diff --git a/autospeak.pl b/autospeak.pl
index 83d8d0f..89333c8 100644
--- a/autospeak.pl
+++ b/autospeak.pl
@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ sub speak_message {
   my $SpeechRate = Irssi::settings_get_int("speech_rate");
   my $SpeechVoice = Irssi::settings_get_str("speech_voice");
   # Speak The Message
-  system("espeak-ng -v $SpeechVoice -s $SpeechRate \"$summary $body\"");
+  system("espeak-ng -v $SpeechVoice -s $SpeechRate \"$summary $body\"&");
 }
 
 # Handle incoming public messages: