Music and Healing

Cat Janice's legacy: A feel-good song that will keep people dancing after she passes away. (Credit: Cat Janice's Instagram account, and user @musicfrommypov.) An ailing singer-songwriter turned a grim cancer prognosis into an opportunity to spread positivity. And now she has – by the millions. Cat Janice’s newest song, “Dance You Outta My Head,” is an uptempo dance party, with her smooth, lilting vocals playing over an infectious, driving beat. On Jan. 19, she released the pop-tastic track into the world – after changing the rights to ensure that any profits generated from streams and sales would go to her 7-year-old son, Loren. Janice suffers from sarcoma, a rare form of cancer that develops in bones and soft tissues like muscles or fat. She is currently in hospice care, unsure of how much longer she has to live. So, using her TikTok account, she asked her 478,000 followers to share her work, as a dying wish. And they did – in droves. Mere days after its release, “Dance You Outta My Head” reached No. 5 on iTunes’ worldwide song chart. “I am so lucky to even be alive – let alone with such an amazing, strong family of music lovers by my side,” she wrote about her achievement. “My son and I will forever be grateful.” Janice is also thrilled to have persevered long enough to see this all play out. "I’m just honestly so blown away by everyone’s love, and how they’ve supported me through this and shared this story," Janice, 31, told NBC’s Today.com. Her cancer journey began in November 2021, when she felt a mysterious lump in her neck. She initially ignored it, writing it off as inflammation following a case of Covid. But in March 2022, the lump was still there – in fact, it had grown. Once diagnosed with cancer, she underwent chemotherapy and radiation to remove the lump. The treatments were effective at first. But last May, doctors discovered that the cancer had returned, and was now in her lungs. She posted a recent TikTok update on Jan. 10, letting fans and followers know that she was now in hospice care. The success of this track has Janice feeling ready for what comes next, though. “I feel like I can rest in God’s peace from all your love,” she wrote. “Just so wild.”

Music and Healing

A Dying Singer Dedicates Her Last Song to Her Kid – and Lives to See It Go Viral

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