Over the years, many of Cat Janice's songs came to her in the car.
But the last song he released before he died was a joint effort with his favorite passenger: his 7-year-old son Loren.
Last spring, the two spontaneously began singing the chorus “Dance until you love me” as Janice drove, struggling to record the moment in a voice memo. A little less than a year later, Janice's disco hit, “Dance You Outta My Head,” hit the Billboard charts just when he entered palliative care.
“He had a lot of music he could have released,” said his brother Will Ipsan, who makes his own music under the nickname Cubby. “But she really wanted to leave everyone with something more positive.”
After initially undergoing treatment for a rare sarcoma in 2022, Janice learned that her cancer had returned to her lungs last May. She documented the following months of grief, prayer, and patchy hair loss on TikTok before dying in her childhood home on February 28.
Prior to the release of “Dance You Outta My Head” on January 19, the day before her 31st birthday, Janice announced that she had signed over her music rights to Loren. As a last wish, she asked her followers to pass it on for him.
“I wish I could say these words to you but lung cancer has robbed me of my voice. So all I ask is a favor to pre-save my latest song in my timeline,” Janice. wrote. “I want my last song to bring joy and fun! “It's everything I've ever wanted during my battle with cancer.”
In response, thousands of people posted videos of themselves dancing to the song, some while undergoing their own cancer treatment. The song has already been used in more than 2 million TikTok videos.
Austin Bello, Janice's longtime producer, said he didn't expect the song to gain traction like it did.
“But I'm nothing but happy that his story can be told,” he said. “I feel like he deserves it.”
It was Janice's lyricism and rich voice that caught Bello's attention, he said, but he came to marvel at her artistry.
“The art she was creating was something that came out of her organically and naturally,” Bello said, chuckling as if amused by its simplicity. “It's just a beautiful thing where you don't have to dig around and look for something creative. Was only there.”
When it came to production, Janice knew what she wanted, exactly how it sounded in her head.
“My job was to try to get into his brain and see what he was saying,” Bello said.
It's a task that Ipsan also faces, as he decides what to do with his sister's unpublished catalog.
They had been considering posthumous releases, he said, but Janice's health worsened more quickly than they expected.
However, one song was very clear to me.
“It's a lullaby she wrote for Loren,” Ipsan said, “just so he can listen to it on the airwaves, when he's on his way to sleep or whenever he wants.”
“There is no grand strategy,” he added. “I just scheduled its release and that will be it.”
Ipsan did not reveal a release date, but said the song will be on Spotify or SoundCloud soon. He also said she will post “small” content to remember Janice on her Instagram as she plans a formal memorial service at her childhood church.
As for the rest, Ipsan is doing his best to do what Janice asked: “Just keep the music playing.”
“Part of that charge for me as his brother is to make sure his son has that same spark for music,” Ipsan said.
Janice's husband, Kyle Higginbotham, also a musician, just gave Loren a bass, so she seems to be on the right track.
Like Janice, Loren is easily excited, loves the outdoors, and always opts for a book over a video game.
“He's not an iPad kid by any means,” Ipsan said. “It's a great blessing to have him, because he's so much like her.”
The day Janice died, Ipsan said he and his brothers listened to her songs, comforted by the sound of her voice.
“My sister Meredith said, 'I'm so grateful we have this music.'”
