'm disturbed that nobody's classifying this as a murder. The uncanny resemblance to the descriptions and things that have been.

Starting point is 00:00:30 being said, can't ignore that. It's really hard to know exactly what the facts are. Because police aren't talking, and neither is that young singer. That being said, a lot can happen in 24 hours. Hey, true crime besties. Welcome back to an all-new episode of Serialist Lee. Hey, everybody, welcome back to an all new episode of serialously with me, your true crime bestie, Annie Elise, and we are here to talk about a brand new breaking case today.

Starting point is 00:01:26 And let me just say, I get it, guys. all of you have been sliding in my DMs, posting comments, emailing me, asking me to dive into this case. And originally, I was going to cover it last week. I think I was going to originally do it in headline highlights actually and just like talk about what we learned. But as I started diving into it, like I'm talking really going down the rabbit hole and getting into all the nitty gritty details of it, I quickly realized like, oh no, there is no possible way that we are going to be able to fit this in a headline highlights segment. This needs its own dedicated deep dive. It's so much information. There is so much to go over, guys. I honestly don't even know where

Starting point is 00:02:10 to begin. It is twisted. It is shocking. It is truly one of the most bizarre stories that is going on in the true crime world right now, or like the true crime, you know, multiverse or whatever the hell you would call it. And you've probably heard something about it or you've probably seen something pop up on your social media about it because it truly is everywhere. And just when you think you kind of know it all or you feel like you have your arms around it, more information drops. Another video or lyric or photo surfaces. And it just takes it in an entirely new direction. So if you haven't guessed by now, the case that we are talking about today is the case of the singer David, who also goes by the spelling name of that D4VD, otherwise, you know,

Starting point is 00:03:01 formally known as David Anthony Burke. And before we get into everything, because there is a lot we have got to talk about together today. I do want to give a quick little disclaimer. You know I got to do it. Always form your own opinions. Do your own research. Everything in today's episode is alleged or has been backed by our sources that we will cite in the episode show notes. But as always, do your own research and form your own opinions. That being said, let's get into it. So on September 8th, 2025, a Tesla was reported as abandoned on a street in Hollywood, California. Then it was towed to Hollywood tow, which is an impound lot in Los Angeles. And nothing unusual was really happening from this. This happens in major cities.

Starting point is 00:03:48 all the time. But when the car got to the impound lot, people started noticing a very foul odor that seemed to be coming from the trunk of the car. Actually, the frunk, which is like the front trunk, Tesla's have that. Some other electric cars have that too. It's basically a trunk just under the hood of the car. And they immediately noticed this very foul smelling odor coming from it. So workers at this tow lot called the police, and sure enough, when the police arrived, they popped open that frunk, and they discovered an absolutely horrific scene that has now kicked off an investigation that nobody saw coming. Because what they found inside this trunk was decomposing body parts. I am talking actual high levels of decomposition. And when they ran the registration

Starting point is 00:04:37 for this Tesla to see who the hell does this car even belong to, it quickly came back as belonging to one of the fastest rising music stars right. now, David. So overnight, what really started out as this routine toe spiraled into international headlines and one of the most unbelievable cases that we have seen so far this year, maybe even ever. Now, let's first talk about who this music star is. Before we get into the decomposing body, the body parts, what really happened, I want to talk about who he is. Because if you're not living on TikTok or if you're not constantly doom scrolling, like myself, and look, on Spotify and all these different things, you may not even know about him. I guarantee you probably

Starting point is 00:05:21 have heard one of his songs, but you may not be on like a first name basis, you know, with how familiar you are with him. But he goes by D4VD, as in David. His legal name is David Anthony Burke. And he was born on March 28, 2005 in Queens, New York. He grew up like a pretty regular kid. And when he was 13 years old, his family moved to Houston, Texas. So he grew up in a normal household, had a younger sibling, and by all accounts was kind of just this quiet, shy kid. He was big into video games. He loved playing Fortnite. He spent hours making YouTube videos. That's actually how his music career got started. But then David kept constantly getting these copyright strikes on his videos because of the music that he would add into the background

Starting point is 00:06:05 of these gaming clips. YouTube is very big on copyright strikes. You have to have the licensing, you have to have your own music, you have to have like, you know, all of the right things in place. So as he was uploading all these gaming clips and putting music behind it, he kept getting copyright strikes, which when you get the copyright strikes, you either, after a while, your channel can get shut down, you can't monetize on anything that has a copyright on it. And it just limits your ability to get in the algorithm, to make it a career and, you know, everything that he was seemingly trying to do. So one day, he kind of just said, you know what, like, fine, screw it. I'm going to just make my own songs to use on these clips then. And what do you know it? He ends up. He ends up. He ends up. He ends up. He up blowing up all over social media for his music. And truly, it seemed like overnight he had these songs, multiple songs, as a matter of fact, that just went insanely viral. And his early songs like You and I, or Take Me to the Sun or Here With Me, they did really well, especially with David being such a, you know, minor artist and this kind of emerging guy on the scene. But then he had his big hit come. And it was called Romantic Homicide.

Starting point is 00:07:14 And this song went insanely viral on TikTok. It also charted on the Billboard top 100. It basically put him on the map. So suddenly, this quiet kid from Houston was now being streamed and shared online by millions of people. His dream come true, right? Now, here's the thing with all of that.

Starting point is 00:07:34 Even with all of that fame that came, David has always been extremely private. He's very polite, very soft-spoken, tends to keep his personal life off of some, social media. He's all about his music. No drama. No scandals. Well, at least, you know, not until now, that is. But people have described him as thoughtful and maybe even a little obsessive about his music. More so in like an introspective, artistic kind of way where it makes you think like, oh, he's really just like diving into the music and it makes you kind of understand why he

Starting point is 00:08:06 connected with so many people online. He really used music as his language, his love language, and used that as his ability to build a community and connect with people. And so much so that, in fact, when David has asked where he's from, he often says that he's, quote, from the internet, that he calls the internet his home. Because that's where he spends most of his time. And that's where he really connects with people. Which I have to just say, obviously, first of all, I wouldn't ever classify myself as an artist. And I am very, very tone deaf when it comes to music. Can't carry tune to save my life. But what I will say is this. I do understand the same. sentiment of almost that saying of like I'm from the internet like those are my people and the

Starting point is 00:08:48 reason I say that is because I myself believe it or not I'm kind of an introver not kind of I am an introver when I'm not on here on the mic or you know at live shows I am very much isolating and I like to turn things off be by myself I am a woman of few words but I feel like I am my most self with the community that we have built online, which, look, I'm going to be honest with you. I don't know if that's healthy or not. I'm just telling you how it is and how I feel. And that's why I feel like when I meet so many of you in person, too, we just instantly click. And it's like we've been friends for years because I truly do view this community like my friends. And it just feels natural to me. So I get where he says, you know, he comes from the internet, that the internet is his home.

Starting point is 00:09:35 because that's a very real thing when you are spending all hours of your day and all of your time building this community, sharing your art, your craft with people, which again, I'm not saying that I'm an artist or this is like my craft, but you get what I'm saying. God, I'm making myself cringe here. But you know what I mean? Like I get where he comes from with that. And I think that's how a lot of young people exist nowadays. It's not necessarily a great thing when it comes to forming actual real relationships. And it can certainly blur the lines of parasivism. social relationships. But I think we definitely do live in a day and age where the internet is king for a lot of people, especially a lot of young people, and they spend so much of their time

Starting point is 00:10:16 on there, building relationships, following people, creating content for themselves to where it does feel like an extension of your real life community, you know? So anyway, after David's music started to become really popular, he ended up signing to Dark Room and Interscope Records, which Interscope is huge, right? And his debut records really highlight his blend of like alt pop, indie, R&B, all of this kind of blended mixed together. The songs give a really moody, emotional vibe, just, you know, this energy that really sticks with people.

Starting point is 00:10:49 Obviously, it went viral for a reason. And then even after signing to the record label, David collaborated with some really major artists. He even had a song on the Arcane soundtrack, which if you don't know, Arcane is the name of an animated Netflix show that is based on the video game League of Legends. So remember, he came from the gaming world. That's the whole reason he even got into music. So he's not just this viral TikTok sensation. He's legitimately talented. And the industry was taking notice of him and his talent and his craft before any of this scandal even started to unravel. But then this all happened.

Starting point is 00:11:26 And the quiet kid from Houston, who recorded in his sister's closet, is now suddenly tied to an investigation that nobody could have predicted. So speaking of that, let's get back into the investigation. When the police opened the trunk of that Tesla, they found a decomposing body. And not just a badly decomposing body, but a dismembered body. It was wrapped in plastic. More specifically, they open the trunk and they see a human head and torso, actually falling apart too because of how far decomposed they were. So police immediately label the car as a crime scene, and they started working on identifying who this body belongs to, who these body parts, rather, belonged to. Then, on September 16th, the coroner confirmed that the body inside that Tesla was that of a teenage girl who had been

Starting point is 00:12:15 missing since April of 2024. Celeste Rivas Hernandez was born on September 7, 2010, and she was technically 14 years old. Now, a lot of media reports about this case list her as 15 years old. And the reason why is because she would have turned 15 years old the day before her body was found. She lived in Lake Elsinore, California with her mom, her younger siblings, and her extended family living nearby. She was a student at Lakeland Village Middle School, and she was described as a very sweet girl, very intelligent, a hard worker. Also, a little shy, mostly quiet, but overall, just a happy kid. She was a normal teenager who should have had her entire life ahead of her.

Starting point is 00:13:00 Now, Celeste was actually reported missing once before, back in February of 2024 on Valentine's Day, and missing persons' posters could be seen everywhere in this quiet town of Lake Elsinora where she lived. She was eventually found, and she returned home, but details about where she went during that window have never been released. Then, fast forward a couple of months to April of 2024, and she went missing again.

Starting point is 00:13:25 But this time, she didn't come home. Her mother reportedly told the police that she was dating somebody named David at the time that she went missing. And whether that was looked into or not, we aren't entirely sure. But given what we know now, I can certainly understand why all of the theories

Starting point is 00:13:40 and the speculation that we're about to get into and talk about all started in the first place. It tracks, so just bear with me on this. Now, one detail about Celeste ended up being very, very critical later on. Celeste had a very unique tattoo. It said the word, you know, the S-H-H-H-H dot, dot, dot,

Starting point is 00:14:01 as if you're trying to shush someone and tell them to be quiet. And it was written on the inner side of her index finger. Almost so if you're making that little like shush motion or a whisper motion that the finger that goes in front of your mouth has the word on the outside of it. And this tattoo is ultimately what helped Celeste's family identify her. It's also one of the key pieces. that ultimately led coroners to determine that this dismembered body that was decomposing that had been found was Celeste. So after she was officially identified, the investigators wasted no time

Starting point is 00:14:34 at all. On September 17th, LAPD served a search warrant at a house that was located up in the Hollywood Hills. It was about a block and a half away from where that Tesla had been towed. Now, here's the thing. David doesn't own that property. It was a rental. And the lease was actually under his manager's name. But according to the neighbors, this is the house that David had been staying in. And that's very important

Starting point is 00:14:58 because this Tesla was now at obviously the center of a brutal homicide investigation. David's Tesla. And his Tesla had also been seen parked outside of this home multiple times. So when the police went in

Starting point is 00:15:12 after obtaining this search warrant, it wasn't just for a quick look around or glancing at the scene. It was a 12-hour search. Crime scene texts carried out computers, evidence bags. They brought in luminal, the chemical that glows when it comes into contact with traces of blood. And they were checking floors, countertops, sink drains, everything that they possibly could search to see if they could find something. Now, even though at this point in the investigation, David hadn't been named an official suspect, his house and his car were both thoroughly being searched. Police haven't confirmed if they did ever actually find blood. inside, but they did see some items from David's house, including computers and, as I mentioned, several evidence bags. This morning, authorities urgently looking for clues in the death of Celeste Rivas, a 15-year-old girl who went missing more than a year ago. Her remains found

Starting point is 00:16:07 inside a Tesla registered to the critically acclaimed singer, David. Investigators executing a search warrant at the home rented by the 20-year-old singer in the Hollywood Hills. Officers seen removing several items including a computer. So this isn't looking good, right? You have this car that is tied to this singer. You go to his house. They're searching all these things. They are taking evidence bags out with them. They are searching for blood traces inside that house as well. And it seems as though the case is possibly cracking wide open. Then literally, just days after the search of this house, David broke his lease and he moved out. Okay, so by this point, I feel like everybody has seen GLP-1s somewhere or another or heard about

Starting point is 00:17:03 them somewhere, whether it's celebrities, commercials, TV, the media, wherever it is. And I feel like it is becoming, I don't want to say more mainstream now, but people are certainly more curious about them, whether it's for their own. personal weight struggles, their own health issues, whatever it may be. But I think the biggest question that I've seen out there is, of course, like, okay, do I really qualify for it? What's the cost? Will insurance cover it? And you know how confusing insurance can be? I feel like it's a secret language sometimes. The fine print, the endless phone calls, not even knowing what's covered or where to start. And that stress alone keeps so many people from even taking the very first

Starting point is 00:17:42 step toward getting care or coverage or prescriptions. And that's why I want to share with you Roe. Roe built their free insurance checker. And it's super simple. You just upload your insurance card. And then within a few days, you'll get a clear report that tells you which GLP1 medications are covered by your insurance and whether or not you'll need prior authorization. There's no paperwork, no sitting on hold, no guessing, just real clarity so that you can feel confident about your next step. And the best part is you don't have to already be a row member to use it. Anybody can check for free. Over half a million people have already trusted Roe to see what's covered. And it has been such a game changer in helping people feel confident moving forward.

Starting point is 00:18:24 So go to row.com slash AE for your free insurance check. That's RO.com.co.com slash AE to see if your insurance covers GLP1s for free. Go to row.com slash safety for boxed warning and full safety information about GLP1 medications. Now, as for David moving out of his house, no details have officially come out as to why he moved out. I mean, I certainly can say that I would imagine it's because they searched this house top to bottom. Maybe it was left in poor condition. Maybe he just didn't want any association with this house anymore. It does seem like it could be construed as possibly a little suspicious. But I also think, just to be fair, it could be argued that it's now a crime scene or at least an

Starting point is 00:19:16 investigation scene, not possibly a crime scene. So he's moving out to keep the integrity of it. Or again, because it's been trashed and, you know, printed everywhere and chemicals everywhere, who knows. But he was renting this home out for $20,000 a month. And again, we don't know if he willingly broke the lease and wanted out of it for whatever personal reason, or if maybe the owner of the house wanted him out after this investigation started, you know, if he didn't want to be there because it was part of a homicide investigation, or if he did something inside that house that he was trying to flee from, we don't know. But the whole situation has certainly created a lot of dialogue out there. And I will say this. While the initial steps of the

Starting point is 00:19:59 investigation were going on, apparently David was being fully cooperative with the A spokesperson from his team had said on September 19th that, quote, he had been informed about what's happened and he was fully cooperating with the authorities. However, this is when some people started to raise an eyebrow because that very same day, David's entire U.S. tour, which had only been going on for a little less than a month at this point, it was canceled. Every single date of his tour was canceled. Events in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, all sorts of places were officially called off. And his upcoming international tour dates through Europe and Australia were also removed,

Starting point is 00:20:42 or they were marked canceled on different ticketing sites, but essentially it seems like the whole tour was just shut down. And on top of this, David's music label removed all of his advertisements and promotions. They also shelved the release of his deluxe version of the album. So it seemed as though nobody wanted any association with David, even though he hadn't been named an official suspect yet. But obviously, we know how cases work, and sometimes the investigation takes a while.

Starting point is 00:21:12 They want all the evidence before they're going to file any charges and do all of the things. And it certainly seemed like people were trying to create distance, not only the music execs, but then canceling the tour, possibly the landlord kicking him out, unless David is the one who chose to move out on his own accord. It just wasn't looking good. Brands and collaborators who also had been partnering with David began distancing themselves too.

Starting point is 00:21:37 Big name brands too, like Crocs, Hollister, who, by the way, he recently had an exclusive launch with. They just dropped him completely off their collab. Now, as for what the LAPD is saying about this, as of now, the time of this recording, they still have not named him an official suspect. He also has not been arrested. They've just confirmed the statement that his team put out, which said he is cooperated. with their investigation, which, okay, great, we love when people cooperate, but also, let's be real for a second here. When it's your car, and there is a dismembered, decomposing body inside of it, mind you, the car has never been reported as stolen or missing or anything like that. People are going

Starting point is 00:22:18 to have questions. Then you have these big brands and your record label, just dropping you, like poof, they don't want any association with you, and they're acting like they have no clue who you are. It doesn't look good. And I think, obviously, it is a a little controversial to keep someone in your ad campaigns or in your collaborations if they're literally at the center of a murder investigation. But the fact that they all dropped him so quickly when he's not even an official suspect is kind of wild, unless it's again more formality right now until the charges come. So all the fallout after this happened, after his record label dropped him and the word started going around, I mean, it was immediate. The internet literally went from

Starting point is 00:22:59 loving David to questioning, is he hiding something? And this was all in less than 48 hours. And as we talk about some of the things that people ended up finding out about David and Celeste, I want to be very, very clear that none of it has been confirmed at this point by the authorities. It's all speculation and it is all alleged as of right now. So do your own research, form your own opinions. But one of the biggest questions that people have had in all of this has been, how did David, this rising music star, even cross paths with Celeste, a 14-year-old girl from Lake Elsinor? And just to kind of give you, I'm not going to give you a geography lesson, but like Lake Elsinor is out towards like Riverside area. Like it's deep in the inland empire. Like you

Starting point is 00:23:45 keep driving and driving and driving and going. And so it's nowhere near Hollywood. It's nowhere near L.A. It's not on like, it's not a big populated city. So how they crossed paths, maybe social media, I guess, you could argue, but for their age difference and everything else, it's just like, how did they even meet? That's what everybody wants to know. And sure enough, as sleuths got to sleuthin and digging, people started believing that they might have first connected back in October of 2022, when Celeste was just 12 years old. See, around that time, Celeste was very active in Discord servers, and she was in a lot of fan spaces that were tied to gaming and music. So some people allege that she met David while she was playing Fortnite.

Starting point is 00:24:32 Remember, a game that he loved, a game that he would play and he would upload his gaming clips from it. They alleged that he invited her to join his Discord server so that they could continue talking. And let me just give you a breakdown of Discord. I don't know it very, very well. I'll be honest. I do, I did use to have the app Discord because I would use it for like group chats through our Patreon. Now luckily all of it is directly on Patreon. on, but from what I have gathered, first of all, there's a lot of dangerous stuff that goes on on Discord. It's basically this server where you don't need your phone number tied to it. You can have a screen name. You can talk to different people. You can watch people

Starting point is 00:25:07 stream, game, and it's like a community where you can talk. Think of it of like what chat rooms were back in the 90s and early 2000s, but now with advancements in technology and more accessibility and more features and video features and photo features and things like that. And that is why a lot of predators will actually use Discord because things can essentially go undetected, go under the radar, you can pose as somebody you're not, and it just can be, you know, a dicey place. So anyway, people allege that they met through Discord. And mind you, Celeste was only 12 years old at this time, which would have made David about 17 years

Starting point is 00:25:46 old. And as it turns out, she did join his Discord server. Screenshots have been circulating that allegedly show that Celeste was chatting with an account that many people believe belonged to David. Now, these screenshots paint a picture of very casual, sometimes flirty exchanges, inside jokes, things where they're referring to each other by name, as opposed to their screen names, which, remember, is mainly what people on Discord use. But since all of this has come out, the moderators of David's Discord server have claimed that they did not know that she was under 18. They also said that they didn't know that she was a missing person. They thought that she was 18 or 19 years old based on the interactions they saw in the chat,

Starting point is 00:26:28 and based on what was shared in David's Twitch streams, which is another streaming platform. They say she wasn't very active in the server, but she was somewhat involved in the chats. So after people found this connection between David and Celeste, the theories and the speculation, I mean, it started to explode. And the first theory was that this was a secret relationship gone wrong. A lot of people believe that David and Celeste had been secretly involved for months, maybe even longer than that, that they look at the overall picture and that some of the connections between the two of them, they say that it paints a picture of a relationship that crossed serious boundaries.

Starting point is 00:27:06 In this version of events, they suggest something happened, maybe a fight, maybe an accident, and instead of calling for help, things spiraled into a heart. horrific, barbaric cover-up. Now, the second theory is a little bit darker, and it suggests that Celeste discovered something that she wasn't supposed to. Some fans think that maybe she had stumbled onto information about David's personal life, maybe his management team, or even his music business, some sort of information that could have put her in danger. And in this theory, her death wasn't about a relationship, but rather about protecting reputations, which is why some people speculate about perhaps his team being involved in this as well. And that's where the

Starting point is 00:27:49 search of that Hollywood Hills house comes back into play, because David's manager was the one on the lease of that house. So if it wasn't just David, but possibly even people around him, it opens up a whole new layer into this case and this investigation and motive, right? There's also another theory that has been circulating online, and I want to warn you, it is a very, very heavy one. But it's that Celeste may have been pregnant. Some people who have been digging on the internet believe that this could explain the secrecy. Also, the alleged connection between the two of them

Starting point is 00:28:23 and why things might have escalated so quickly. Now, of course, there's no evidence to confirm this, and the police have not released any information suggesting if it's true, but it certainly has not stopped people from running with it, saying that it would have been explosive for his image, his career, for legal reasons, if it came out that he impressed,

Starting point is 00:28:43 this underage minor. And then you also have this other theory, the coincidence theory. People saying that no, no, no, the internet has just gone way too far with these theories. Everything that has been circulating about these two, it's all a coincidence. None of it ties together, none of it matches. These people argue that people are piecing together fragments of unrelated information just because the case is so shocking and polarizing and unsolved. And in fairness, we've all seen cases where the internet does take coincidences and they turn it into a conspiracy, right? So could this just be another one of those cases? Now with those theories on the table, I want to talk about why those theories came to fruition, what people found, what details, what videos, what lyrics, what information they pieced together to build the foundation of these theories. So let's talk about where they're coming from. See, the connection between David and Celeste, it looks to be much deeper than just a few discord messages. One of the biggest points of speculation has come from David's Twitch streams. Fans claim that in a stream from back in January 2024, which remember is one month before

Starting point is 00:29:53 Celeste went missing for the first time, they say that a girl believed to be Celeste is on camera with David. She's talking with him and she's in the chat. And in that same clip, David allegedly asks his moderators to delete all video on demands, all clips, all everything, once the stream. ends, which of course only fueled the theory that he was trying to hide something, saying, hey, once this ends, shut it down, delete any trace of it. Oh, yo, yo, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

Starting point is 00:30:23 Oh, look it. Answer that one. That's so mean if you don't answer that. Which one? Which one? What's good to have a big fan mixed family? Oh, thank you, Mitch Ocundrio. I got to sign with him if you even... Are we... We need to delete this? Are we... Maas, can we delete all vives?

Starting point is 00:30:41 and as someone's a stream, man, through the stream too. Then, in February of 2024, the same month that Celeste did go missing the first time, another stream surfaced where people in the chat swore that Celeste was visible, that she was sitting right behind David and hiding under a blanket. Someone even took a screenshot and shared it in his discord asking, hey, who's the girl? And David responds with, quote, you're a Fed, which is an abbreviation for, you know, a federal agent.

Starting point is 00:31:08 And it's not like this happened once or twice. This happened fairly often, even before Celeste officially went missing. In a stream dated July 14, 2023, there's a female voice that's in the background. And the laugh of this voice, the way that she says his name, people swear that it sounds exactly like Celeste. Another stream from September 20203 shows a shadow that's moving behind David while he's focused on the game that he's playing. He brushes it off as, you know, oh, that's just my sister. but people are now, of course, going back in hindsight, and they're comparing the silhouette to Celeste's hairstyle that she had at the time. Then, in a late-night stream from November

Starting point is 00:31:48 2023, he accidentally reads a Discord notification out loud, one that looked like it came from Celeste's account. When he reads it, he panics, clicks away, and he never addresses it. So these all might seem small on their own, sure, but to people who are following the case, they add weight to the idea that Celeste was actually with him. Not just online, not just in a discord server, but physically present in his space for months before everything came to light. Adding to all of the speculation, several stream playbacks reportedly disappeared after these claims started spreading. Some say that David or his team deleted them on purpose. Others argue that it was just normal channel maintenance, but to the internet, the timing definitely felt suspicious.

Starting point is 00:32:38 People even clipped the alleged moments and then compared the background voices to videos of Celeste from her own social media accounts. And many people insisted that the similarities between the two were undeniable. People have also started pointing out that she might have been at some of his early 2023 shows in Los Angeles. Specifically, the smaller shows before his music just exploded. But there are grainy photos, short clips, and people claiming that they saw a girl in the crowd, sometimes with the same hairstyle that she had on her social media at the time. Some even say that she was seen leaving venues with him or lingering near backstage areas. But here's the thing, though.

Starting point is 00:33:17 Again, none of this has been officially confirmed. The LAPD has not said if Celeste appeared in any of these streams, if she was at any of his shows, if she was backstage at any of the venues, and there's no verified evidence tying her directly to those dates. It could have been her, yes. But it also could have been somebody else entirely. Or it could just be the internet stretching coincidences into a narrative trying to make sense of this. But even all of that information, it is not close to scratching the surface of some of the darker, deeper, and more sinister things that people have dug up on the internet.

Starting point is 00:33:58 Because let me tell you, the music is what really makes this go into overdrive. All right, let's be real here. Sleep is literally everything. It's like gold. It is what we need. It is what I need. And if you've been here for a while, you know that I take my sleep very seriously because it impacts everything else in my life, my energy with my kids, my focus when I'm researching cases,

Starting point is 00:34:29 how I just honestly show up day to day. And before I had my helix mattress, which I've had my helix mattress for literal years now. You've heard me talk about it before. But before I had my helix, I was waking up with like back pain, hip pain. I would toss and turn because my husband was snoring and I like just couldn't get comfortable. But ever since I had switched, not only since then, but like for years, like I said, I've noticed a huge difference. My sleep tracker on my aura ring even shows that I'm sleeping deeper. I'm waking up less. I just like have a better overall sleep. And it kind of feels like my helix is literally tailored to me. And it is hands down.

Starting point is 00:35:06 been such a huge upgrade from my old mattress. I'm not going to say which company I used to have, but it's a very popular one. They would ship it in a box. You probably know. And I'm not the only one who loves Helix. My sister just moved into her new place. She got a Helix mattress. My mom, when she had watched the kids several months ago, loved how comfortable my bed was. I got her Helix mattress. So if you've been putting off upgrading your sleep setup, don't do that any longer. Helix makes it so easy to find the right mattress with their quiz, and once you get it, you will see why I am so obsessed. I have the Helix Sunset Lux, and it is the best. So go to HelixSleep.com slash seriolously for 25% off sitewide. Make sure you also enter our show name after checkout so that they know we sent you. That's HelixSleep.com slash serialously for 25% off site wide. Make sure you also enter our show name after checkout so that they know we sent you. That's HelixSleep.com slash seriallessly. People went back through David's catalog, especially songs like Here With Me and Romantic Homicide,

Starting point is 00:36:16 and they found things that line up just a little too well with what's going on right now. Now remember, both of those songs came out well before Celeste was found. But once her body was discovered, the fans started rereading the lyrics to these songs. and having, you know, a fresh set of eyes on these songs. Take romantic homicide, for example. When it first came out, people said that it was just a metaphor.

Starting point is 00:36:40 Lyrics like, in the back of my mind, I killed you, and I didn't even regret it. I can't believe I said it, but it's true. I hate you. That these lines were all about heartbreak, that they weren't about real life. But now, after Celeste was found in his car, they're saying, no, those words hit differently. suddenly now they feel kind of chilling. Again, I want to read those lyrics for you. In the back of my mind, I killed you, and I didn't even regret it.

Starting point is 00:37:08 I can't believe I said it, but it's true. I hate you. Not to mention his music videos, which are, I'll just be honest, equally haunting. In romantic homicide, there's a reoccurring image of a lifeless woman. Now, it might have been argued to be art before, could possibly even still be argued to be that, but now it's difficult to not connect it with what has happened. Also, in one of the most damning ones, in the song One More Time, which was released in early 2025, in this music video, David is blindfolded, he's dragging a body, and then he

Starting point is 00:37:42 puts the body in the trunk of a car. So people online, of course, are saying, whoa, whoa, whoa, this is way too close for comfort because Celeste was found in the trunk of his car just seven short months later after this music video was released. And something else I want to mention, too, is the remains that were found in his trunk as dismembered and decomposed. I believe the total weight was between 71 and 77 pounds. Now, I don't know if that's because the decomposition was so heavy that it made this, you know, made the body just way lighter and not as dense. We haven't received the information from the autopsy or anything like that. I don't know if that would be.

Starting point is 00:38:24 a standard average weight for a 14-year-old girl. I don't remember what I wait at 14. Let me actually look this up. Let me see here. Siri, what's the average weight for a 14-year-old girl? Here's an answer from tagfault.org and reference.com. The average weight for a 14-year-old girl is slightly over 100 pounds. The weight range for most teens this age is between 80 to 100. So, okay, possibly. Or so I guess with that, and I know I'm going off on a little bit of tangent. But I guess it's like, could that have been her weight? Is that the weight of the body parts that were found? Is it because of how badly it was decomposed? Could she have been withheld from food prior to her being killed? And is that what caused her weight to, you know, be so low? And I just kind of

Starting point is 00:39:14 wanted to, you know, talk through that because I forgot to mention it earlier. So the latest piece of David's music that people are all talking about in the whole grand scheme of things is a recent leaked song that is called none other than Celeste. The song title is literally her name. And people online are pointing to lyrics that say, quote, oh, Celeste, the girl with my name tattooed on her chest. I hear her voice each time I take a breath. I'm obsessed. And people are saying that it sounds like it was recorded in late December 24, which you can imagine once this song was picked up, how viral that. went online. I mean, almost immediately. It's intense, it's personal, and for a lot of people, it feels kind of like a confession or an indirect confession, or at least arguably a reflection,

Starting point is 00:40:07 just hidden in the lyrics of his music. But it doesn't stop at just the lyrics or the music videos. David has also brought some pretty dark imagery into his live shows. Fans have reported that at certain recent performances, he's even rolled a casket into the venue. sometimes on stage. In some cases, there's even been a funeral director present, just adding to this very eerie, almost theatrical theme of death. Now, to some, this is, again, just his form of art, a performance that is meant to shock people or make a statement, right?

Starting point is 00:40:42 But to others, especially when you line it up with the leaked song and the imagery in the One More Dance music video, it feels like something much heavier, Almost like maybe he's putting his grief of guilt or even just his own fascination with death right there in front of everybody else to see. And things take an even darker turn when we look at Celeste's Instagram. Online sleuths and everybody who's been following this case have been combing through her old posts and what they have found is very unsettling.

Starting point is 00:41:15 Before her disappearance, Celeste was very active on Instagram. She was sharing moments from her life, photos, just doing what a normal teenage girl would do on social media. But after she went missing, followers noticed that some of her posts began disappearing, not just from her main feed, but also from her close friends story highlight as well. And for those who aren't super into Instagram or very active, this close friend's story is a feature on Instagram that allows users to share content with a select group of followers.

Starting point is 00:41:47 Basically, instead of going to everyone who follows you, you can cherry pick who gets visibility to it. So it's been reported that Celeste had been sharing more personal moments over there with that particular group. These moments included videos and photos, which some believe hinted at her relationship with David. For example, one story that she had posted from early March 24 showed her at a music event, and she was wearing a bracelet that matched one that David was later seen wearing in a photo that he posted to his own Instagram in August of 2025. Another story from late February 2024, which was also posted to David's Discord, featured a blurred image of a tattoo that she had on her finger. It wasn't the shush tattoo. It was a different tattoo. But it also looked to be what was an engagement ring or a promise ring. Now, this post to her story, which was saved as a highlight and would not have disappeared after 24 hours, is seemingly gone now. And these stories and posts, they didn't just disappear on their own. They were intentionally deleted.

Starting point is 00:42:52 Some screenshots of the content before it vanished have also surfaced. But so far, none of those images have officially been verified. And the timing? I mean, it was right when the media started zeroing in on Celeste's case. So that alone has people talking. Like, okay, now that her body was found in your car, now that people are uncovering these music videos, these lyrics, your connection, the discord, the underage relationship. now these posts and these stories also are mysteriously deleted from her account when she's no longer even here to make those deletions on her own?

Starting point is 00:43:28 Something shady. Something ain't adding up, right? And here's where it gets even messier. Apparently, one of Celeste's siblings recently took over her Instagram account. And they said that everything was archived, not deleted. And they say that it's because police asked that nothing be public for right now. So some people are taking that at Facebook. value, which, okay, it makes sense the family's protecting her memory, the integrity of the

Starting point is 00:43:52 investigation, but others aren't so sure. They think that maybe it isn't her sibling at all. Maybe it was David, or someone else who knew more than they were letting on, using the police investigation as this convenient cover to erase everything. And then, of course, there's David's side in all of this. People have noticed that some of his posts are also disappearing, that they have disappeared around the same time, the pictures, the videos, even moments that featured Celeste. So people can't help but wonder, was this just routine social media cleanup? Or was somebody trying to hide a connection? And we don't have all the answers, right? And without access to the archives, it's impossible to confirm what was really posted or deleted. But the pattern of vanished content, it really

Starting point is 00:44:41 adds another layer to this case, another shadowy corner that we need to peer into and try to get to the bottom of it. It raises questions about what was shared, what was hidden, and what someone didn't want the public to see as this investigation continues unfolding. Some people have also started looking beyond social media and Twitch, asking themselves, could something even more personal have been happening behind the scenes? Which let's circle back to that tattoo, the shh tattoo that was on her right index finger. This is one of the things that has the internet just absolutely losing their minds. Because both David and Celeste allegedly had that same small tattoo tattooed on their bodies, both on their right index finger, which at first glance, it's subtle, it's easy to miss if you're

Starting point is 00:45:28 not looking closely. But to people on the internet, it's kind of like this neon sign that is just flashing, like these two people were connected in a very personal way, so much so that they had matching tattoos with one another. And what the context of that tattoo means, who knows, it could mean something, it could mean nothing, it could mean something as much as, let's keep our relationship private because there's a huge age gap and because we're trying to keep it under the radar so that you don't get in trouble. Or it could just mean it's a cute tattoo. It says shush. It's on our pointer finger that we use to make the mouth motion of shush. Maybe it means nothing. Like, who really knows, right? But we do know matching tattoos are a big

Starting point is 00:46:11 deal. It's not just something that people casually will decide to get. It's usually symbolic, or it's a shared memory, a bond, something that is meaningful between two people. And in this case, the fact that their designs were almost identical only has fueled speculation. People started combing through photos, videos, streams, comparing angles, lighting, placement, I mean everything. Now it is worth noting, just to be fair, that this tattoo was actually trending for a while. Even celebrities like Rihanna, Lindsey Lohan, and Lily Allen have the exact same design. So again, it's not completely unique and it could mean nothing. And that's really where the people who say, you know, this is all just a coincidence. That's where they really chime in and are living. Maybe it's just a popular design. Maybe it's not some secret signal between two people. Who knows? But when you line it up with the Twitch streams, the social media posts, the events, the lyrics, the music videos, suddenly it's hard to explain it away as a coincidence, right? It feels like another breadcrumb in this trail that so many people are trying to follow. And then there are some other things, things that people all over

Starting point is 00:47:22 the internet are claiming, which honestly are very, very disturbing. I love food, okay? I love comfort meals, and so does my family. We love our pasta nights, our taco nights. I love our taco nights. I I love bagel mornings. Literally, give me an everything bagel every single morning, and I would be like a happy camper. But for the longest time, with all of that, I felt like I had to choose between enjoying those meals or sticking to health goals. But that's why I am so truly beyond obsessed with hero bread. Their products let you enjoy all of your favorite meals without the guilt. I'm talking they have sliced bread. They have tortillas.

Starting point is 00:48:04 They have bagels. They have dinner rolls, like the amazing Hawaiian rolls, which my kids love so, so much. and now they even have brand new hero noodles. They've got more protein and 60% fewer calories than the best selling noodles. And honestly, never guess that they're low net carb and high fiber because they taste just like the real thing. Personally, the tortillas have also been like a hack, a life hack in my house because if I'm just trying to do quick dinners after school for the kids, it's like cassidias or little tacos, I can just like whip everything up and wrap it up so that everybody's like happy and full and, you know, good. The texture is so soft, so fluffy. It's not like this cardboard vibe that, you know what I'm talking about sometimes when you, like, do healthy swaps. It's like tastes like cardboard and it's just not as good. So Hero makes it so easy to keep all of those nostalgic meals in your life while you're cutting back on sugar and sneaking in more protein and fiber. No compromises, just flavor. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order to. Just go to hero.co and use code A-E-E at chequeout. That's A-E at h-e-r-r-o. C-O. Now, I want to preface this by saying that this is one of the darker theories that is circulating online.

Starting point is 00:49:19 And there is no official confirmation, no evidence from law enforcement, but it is something that people have been discussing a lot. Some people believe that Celeste may have been pregnant and that this is what could have triggered this absolutely horrible incident of her death. The theory goes that if she were expecting, it could have posed a serious threat to David's public image, also his skyrocketing career. It could have meant jail time. It could have meant a complete failed career. It could have meant him being labeled as a predator. And people are speculating that in this version of events, things spiraled out of control and that somehow both Celeste and the unborn child were killed. There have also been rumors that remains of an infant were found near David's home. People are posting videos from other investigations, claiming that these remains and this discovery is tied to this investigation. However, from everything that I have been able to distill and look into, it looks like it was from an investigation that happened weeks before, and I don't believe that it's tied to this one.

Starting point is 00:50:22 And while I can't say for all of the clips that are being shared, I can say that we have researched some of them and have been able to confirm that they are not. related. But again, this is a theory out there. But it's a heavy theory. It's also completely unverified. But it's also one of those ideas that once it gets out there online, it spreads fast. And people, of course, with that, are pointing to the secrecy, the deleted posts, the sudden removal of social media content, the abrupt cancellation of David's tour, all as pieces of this horrific homicide jigsaw puzzle that could fit to this narrative. Now, of course, we have to remember, speculation, right? There's no evidence to suggest that this is what actually happened. But in a case like this, with so many unanswered questions, it's the kind of theory that captures the imagination and fuels

Starting point is 00:51:10 endless online debates. And for many people, it adds yet another layer to this story that is already so tragic and so complicated. And when we talk about all of this being complicated, here's one of the stranger parts of this whole story. Just when you think it can't get any crazier, the internet introduces a whole new twist. And I have to say, it makes your head spin if you are trying to piece all of it together. See, there's another woman who is named Celeste Hernandez. She's a 23-year-old woman, and some fans are calling her the second Celeste. The theory going around online is that David allegedly found this woman, who shares the same name and apparently looks quite similar to the younger Celeste, and that he became friends with her just to use as a cover, just to say that

Starting point is 00:51:58 he was never connected to 14-year-old Celeste. People started noticing photos and clips of 23-year-old Celeste in David's more recent streams and posts. And to some, the resemblance is striking. Same hair color, similar features, even similar fashion choices. And when I say similar fashion choices, I mean that the second Celeste was allegedly wearing the exact same gap hoodie that younger Celeste had been wearing on her missing person's photo, which kind of is a creepy coincidence, right? Like, was it actually the younger Celeste's hoodie? And David gave it to this new Celeste to add to his cover-up? Many people are speculating that by showing the public this older Celeste, it could create a narrative that he was never involved with the teenager at all. Of course,

Starting point is 00:52:47 it's all speculation. Nothing confirms that David intentionally created this narrative. and the older Celeste herself hasn't commented publicly, you know, other than a change to her Instagram bio that says different Celeste. But online sleuths have been comparing videos, social media posts, and even events to see if there's any sort of overlap or connection back to the younger Celeste. And while David may not have created the narrative of this second Celeste, he sure isn't stopping the rumors from flying. In the middle of all of these things being said,

Starting point is 00:53:18 David has not said anything at all. And people are noticing some very strange activity that he may have been involved in. According to users on the David subreddit, posts are being deleted if they even so much as question if David could be involved. And yes, Reddit does have community guidelines, but if these posts that are being deleted don't violate any of those community guidelines, they shouldn't be deleted. So this seemed a little bit weird. This doesn't just happen automatically.

Starting point is 00:53:47 someone intentionally is in there deleting things. So people, of course, naturally have started trying to figure out why is this happening? Who would be responsible for it? And it turns out, allegedly at least, that David is the owner of his own subreddit and he's the only moderator. So this would mean that only he could delete the posts. And if you go look at the subreddit right now, there are not any posts that really blame David in any way.

Starting point is 00:54:14 All of the posts are kind of trying to exonerate him, defending. him explain things for him. There are even some that outright do defend him saying that there's no way that he could be involved in Celeste's murder. Then around the same time that people started noticing things happening on this Reddit page, David also had all of this like, quite literally, bloody clothing and merch pulled from his website. So people are starting to wonder, you know, is he trying to cover his tracks? Is he sort of trying to like take all eyes off of him and fly underneath the radar, pulling anything and everything off social media? that would ever make him look suspicious,

Starting point is 00:54:49 including bloody clothing and merch that he had used for music videos and in some of his tours and things like that. Again, it's hard to know because he hasn't said anything. But people who are following this case and all of the theories surrounding it, to them, he sure seems to be moving things around behind the scenes,

Starting point is 00:55:08 playing chess almost, and orchestrating or being, you know, the puppeteer behind all of this. And while the internet keeps spinning theories and dissecting every single detail back in Lake Elsinore, the focus has been on something much simpler, remembering Celeste for who she really was. Her community recently held a vigil in her honor.

Starting point is 00:55:29 Friends, family, neighbors, even strangers gathered together with candles and flowers, creating a memorial that lined the entire street that she once walked down. People shared stories about her, about how she was bright, how she was loved, how she had dreams that now, unfortunately, will never be realized. One neighbor even told the local news, quote, if she was my daughter, I wouldn't want her forgotten.

Starting point is 00:55:52 And that's what it all comes back to, right? For all the speculation, the theories, and everything that the internet has pieced together, the reality is that this case comes back to a 14-year-old girl whose life was cut short. Cut short in a way that we still don't have 100% clarity on. We know disposed of in a horrific way, in a barbaric way. And it comes. back to that. Her community isn't letting her name slip into the background, and by holding this vigil, by speaking her name, and by keeping her story visible, they are making sure that Celeste remains at the center of this case, that it doesn't get polarized to where it's only the David show, that people are only consumed with David. And I know that all of the stuff that we have been

Starting point is 00:56:37 talking about so far has been a lot to take in. And it kind of leaves the question of like, okay, well, where does that leave us? We've talked about the timeline, how the investigation started with Celeste disappearance, the shocking discovery in David's car, the police searching his home. We've looked at the people involved, who David is, who Celeste was, where the investigation started. We've also dug through the social media trail, the close friend stories, the deleted posts, the Twitch streams, the ones where she may have been in the background, the vocals in the background, the sightings at the shows, the events, things that people believe link the two of them together.

Starting point is 00:57:09 We've examined the matching tattoos, the lyrics, the music videos, even the leaked song that was named after her, and how every piece of content has fueled speculation. And then, of course, there are the theories, the secret relationship, the possible pregnancy, the idea that this older Celeste was used as a decoy to create distance from the younger one, which adds just, again, another layer to this complete total mystery that already is happening. Some of it is based on evidence, some on patterns that people have noticed, and some of it is fueled entirely by speculation, that's been created online. But taken together?

Starting point is 00:57:48 It paints a picture of a story that is far from simple. Celeste's remains have been returned to her family and the medical examiner has listed her cause of death as deferred, which, for those who don't know what that means, it basically means that the medical examiner needs more time to finish testing before they can officially determine or say how she died. In arrest hasn't been made yet.

Starting point is 00:58:09 In fact, a suspect hasn't even officially been named yet. But at least for now, her family has Celeste back home. And at the end of the day, we're left with a lot of questions. Who really knew what and when? What was real? What is coincidence? And perhaps the most haunting question of all, will we ever find out the truth? For a case that has captivated so many people online, the answers are definitely still out there.

Starting point is 00:58:35 They're buried somewhere between fact, speculation, and, you know, the art that David created. But what those answers are, at this point, I don't think we will know for quite some time. This case is continuing to unfold and break. We will have answers soon in regards to cause of death, time of death, or at least estimated timeline of death, suspects, arrests, all of the things. So we are going to be following this case very, very closely. And I will certainly be back with you to give you an update once more information is released. But I wanted to at least take this opportunity, catch you.

Starting point is 00:59:10 up on this case today, let you know where everything stands, and yeah, we'll be following it very closely. And I'm really curious to hear your thoughts. Do you think that David is responsible? Do you think that this is all just a coincidence? Do you think that maybe it was somebody in David's camp who was trying to clean up the messy underage relationship and that he's cooperating, like the authority say, because it's not really anything that has him involved in it? What do you think the truth is? And again, let's just not forget Celeste in this, a 14-year-old girl who had her whole life ahead of her, and it was just tragically, brutally, and barbarically snuffed out away from her. It's awful, and it's every parent's absolute worst nightmare.

Starting point is 00:59:57 So as more details emerge, I will certainly keep you posted. If you are not following the podcast yet, take a quick second. If you're listening to this podcast on a podcast app, find the follow button, press follow, so that you don't miss any updates in this case. If you are watching this on YouTube, take a second, hit the subscribe button so that you will be notified as we post updates about this case. And I just want to thank you for joining me today. Now really quickly, before you guys go, I do want to let you know, I did drop an extra deep dive

Starting point is 01:00:25 episode in the podcast feed today. So there are actually two deep dives that you can binge and listen to right now. So as soon as you're done with this, you can go back out into the feed, whatever podcast app you're listening on. and there is another deep dive for you to binge. And the reason that I released an extra one is because Hulu recently today came out with a new docu series called Apartment 603, and it is an investigation into the Ellen Greenberg case.

Starting point is 01:00:52 There's a lot of new evidence, a lot of new information, and that is a case that we've covered in the past extensively. If you've never heard of it, get ready for a freaking roller coaster. There are so many red flags and so many things that don't add up, which I share very clearly what I think the truth is and what really happened, what doesn't make sense. But anyway, because this new docu-series came out, I wanted to highlight Ellen's case again and share some of that new information. The latest updates, share it for those of you who are unfamiliar with the case or maybe who are watching the docu-series but wanted more of a deep dive

Starting point is 01:01:27 and all of that. So bonus deep dive is out right now. It is a little over an hour long. It's a long but it's out for you right now and you can go listen to it on the feed until the next one be nice don't kill people don't join any cults don't you know write any weird things don't go in discord actually that's what i'm going to say like keep away from discord i swear nothing good happens there all right guys until the next one just take care of yourself watch your back and be safe bye Thank you.

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