You can’t imagine it, Jessie J remarks. There she was preparing for her comeback record in eight years, blissfully happy with her newish partner, and at long last the mom to a little one after facing fertility challenges for a decade, on top of the world. Suddenly in spring she was told she had cancer in her breast.
The singer-songwriter, actual 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 ounce of devastation she’d experienced since she last worked on songs (endometriosis, losing a baby, broken romances, gaslighting, suicide) with characteristic openness. The first single, her single No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The illness. Later next release, the upbeat Living My Best Life, debuted in May and she was talking to press about how she was living her best life, while still secretly living with the disease. Subsequently she shared the news, and in the start of summer she received surgical treatment.
She shoots me her best “Seriously?” look. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every press talk, and they’re, like, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I answer, ‘Well, not much…’” she has just had to postpone shows because she’s awaiting cosmetic procedures.
We’re at a photography studio in the capital. She is wearing a beige fake-leather jacket, jeans with elaborate white patches, cream boots and oversized specs. Imagine rocker vibe meets 70s singer aesthetic. “As if I’m in the 70s and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Easy Rider, I say, referencing the movie. “They used to call me that!” She smiles. She is fast-thinking, irreverent and blunt. She says she has always been interested in humor and is planning to attempt her standup debut next year. “I enjoy humor. When performing I frequently joke about the fans.”
Medical Challenges and Discovery
Cornish was planning an appearance at the awards show when she found a lump. “I quickly sought to get it looked at, had an ultrasound, and they told me, ‘It looks like nothing; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I was, like, ‘However, it’s there. I have arm pain and tingling in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they said, ‘How about a biopsy?’ The date was March 28, the post-birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The physician told her if it was serious she’d contact on the start of the week. By then the singer had assured herself it was nothing. The way she tells it, it was simply too inconvenient to face illness when she had a busy schedule.
“It was a fortnight prior from debuting the project after a long hiatus and four years without a single. And she contacted me and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I was, like, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I log in believing it’s all going to be fine, and she goes, ‘You might want to sit.’ The solemn tone? And she continues, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your biopsy results have indicated malignant cells.’” How did you respond? “I replied, ‘Well, that’s not great. The timing is terrible.’ Immediately I felt was, ‘I have to survive for my boy.’”
Men have called me difficult because I’m a strong person who understands who I am
She viewed the procedure terrifying and absurd. “I hate being put under. You’re escorted. During crises you go on a gurney, but then I just strolled down with a gown on and my rear exposed. It felt surreal.” But, Cornish says, she’s been fortunate. Without chemo or radio, just the surgery. “Cancer sucks, man, but however Luckily it was detected early. The surgery happened recently and my right breast now looks like a odd shape.” Another grin. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The subsequent surgery is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her breasts, she notes, are now “uneven. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I reflected, why make it worse, I’m already having a rough time. Such disrespect! Amusingly I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got obsessive tendencies, and I know they’d never be perfect. Cancer ruined that plan.”
Previous Struggles
Cornish is accustomed to medical issues. She believes her outlook on her diagnosis has been so positive because she’s used to medical emergencies. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, acting as a reminder, or blow, to make her recall not to take anything for granted. “Frankly, I feel fate says, ‘Enjoying yourself? Take a seat.’ Ever since I was a child, it has often paired with high points for me; something severe or obscure has affected my well-being.”
She reminisces to her youth, already beginning starring in the West End in a musical (she was cast at the age of 9). That’s when she was found to have the medical problem Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as lightheadedness and palpitations. “I rehearsed between visits on an drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She fast-forwards several years, and young Jessica has become part of the female band Soul Deep while studying at the academy. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a stroke. Then when I was about to put out music in recently I had a automobile accident and my voice box shifted and I was unable to vocalize for a year.”
Oi, I say, hold on, I am overwhelmed. You really had a stroke at 17? She nods|agrees
