TikTok star re-releases Christmas single in honour of mum's partner who passed away from brain cancer

Lauren, 25 from Jarrow, first released her Christmas single ‘Santa Please’ in December last year, but is now set to re-release the song in honour of her mum’s partner George Shaw who sadly died of brain cancer on Sunday, November 13, aged 66.

The singer, who went viral on TikTok after posting a song about Ukraine, plans to release the ‘stripped back’ version of the single in memory of George, who was her ‘biggest supporter’ and also a performer.

Lauren, who has 365.8K followers on TikTok, got involved in music early and regularly performed at the Customs House in South Shields as a youngster.

After graduating from the Academy of Music and Sound in Gateshead, she secured her first publishing deal and has gone on to write for stars like Joel Corry and Now United.

The former Jarrow School pupil wrote ‘Santa Please’ aged just 16 about a break up but says the meaning of the song has now changed following the sad death of George, who was diagnosed with brain cancer in July 2021.

She said: “George is my mam’s partner and he really was like a step-dad, in fact he was so much more than that. He was one of my biggest supporters and was involved in music himself, he would absolutely love this new version.

"I think it’s important to remember that Christmas isn’t a happy time for some and it can be upsetting and sad. This re-release of Santa Please has a completely different meaning now – it’s to dedicate such a special man.”

Lauren is due to release her new single called ‘Santa Please, George’s version’ on December 2 with the single cover as a picture of George in his singing days.

She added: “Cancer is awful and to see George so poorly was heartbreaking, but we were fortunate to be able to tell him everything we wanted to say before he passed away.

"This year the song has a deeper meaning that is extra important and that’s to tell your loved ones just how much they mean to you.”