You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J remarks. There she was gearing up for her first album release in nearly a decade, deeply enamored with her newish partner, and at long last the mom to a little one after struggling to conceive for a decade, feeling invincible. Suddenly in March she was found to have cancer in her breast.
The singer-songwriter, actual name Jessica Cornish, is famous for telling it as it is. The album, the provocatively titled album, was supposed to be an open book, dealing with every moment of pain she’d faced since she last recorded music (endometrial issues, miscarriage, failed relationships, psychological manipulation, suicide) with characteristic openness. The initial release, No Secrets, was released in the spring. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. Her diagnosis. Later next release, the upbeat Living My Best Life, came out in May and Cornish was speaking publicly about how she was living her best life, while still secretly dealing with breast cancer. Subsequently she shared the news, and in the start of summer she received surgical treatment.
She offers me her best “What the fuck?” expression. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every media appearance, and they ask, ‘What’s happening?’ and I’m, like, ‘Well, not much…’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s yet to undergo reconstructive surgery.
Our interview takes place at a photography studio in the capital. She is dressed in a tan faux-leather coat, denim trousers with elaborate white patches, beige footwear and large glasses. Think rocker vibe meets 70s singer aesthetic. “It seems like I’m in the 1970s and I should have a partner with a mustache.” Like the film, I say, referencing the movie. “They used to call me that!” She beams. She is quick, unfiltered and blunt. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is hoping to make her standup debut soon. “I like entertaining. When performing I frequently joke about the audience.”
Personal Battles and News
She was getting ready for an appearance at the ceremony when she discovered a mass. “I quickly sought to get it examined, had an ultrasound, and they were, like, ‘It appears fine; your tissue is healthy.’ And I responded, ‘However, it’s there. I’ve got an achy arm and pins and needles in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they said, ‘We should biopsy it?’ That was 28 March, the post-birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The physician told her if it was serious she’d call on the Monday. By then she had assured herself it was fine. The way she describes it, it was simply too inconvenient to face illness when she had a busy schedule.
“It was a fortnight prior from launching this thing after a long hiatus and no new music. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I assumed, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I log in believing it’s all going to be positive, and she says, ‘Please take a seat.’ The solemn tone? And she says, ‘I regret to inform you but your biopsy results have shown malignant cells.’” What did you say? “I replied, ‘Well, that’s not great. That’s not fucking great timing.’ My initial thought was, ‘My child depends on me.’”
Men have called me difficult because I’m a strong person who understands who I am
She considered the operation terrifying and absurd. “I dislike anesthesia. They walk you down. During crises you are wheeled, but now I just strolled down with a medical attire and my rear exposed. It felt surreal.” But, she adds, she’s been fortunate. Without chemo or radio, just the op. “It’s terrible, but you know what? Luckily it was detected early. I had the mastectomy recently and my right breast now appears as a fruit under fabric.” A further beam. “At least the nipple remains.”
The next operation is for health and appearance. Her breasts, she remarks, are now “asymmetrical. They didn’t do an implant as small as my original. That’s impolite! I thought, no need to bully me, I’m already having a difficult experience. So rude! Amusingly I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be flawless. Cancer ruined that plan.”
Past Medical Issues
The singer is accustomed to medical issues. She believes her outlook on her diagnosis has been so positive because she’s familiar with medical emergencies. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, acting as a reminder, or blow, to make her recall not to assume everything is fine. “Honestly, I feel life goes, ‘Things going well? Sit down.’ Ever since I was a child, it has always gone alongside achievements for me; a major or strange event has affected my well-being.”
She reminisces to her 11-year-old self, already beginning featuring in the West End in a musical (she was cast at the age of nine). That’s when she was found to have the heart condition a syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as vertigo and palpitations. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an intravenous line, and returning to the hospital at night.” She fast-forwards six years, and 17-year-old Jess has entered the female band the group while enrolled in the Brit School. “I secured a deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was about to put out music in 2020 I had a car crash and my larynx moved up and I couldn’t sing for a twelve months.”
Oi, I say, hold on, I am overwhelmed. At just 17? She nods|agrees
