You can’t imagine it, Jessie J states. There she was readying for her new album launch in nearly a decade, deeply enamored with her recent boyfriend, and finally the mother of a toddler after struggling to conceive for ten years, feeling invincible. Then in spring she was diagnosed with a breast cancer diagnosis.
The musician, real name Jess Cornish, is renowned for telling it as it is. The record, her latest release, was intended as an open book, dealing with every moment of pain she’d endured since she last worked on songs (endometriosis, losing a baby, failed relationships, emotional abuse, mental health struggles) with her usual frankness. The lead track, the song No Secrets, was launched in April. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The cancer. Then second single, Living My Best Life, came out in May and the artist was speaking publicly about how she was living her best life, while still secretly coping with the disease. Four weeks after she went public, and in early July she received surgical treatment.
She offers me her best “Seriously?” glance. “I release with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every interview, and they inquire, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I answer, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” Cornish has just had to postpone shows because she’s yet to undergo cosmetic procedures.
We’re at a studio in the capital. She is dressed in a beige fake-leather jacket, jeans with detailed white appliqués, beige footwear and large glasses. Think biker chic 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, thinking of the film. “That’s what people called me at school!” She grins. Jessie is sharp-witted, unfiltered and direct. She says she has always been interested in humor and is hoping to make her initial standup show in the coming year. “I love making people laugh. When performing I often tease the crowd.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
The artist was getting ready for an performance at the awards show when she discovered a mass. “I immediately went to get it examined, had an scan, and they were, like, ‘It looks like nothing; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I was, like, ‘But I can feel it. I’ve got an achy arm and pins and needles 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 call on the start of the week. By then Cornish had persuaded herself it was fine. The way she explains it, it was simply too inconvenient to face illness when she had so much on.
“Just two weeks before from debuting the project after a long hiatus and four years without a single. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I thought, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I log in thinking it’s all going to be positive, and she says, ‘Please take a seat.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she reveals, ‘I regret to inform you but your reports have come back as aggressive cancer.’” What did you say? “I said, ‘That’s unfortunate. The timing is terrible.’ Immediately I felt was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”
Men have called me difficult because I’m a strong person who understands who I am
She considered the operation scary and bizarre. “I fear going under. You’re escorted. During crises you roll down in a bed, but this time I just marched with a hospital gown and my bum hanging out. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she notes, she’s been lucky. Without chemo or radio, just the surgery. “Cancer is awful, but yet Luckily it was detected early. I had the mastectomy recently and my affected breast now looks like a grapefruit under a tight bedsheet.” Another grin. “At least the nipple remains.”
The subsequent surgery is both medical and cosmetic. Her boobs, she observes, are now “uneven. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a difficult experience. Such disrespect! Amusingly I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be perfect. Cancer ruined that plan.”
A History of Health Challenges
Cornish is familiar with health problems. She believes her perspective on the cancer has been so upbeat because she’s experienced in physical challenges. Frequently they align with peak moments, functioning as a wake-up call, or blow, to remind her not to be complacent. “Truly, I feel fate says, ‘You having a good time? Take a seat.’ Since childhood, it has always gone alongside achievements for me; a major or strange event has impacted my body.”
She takes me back to her youth, already starting her career performing in the stage in the production (she was cast at the age of 9). That’s when she was diagnosed with the medical problem a syndrome, which can cause a rapid pulse as well as vertigo and irregular beats. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an drip, and being readmitted at night.” She fast-forwards six years, and teenage Jess has become part of the trio Soul Deep while attending the Brit School. “I secured a deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was ready to debut in recently I had a collision and my larynx moved up and I lost my voice for a twelve months.”
Oi, I say, wait, I can’t keep up. You really had a stroke at 17? She nods|agrees
