TOUCHED BY LYME: Rising musical star gives Dec. 4 “Stageit” concert for Lyme

Kêta Jo McCue, a 16-year-old singer/songwriter, was born into a musical family in Indiana. She was even homeschooled, so she could travel and perform with her parents at fairs, church services, and other venues around the country. Music was a big part of her life.

Then, at age 10, things went dramatically south. As she later recounted on the AMTC website:

I was bitten by a tick (very normal where we live) and we removed it like we always do. But two weeks later I began having problems. There was a rapid decline in my health… I was 10 years old using a cane and braces for my ankles, knees and wrists. I even had a wheel chair just in case. Even when I was laying on the couch I was in constant pain. Every bone, every joint hurt and was swollen.

It took a year to get a diagnosis of chronic Lyme disease.

“My life was all doctor’s appointments, tests, needles and experiments with different medications,” Kêta says on her Facebook page. “I remember lying in bed thinking that I needed to rethink my entire life and who I was going to be.”

Her dreams always included music. After a wide variety of treatments, Kêta’s health eventually improved. Throughout her recovery process, she returned to music, learning to play ukulele and guitar. By age 14, she was well enough to travel to Florida to take part in a week-long talent showcase.

Fast forward to the present day. She has made a splash by recording and performing her own songs and is considered a rising musical star in the entertainment world. She was the opening act for UK singer/songwriter Sam Smith on a recent West Coast tour. And she’s using her talent to help others with Lyme disease.

In partnership with the LymeLight Foundation, which provides treatment grants to young people with Lyme disease, Kêta will perform an online concert via Stageit on Thursday, Dec. 4, 5 pm Pacific time. You’ll be able to watch this live concert on your home computer, after you purchase a ticket on Stageit. (The price of a concert ticket is “10 notes,” which translates into one dollar. You can donate more by purchasing more “notes.”)

I’ve already circled the day on my calendar to watch this special performance. As Kêta once told an interviewer, the songs she writes don’t come from being in love or having troubles like that. “It’s from going down a really dark hole, grabbing a rope and pulling myself back up. It is driven from my situation and from my health.”

Click here for more information about how to watch the concert on Stageit.

Click here for more about the LymeLight Foundation.

Click here for Keta’s website.

TOUCHED BY LYME is written by Dorothy Kupcha Leland, LymeDisease.org’s VP for Education and Outreach. Contact her at dleland@lymedisease.org. On Twitter, she’s @dorothyleland.