The world has just lost a beautiful soul. America’s Got Talent (AGT) singer Jane Marczeswki – a.k.a. “Nightbirde,” died Sunday 20 February 2022 after a four-year battle with metastasizing breast cancer. Her last seven months were especially courageous, as she shared her fight with cancer with the world.
AGT
Nightbirde burst onto the world entertainment stage in July 2021 when she wowed the AGT judges with her original song “It’s Okay” about her struggle with cancer and her determination to live life to the fullest in whatever time she had left. Nightbirde won the hearts of the AGT judges and many viewers with her clear-eyed discussion of her condition, and her lack of self pity. She told the judges that she had a 2% chance of surviving, but added that “2% is not zero percent.” Jane gained further sympathy when she revealed that her husband of five years had divorced her in the middle of her treatments. When queried how she copes with the pain and the exhausting treatments she replied, “You can’t wait until life isn’t hard anymore to decide to be happy.”
“It’s Okay”
Her rendition of her original song “It’s Okay” moved the judges to tears and earned her the “Golden Buzzer,” which guaranteed her passage to the Hollywood phase of the show. It was not to be. Jane withdrew from the show within a month as her cancer returned. She quipped, “I bet you never saw someone win so hard and lose so hard at the same time. This isn’t how the story was supposed to go.”
“Finding God on the Bathroom Floor”
Nightbirde caught my attention with her clear-eyed determination to not let the cancer dictate the remainder of her life. Her blog posts displayed exhaustion mixed with optimism. She once blogged of “finding God on the bathroom floor” as she spent the night alternately vomiting and sleeping with her head in the toilet.
YouTube Sensation
Jane continued to blog sporadically as her condition allowed, gaining ground, enjoying life, and then falling back as her aggressive cancer continued to advance. Her AGT audition video has had 39 million views on YouTube – and counting.
Yoga Mantras
I became a staunch fan, willing her to live as her roller-coaster journey continued. I began to play her music to end my yoga classes in Fall 2021. “It’s Okay” and “Fly” became my “go-to’s.” The first when I wanted to end the class on a contemplative note and the second to encourage my students to go grab life with both hands and never let go. Sometimes I would join her on the High C of “Fly.”
“Fly”
Fly high, Nightbirde, fly high. Soar to the Source. Save me a front row seat for your next concert.
I am not crying, you’re crying. Sniff…Courage always gets me.
