Cat Janice, the musician mom who went viral for dedicating her last song to her young son, has died of sarcoma cancer at 31.
Her family announced the news on Instagram, saying that she died peacefully Wednesday morning in her childhood home and that her brother will continue to manage her brand — including more art that she had wanted to release.
“We are eternally thankful for the outpouring of love that Catherine and our family have received over the past few months,” the statement read. “Cat saw her music go places she never expected and rests in the peace of knowing that she will continue to provide for her son through her music. This would not have been possible without all of you.”
Her family did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
Janice’s song “Dance You Outta My Head,” which was released Jan. 19, reached No. 1 on the TikTok Billboard Top 50 and made its way into the top 10 on Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart. On Spotify, the song has been streamed more than 12.8 million times worldwide.
The outpouring of support began when she teased the song in a TikTok video in early January, in which she shared the news that, after a hard fight, “cancer has won.” She asked viewers to pre-save her final song, announcing that all proceeds from it would go to her 7-year-old son.
“I’m crawling to my radiation so I can buy myself some time so I can see this song released,” she wrote in another TikTok update days before the release. “I changed all the rights of my songs to my son so I can leave him behind something. I don’t have much.”
“Dance You Outta My Head” became the soundtrack to nearly 200,000 videos on TikTok as internet users shared dance videos set to the catchy pop tune. Influencers such as Charli D’Amelio also used the sound, asking their audiences to stream the song.
Janice told TODAY.com in an interview last month that the song is about “feeling yourself, you’re at the top of your mood.” She said she was blown away by the support she had received.
“I really wasn’t expecting to be here,” she said. “I really do believe it’s a miracle to be able to witness this. I’m just very happy to be here.”
Janice had been sharing updates online of her cancer journey ever since she was diagnosed with sarcoma, a rare malignant tumor, in her scalene muscle in 2022 — after she initially noticed a hard lump in her neck in November 2021, which grew larger over time.
In July 2022, she announced from her hospital bed that she was cancer-free. But last year, she discovered that the cancer had returned, this time on her lungs. Last month, she shared online that her tumors had tripled nearly overnight and that she was now home in hospice.
Janice’s last TikTok video, posted Feb. 19, was of her duetting (or sharing her side-by-side reaction) to a cover of “Dance You Outta My Head.” She wrote in the video that the song had taken on a bigger meaning for her after all the support she received from online strangers.
“I won’t be stuck in this body anymore. I’ll be dancing again ❤️” she wrote. “I hope to see you all there ❤️”
