You couldn’t make it up, Jessie J remarks. At that moment gearing up for her new album launch in eight years, deeply enamored with her recent boyfriend, and at long last the parent to a young child after facing fertility challenges for ten years, riding high. Then in March she was told she had a breast cancer diagnosis.
The singer-songwriter, birth name Jess Cornish, is renowned for speaking her mind. The album, the provocatively titled album, was supposed to be an transparent story, dealing with every bit of hardship she’d experienced since she last worked on songs (a gynecological condition, miscarriage, unsuccessful partnerships, emotional abuse, suicidal thoughts) with typical candour. The first single, the song No Secrets, was launched in April. But by then there was a mighty secret. The cancer. Then follow-up track, Living My Best Life, was released in May and Cornish was speaking publicly about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while still secretly living with breast cancer. Subsequently she shared the news, and in the start of summer she received surgical treatment.
She gives me her best “Seriously?” glance. “I release with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every interview, and they ask, ‘Any updates?’ and I answer, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s still waiting for follow-up surgery.
Our interview takes place at a photography studio in London. She is sporting a tan faux-leather coat, denim trousers with elaborate white patches, cream boots and large glasses. Picture motorcycle style meets vintage look. “I feel like I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” Easy Rider, I say, recalling the picture. “They used to call me that!” She beams. Cornish is sharp-witted, unfiltered and blunt. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is planning to attempt her initial standup show soon. “I enjoy humor. When performing I often tease the crowd.”
Personal Battles and News
Cornish was preparing for an performance at the Baftas when she found a lump. “I quickly sought to get it looked at, had an ultrasound, and they were, like, ‘It looks like nothing; your tissue is healthy.’ And I insisted, ‘Yet I sense it. My arm hurts and numbness in my fingers whenever I wake up.’ And they said, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The doctor told her if it was concerning she’d call on the Monday. By then she had persuaded herself it was fine. The way she describes it, it was inopportune to receive a diagnosis when she had many commitments.
“Just two weeks before from debuting the project after years away and an extended break. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I assumed, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I join the call thinking it’s all going to be positive, and she says, ‘You might want to sit.’ The solemn tone? And she says, ‘I regret to inform you but your biopsy results have indicated high-grade cancer cells.’” What was your reaction? “I answered, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. That’s not fucking great timing.’ My initial thought was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”
Some men find me challenging due to my self-awareness
She viewed the procedure scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. They lead you. In urgent cases you are wheeled, but then I just marched with a gown on and my rear exposed. It felt surreal.” But, Cornish says, she’s been blessed. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the surgery. “It’s terrible, but yet Luckily it was detected early. I underwent removal four months ago and my one side now looks like a odd shape.” She smiles again. “At least the nipple remains.”
The subsequent surgery is for health and appearance. Her breasts, she remarks, are now “uneven. The implant is larger than before. That’s impolite! I felt, why make it worse, I’m already having a hard period. So rude! Amusingly I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be perfect. Cancer ruined that plan.”
Previous Struggles
The singer is familiar with health problems. She feels her outlook on her diagnosis has been so positive because she’s familiar with medical emergencies. Frequently they align with peak moments, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or blow, to remind her not to be complacent. “Frankly, I feel life goes, ‘Enjoying yourself? Sit down.’ Ever since I was a child, it has consistently accompanied moments of success for me; a serious or unusual issue has affected my well-being.”
She reminisces to her 11-year-old self, already starting her career performing in the London theater in a musical (she was selected at the age of nine). That’s when she was told about the cardiac issue WPW, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as lightheadedness and irregular beats. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She fast-forwards several years, and teenage Jess has joined the female band the group while attending the academy. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was ready to debut in 2020 I had a collision and my voice box shifted and I lost my voice for a long period.”
Hey, I say, slow down, I am overwhelmed. At just 17? She nods|agrees
