You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J remarks. At that moment readying for her first album release in eight years, blissfully happy with her current love, and at long last the parent to a young child after struggling to conceive for a decade, riding high. Then in spring she was told she had cancer in her breast.
The singer-songwriter, birth name Jess Cornish, is known for speaking her mind. The LP, her latest release, was meant as an candid account, addressing every bit of hardship she’d endured since she last recorded music (endometrial issues, miscarriage, unsuccessful partnerships, gaslighting, suicide) with typical candour. The lead track, No Secrets, was dropped in April. But by then there was a mighty secret. The illness. Then second single, the upbeat Living My Best Life, came out in late spring and Cornish was speaking publicly about how she was living her best life, while at the same time living with the disease. Subsequently she shared the news, and in July she received surgical treatment.
She offers me her best “What the fuck?” look. “I come out with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every media appearance, and they inquire, ‘What’s happening?’ and I respond, ‘Well, not much…’” Cornish has just had to postpone shows because she’s still waiting for follow-up surgery.
We’re at a studio in London. She is wearing a light brown synthetic jacket, denim trousers with ornate white designs, beige footwear and oversized specs. Imagine motorcycle style meets vintage look. “I feel like I’m in the seventies and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Easy Rider, I say, referencing the movie. “That’s what people called me at school!” She grins. Jessie is quick, bold and filter-free. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is aiming for her initial standup show next year. “I enjoy humor. When performing I basically roast the crowd.”
Medical Challenges and Discovery
She was planning an slot at the ceremony when she discovered a mass. “I promptly visited 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 insisted, ‘However, it’s there. My arm hurts and pins and needles in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they said, ‘We should biopsy it?’ It happened on March 28, the post-birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The doctor told her if it was concerning she’d reach out on the start of the week. By then Cornish had persuaded herself it was okay. The way she describes it, it was just bad timing to receive a diagnosis when she had many commitments.
“We’re two weeks away from launching this thing after a long hiatus and an extended break. And she contacted me and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I thought, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I join the call thinking it’s all going to be positive, and she says, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ The solemn tone? And she continues, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your test results have come back as malignant cells.’” How did you respond? “I replied, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. That’s not fucking great timing.’ 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 found the surgery scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. They walk you down. You know when you have emergency surgery you go on a gurney, but this time I just walked with a gown on and my backside out. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, Cornish says, she’s been fortunate. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the surgery. “Cancer sucks, man, but yet I’m grateful it was caught soon. I underwent removal a few months back and my one side now looks like a odd shape.” She smiles again. “At least the nipple remains.”
The subsequent surgery is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her chest, she remarks, are now “different sizes. They didn’t do an implant as small as my original. That’s impolite! I thought, why make it worse, I’m already having a rough time. So rude! It’s funny because I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be perfect. Illness changed that.”
Previous Struggles
The singer is familiar with health problems. She believes her outlook on her diagnosis has been so positive because she’s familiar with physical challenges. Frequently they align with peak moments, acting as a reminder, or blow, to highlight not to take anything for granted. “Honestly, I feel life goes, ‘You having a good time? Hold on.’ Since childhood, it has consistently accompanied achievements for me; something severe or obscure has impacted my body.”
She takes me back to her 11-year-old self, already making her debut starring in the London theater in a musical (she was selected at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was found to have the heart condition a syndrome, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as dizziness and palpitations. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She fast-forwards half a dozen years, and 17-year-old Jess has become part of the trio the group while studying at the Brit School. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a stroke. Then when I was ready to debut in the year 2020 I had a automobile accident and my larynx moved up and I lost my voice for a twelve months.”
Hey, I say, hold on, I need a moment. At just 17? She nods|agrees
