Keeping Her Memory Alive With Her Song
- America’s Got Talent star Nightbirde melted hearts all over the world with her beautiful voice and infectious spirit as she battled stage 4 cancer bravely until the end.
- Nightbirde’s family vowed to keep releasing her music, and just released her track “Brave” posthumously, as promised on the late star’s YouTube.
- Breast cancer is likely to be more aggressive in younger women and diagnosed at an advanced stage (like Nightbirde’s), as screening for younger women is not standard. Knowing your family history is important.
Now, fans of the late overnight sensation can listen to a song called “Brave,” that was just released on her YouTube, as promised, by her family.
As Jane's team and family, we've promised we will be rolling out her work to continue her legacy. This Good Friday, we are releasing the "Brave" Live music video on the Nightbirde YouTube. Subscribe here- https://t.co/uZEAcMo598 #brave #nightbirde #newMusic #seeJaneWin pic.twitter.com/fzyZmRVxF0
Read Morenightbirde (@_nightbirde) April 11, 2022 The song begins with these emotional lyrics: “I swear to you / That I won't make you fake it / And say that you're ok If you're wasting away / I swear to you / That I won't make you beg / For someone to stay / When they wanna walk away”The chorus sings like a mantra, presumably what she was telling herself during her fight, which likely resonates with many cancer patients finding the fight inside to keep going.
“Hey dreamer, hey skyheart / Hey silver lining eyes / Hey sunrise, hey starlight / You are a mountain inside / You're brave / You're brave / You're brave / You're brave”
The bridge leaves the listener with hope and comfort, when Nightbirde sings with acceptance that she’ll “run into the sun.”
Nightbirde’s Overnight Success
Nighbirde initially debuted the song “It's Okay” on America’s Got Talent in June of last year and the contestant was fast-tracked to the live shows after moving the judges to tears with her talent and shocking story.
"You can't wait until life isn't hard anymore until you decide to be happy," the three-time cancer survivor calmly told the judges as they processed her unfathomable fight.
The Ohio native had explained that she had cancer in her lungs, spine and liver.
"You've got a beautiful smile and a beautiful glow, and nobody would know," judge Howie Mandel told her.
Related: Meet the Cancer Warrior Who'll Steal Your Heart on 'America's Got Talent' this Summer
"Your voice is stunning, absolutely stunning," said Cowell. "There was something about that song, the way you almost casually told us what you are going through…" He then revealed that he was going to give her the "Golden Buzzer," which each judge is allowed to use once throughout the season to fast-track a special act. The emotional contestant hopeful dropped to her knees as Cowell went on stage to give her a hug.
Ultimately, as Nightbirde continued to advance on the show, she wound up bowing out gracefully as the fight became too much, and decided it was best for her health. She continued to give updates and release poetry and photos on her socials for her millions of newfound friends and supportive fansand even made a surprise appearance back on the show.
Her impression and legacy on this worldand the cancer communitywill surely last a lifetime.
Nightbirde's Breast Cancer Battle
Nightbirde began her battle with breast cancer in 2017 when a 4-centimeter tumor was discovered in her breast. She underwent six rounds of chemotherapy and a double mastectomy a surgery to remove the breasts for treatment.
Related: When Should You Consider a Mastectomy?
But her world turned upside down on New Year's Eve (which also happens to be her birthday) in 2019; she was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. Her doctors discovered multiple tumors on her liver, lungs, lymph nodes, ribs and spine. She was told she had three to six months to live, but the fighter surprised doctors with her strength.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC also reports that breast cancer mostly occurs among older women, but it is possible for women under the age of 45 like Nightbirde to be diagnosed with this type of cancer.
Aggressive Breast Cancer in Young Women
In fact, about 9% of all new breast cancer cases in the U.S. are found in women younger than 45. Nightbirde was one of those young women; when she was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer, she was just 29 years old.
In some ways, a breast cancer diagnosis for a younger woman can often be even more devastating, Dr. Ann Partridge, an oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, told SurvivorNet during a previous interview. This is because the cancer is likely to be a more aggressive form of the disease and also at an advanced stage (like Nightbirde’s), as screening for younger women is not standard.
Related: Young Mom Told Multiple Times She Had 'Breast Inflammation:' It Turned Out To Be Cancer
"Young women are more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer that is more aggressive," Partridge said. "Their disease is more likely to be of the subtypes of breast cancer, because breast cancer isn't one disease the ones that are more aggressive and tend to be what we call a greater stage. That is, they're more likely to have bigger tumors and more likely to have lymph node involvement at diagnosis than older women."
Contributing by SurvivorNet staff.
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