You couldn’t make it up, Jessie J states. At that moment gearing up for her comeback record in nearly a decade, deeply enamored with her recent boyfriend, and at long last the mom to a little one after facing fertility challenges for a decade, feeling invincible. Suddenly in spring she was found to have breast cancer.
The musician, actual name Jessica Cornish, is known for being brutally honest. The LP, the provocatively titled album, was supposed to be an candid account, addressing every moment of pain she’d experienced since she last recorded music (a gynecological condition, miscarriage, unsuccessful partnerships, emotional abuse, suicide) with typical candour. The initial release, the song No Secrets, was dropped in April. But by then there was a mighty secret. Her diagnosis. Later second single, the upbeat Living My Best Life, debuted in May and Cornish was talking to press about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while still secretly dealing with her cancer. Four weeks after she went public, and in early July she underwent breast removal surgery.
She offers me her best “Are you kidding?” glance. “I come out with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every press talk, and they ask, ‘Any updates?’ and I answer, ‘Well, not much…’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s yet to undergo cosmetic procedures.
Our interview takes place at a photography studio in the capital. She is dressed in a beige fake-leather jacket, blue jeans with detailed white appliqués, off-white boots and oversized specs. Picture biker chic meets 1970s Nana Mouskouri. “I feel like I’m in the 1970s and I should have a partner with a mustache.” Easy Rider, I say, referencing the film. “That’s what people called me at school!” She grins. Jessie is quick, bold and blunt. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is hoping to make her first comedy performance in the coming year. “I love making people laugh. When performing I frequently joke about the crowd.”
Personal Battles and News
Cornish was getting ready for an slot at the awards show when she discovered a mass. “I immediately went to get it examined, had an test, and they were, like, ‘It appears fine; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I insisted, ‘Yet I sense it. My arm hurts and tingling in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they replied, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the following my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The physician told her if it was serious she’d call on the Monday. By then Cornish had persuaded herself it was nothing. The way she explains it, it was just bad timing to receive a diagnosis when she had so much on.
“Just two weeks before from launching this thing after eight years without an album and no new music. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I thought, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I log in thinking it’s all going to be fine, and she goes, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ That sympathetic voice? And she continues, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your test results have come back as malignant cells.’” How did you respond? “I replied, ‘Well, that’s not great. The timing is terrible.’ Immediately I felt was, ‘My child depends on me.’”
I’ve been labeled difficult for knowing myself
She considered the operation frightening and surreal. “I fear going under. They walk you down. In urgent cases you go on a gurney, but this time I just walked with a hospital gown and my bum hanging out. It felt surreal.” But, she adds, she’s been blessed. Without chemo or radio, just the op. “It’s terrible, but however Thank fuck I found it early. I had the mastectomy four months ago and my one side now looks like a odd shape.” Another grin. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The follow-up procedure is for health and appearance. Her boobs, she notes, are now “uneven. They didn’t do an implant as small as my original. So inconsiderate! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a difficult experience. How offensive! Amusingly I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be ideal. Cancer ruined that plan.”
A History of Health Challenges
The singer is accustomed to medical issues. She feels her attitude toward illness has been so positive because she’s experienced in physical challenges. Frequently they align with peak moments, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or shock, to make her recall not to take anything for granted. “Truly, I feel fate says, ‘Things going well? Hold on.’ Since childhood, it has consistently accompanied moments of success for me; something severe or obscure has affected my well-being.”
She recalls to her 11-year-old self, already making her debut performing in the West End in Whistle Down the Wind (she was cast at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was told about the cardiac issue WPW, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as dizziness and irregular beats. “I rehearsed between visits on an IV drip, and being readmitted at night.” She jumps ahead several years, and teenage Jess has become part of the trio the group while studying at the academy. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a stroke. Then when I was ready to debut in the year 2020 I had a car crash and my throat was injured and I was unable to vocalize for a twelve months.”
Wow, I say, wait, I need a moment. At just 17? She nods|agrees
