Faye Fantarrow: Sunderland singer dies of brain tumour

Faye Fantarrow's family said the 21-year-old was "the brightest star on the darkest night"

A singer-songwriter has died almost a year after being diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumour.

Sunderland musician Faye Fantarrow died at home on Saturday.

Her mentor Dave Stewart of Eurythmics, who had been working on an EP with her, said she was "unique" and "so amazing, funny and full of life".

Her family described the 21-year-old singer as "the brightest star on the darkest night" with "a passion for living".

Faye, who had cancer twice as a child, had been working with Stewart in August 2022 when she was told she had an aggressive tumour.

He said he "loved everything" about the singer and "had such a great time" recording music with her.

"It's a terrible, terrible loss. She could have really built up a huge following that understood what she was singing about.

"I love the fact that she kept her accent. She was very true to who she was".

The local music scene raised more than £265,000 to enable her to travel to the US for treatment.

Dave Stewart and Faye had been working together when she started to feel unwell

In a statement, her family said they were "broken and desolate" following her death.

"Faye had wisdom, compassion and understanding beyond her years," they said.

"She loved fiercely, laughed easily and lived gregariously."

Family friend Laura Brewis, the wife of David Brewis of Field Music, said she first met Faye at an event for young musicians in 2018.

"When she turned up with a guitar and in a fur coat, it was clear pretty quickly that she didn't need much help from us, other than occasionally pointing in the right direction," she said.

"Faye had a huge natural talent, creative vision and approached every opportunity with tremendous energy, so it was absolutely no surprise that she quickly began to fly and was recognised by someone like Dave Stewart.

"Despite having experienced so much in her short life, she never led with her illness and was an artist, first and foremost.

"More than that though, she was kind, funny, fiercely smart and kept her feet firmly on the ground."

'No greater testament'

She said the singer had also been "hugely supportive" of other musicians and quickly became a key part of the North East music scene.

Ms Brewis said there was "no greater testament" to the impact she had than the donations she received to receive treatment in the US.

At the time Stewart, who had been mentoring Faye, pledged £50,000 towards the procedure.

His former band member Annie Lennox also donated £10,000 to the fundraiser, which initially raised £100,000 in a week.

"The love and support for her was palpable, and an incredible amount of money was raised in such a short time," Ms Brewis said.

"She will continue to be a massive inspiration to young musicians in Sunderland and beyond. It's been a huge privilege to be a part of her life. We love her so much".