Family of LU graduate, Nightbirde, posthumously releases her album

Singer and songwriter Jane Marczewski, also known as Nightbirde, wowed the audiences of “America’s Got Talent” during her audition in 2021 where she sang her original song, “It’s Ok,” and received the special golden buzzer from Simon Cowell. Unfortunately, she later had to withdraw from the show due to her health and ongoing battle with cancer. She eventually passed away on Feb. 19, 2022. 

On March 10, Marczewski’s family posthumously released her album “It’s Ok.” 

“She had always talked about putting out an album this year,” Mitch Marczewski, Jane Marczewski’s older brother and CEO of the Nightbirde Foundation, said. “Even up until the day she passed away, she was talking about this album she was going to release.” 

At her death, the album was unfinished, but the Marczewski family decided “that we would take it all the way to the end for her,” Marczewski said. 

Nightbirde’s album “It’s Ok” was released to a warm reception, as fans commented on Nightbirde’s official Instagram page expressing their excitement. The “It’s OK- Live MHS studios” track hit well over 16 million listens.

“Just the fact that people all over the world are listening to Jane’s music is incredible to us as a family,” Marczewski said. 

Her legacy doesn’t just live on in her music, but also in the Nightbirde foundation, a non-profit run by Marczewski that dedicates itself to giving hope to young women that are going through breast cancer. 

“The proceeds from the album, the merchandise from all of Jane’s work goes towards helping young women with their breast cancer journeys and giving hope and inspiration to those who need it,” Marczewski said. 

The Nightbirde foundation was an idea that had originated from a discussion Jane Marczewski had with her family while she was receiving treatment in California. 

“Jane was only able to live as long as she did because of the generosity of a lot of people donating to a GoFundMe that gave her the means to get the treatments she needed,” Marczewski said. 

When Jane passed, “I couldn’t get out of my mind the idea that there were more Janes out there that had not been blessed with the same resources,” Marczewski said. “That’s what the Nightbirde foundation exists to do: to just bring hope and healing to young women with breast cancer.”

Before Stardom…

While Jane’s legacy lives on in her music and the Nightbirde foundation, her story began way before the new album, before the AGT audition and before her battle with breast cancer. Penning original lyrics since she was only 6 years old, music was a part of Jane’s life since the beginning. 

“She and I grew up singing in church all of our lives, through middle school, high school and even into college,” Marczewski said. 

But it was at Liberty University that her songwriting really took off, as she wrote more music and became connected with other musicians. 

“It was just a couple weeks into freshman year that Jane revealed her gift for singing,” Abby Stewart, Jane’s Liberty roommate, said. “I could see her getting more comfortable with writing music and singing in front of people, and she quickly became very well known on campus, performing at multiple Coffeehouses.” 

Music wasn’t the only thing in Jane’s life that took off during her time at Liberty, as her involvement in ministry did as well. 

“Jane’s heart was for all the ministries she was involved in on campus, and that continued during her time in Nashville,” Stewart said. 

On one occasion, Jane encountered a homeless woman in downtown Lynchburg who needed a bus ticket to get back to her daughter in the Midwest. 

“She came back onto our dorm and gave us the story, ‘I just met this lady in downtown Lynchburg. She’s homeless. She just needs a bus ticket. She’s not asking for food. She’s not asking for money. She literally just wants a ticket to the bus. We need $300 to get her ticket,’” Stewart recounted. 

Within 15 minutes, they were able to raise the money for the ticket from others in their dorm and drove downtown to pick the woman up and bring her to the bus station. 

“We dropped her off, wished her luck and got back to the dorm, and Jane was like, ‘Let’s all wake up super early and pray with her before she gets on the bus at 6 a.m. tomorrow,’” Stewart said. 

The next morning found Jane and her friends at the bus station with the woman, praying with her before she left. 

“The ministry side of Jane took off at Liberty,” Stewart said. “It put this fire in her that she could influence people for God, but also that God had given her this gift of influence for the world, that she could use it and make change.” 

Even now, Jane’s influence continues. 

“I liked how all of her songs came from a place of struggle and overcoming it,” freshman Bella Meredith said. “‘It’s OK’ is great because it’s the reassurance that everyone needs, that it’s okay to be lost sometimes.” 

“Jane’s legacy lives on in the hope that she gives people walking through similar circumstances that you don’t have to wait for life to not be hard anymore before you decide to be happy, and that people are so much more than the bad things that happen to them,” Marczewski said. 

To support the Nightbirde foundation, visit her foundation’s website. Nightbirde’s music is available for streaming on YouTube and Spotify.

Perez is a feature reporter for the Liberty Champion