Celebrating Kara Jane’s legacy with posthumous album launch & fundraising event
A second album is due to be released on 8 August 2025, on ‘Severe ME Day’, to remember and celebrate the legacy of Shirebrook singer-songwriter Kara Jane Spencer, who passed away of ME/CFS aged 32 in 2023. In addition, a fundraising event featuring music from the album, along with performances from a local choir, will be held on Saturday 20 September 2025 at the Speedwell Rooms, Staveley, with sales from both the album and event being donated to The ME Association.
Kara’s dream was to raise £100,000 to support The ME Association in its aim to establish a post-mortem research facility for those who die with or from ME/CFS. Today, Kara’s family are hoping to achieve this ambitious goal on her behalf.
Kara Jane was diagnosed with ME/CFS aged 16 and recorded the songs for her second album, ‘In Limbo’, while living with very severe ME/CFS. ME (myalgic encephalomyelitis), also known as CFS (chronic fatigue syndrome), is a multisystem disease. Symptoms include profound fatigue, sleep disturbance, post-exertional malaise, cognitive difficulties and a range of other symptoms like pain, headaches, nausea and intolerance to lights and noise. People living with very severe ME/CFS will be housebound or bedbound and require assistance with all aspects of daily living - Kara was bedbound for 7 years, requiring 24-hour nursing care.
In Limbo, is a powerful album which reflects Kara’s experiences of living with very severe ME/CFS and is available for purchase via online platforms such as Amazon Music, iTunes, Spotify, Deezer, or on CD from karajanesings.com. It also includes two tracks recorded by Emily Louise, Kara’s 32-year-old sister.
The album took three years to create as Kara painstakingly recorded the vocals for each track line by line from her bed due to her symptoms and being unable to record in one session.
David Spencer, Kara’s Father, said, “Kara embraced life with love, generosity and endless determination. She fiercely advocated for awareness of ME/CFS, wanting to make the world understand just how serious the illness can be, and we are continuing her work - increasing awareness, and helping to raise the profile of the ME/CFS community. Kara’s dream was to raise £100,000 for The ME Association as she hoped that a cure might one day be discovered - we hope that sales of her second album along with the fundraising event will help us move closer towards this target. Kara was an incredibly talented young woman, her strong musical spirit lives on in our hearts, and we are proud to announce that her album In Limbo will be released on 8 August 2025 to celebrate Kara’s legacy and mark ‘Severe ME Day’.”
Kara’s debut chart-topping album, It’s Still ME, achieved hundreds of thousands of hits on various streaming platforms, briefly outperforming Taylor Swift and The Killers in 2020 and shot to number one in the UK Amazon best-selling charts. Kara even had a chat with the legendary Dolly Parton who wished her congratulations with her first album back in 2020.
“We would like to thank the Spencer family for their continued support in helping raise awareness of ME/CFS. Kara was a special young woman, who achieved remarkable accomplishments. The donations raised by Kara’s albums and the forthcoming event will help to pay for vital medical research into the most severe cases of ME/CFS through funding for post mortem research and the ME/CFS Biobank where blood samples from people with severe ME/CFS are collected and stored. This is an illness which has a devastating impact on all aspects of people’s lives,” said Dr Charles Shepherd, medical adviser and trustee at The ME Association.
A fundraising event, hosted by the family, is scheduled for Saturday 20 September 2025 from 6.30 pm at the Speedwell Rooms, Staveley. The event promises to be an unforgettable evening filled with joy, remembrance, and community spirit. Local Vocals, a Derbyshire-based women’s choir, will be performing a fantastic set of songs including a song from Kara’s first album. While Emily Louise, Kara’s sister will be performing songs from Kara’s debut album ‘It’s Still M.E’ and the latest ‘In Limbo’ album. The event includes food, and there will also be a raffle and an auction of Kara’s paintings.
Tickets are available online https://www.ticketebo.co.uk/karajanesingscom/kara-jane-fundraiser