Anna Shay has died at the age of 62.

The heiress-turned-reality star was best known for her time on the Netflix hit Bling Empire — which follows the lives of wealthy Asian and Asian-American in Los Angeles — but it was announced on Monday (June 5) that she had passed away after suffering a stroke.

In a statement, her family said: "It saddens our hearts to announce that Anna Shay, a loving mother, grandmother, charismatic star, and our brightest ray of sunshine, has passed away at the early age of 62 from a stroke.

"Anna taught us many life lessons on how not to take life too seriously and to enjoy the finer things. Her impact on our lives will be forever missed but never forgotten."

Anna — who has left behind a reported net worth of US$600 million (S$809 million), thought to have been inherited from her Russian-born father's successful business deals with the American government — is survived by her 29-year-old son Kenny Kemp.

She is thought to have been married and divorced four times but was yet to reveal the identities of any of her former lovers.

Just months before her death, Anna explained that she had not felt any "pressure" to prove herself as Asian and explained that the "best thing" in life was for an individual to be themselves.

She told JoySauce: "I don't think I have. I think that when people put themselves into a category they're putting themselves into those categories. They're cutting themselves off from anything that they can venture into in this great big world. I think the best thing is just to grow up and know who you are.

"You're gonna make mistakes. You may not understand certain things, but I'm blessed to have the parents that I had. They taught me to know who you are to believe in yourself.

"So, being Asian, or half, really never really entered my life. I did see things that were a little odd. I'd be at school and I'd talk in Japanese with my mom. When my family moved from Japan, not many people here spoke a second language. So It's all how you look at things, right? Being able to speak Japanese was great."

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Source: Bang