You can’t imagine it, Jessie J remarks. There she was preparing for her first album release in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her newish partner, and at long last the mother of a toddler after struggling to conceive for a decade, riding high. Suddenly in March she was diagnosed with cancer in her breast.
The musician, real name Jessica Cornish, is renowned for speaking her mind. The record, her latest release, was meant as an open book, dealing with every ounce of devastation she’d faced since she last worked on songs (a gynecological condition, pregnancy loss, unsuccessful partnerships, emotional abuse, suicidal thoughts) with characteristic openness. The lead track, No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. Her diagnosis. Later follow-up track, the upbeat Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and the artist was giving interviews about how she was living her best life, while at the same time living with her cancer. A month later she shared the news, and in early July she had a mastectomy.
She shoots me her best “What the fuck?” expression. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m conducting every media appearance, and they inquire, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I’m, like, ‘Well, not much…’” Cornish has just had to call off performances because she’s awaiting follow-up surgery.
Our interview takes place at a photography studio in the capital. She is wearing a light brown synthetic jacket, blue jeans with ornate white designs, beige footwear and large glasses. Imagine motorcycle style meets 70s singer aesthetic. “It seems like I’m in the seventies and I should have a partner with a mustache.” Easy Rider, I say, thinking of the movie. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She smiles. Jessie is fast-thinking, bold and filter-free. She says she has always been interested in humor and is aiming for her first comedy performance next year. “I love making people laugh. When performing I basically roast the fans.”
Personal Battles and News
Cornish was getting ready for an appearance at the ceremony when she noticed an abnormality. “I quickly sought to get it examined, had an test, and they were, like, ‘It seems benign; your breasts are normal.’ And I was, like, ‘But I can feel it. My arm hurts and tingling in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they suggested, ‘We should biopsy it?’ It happened on March 28, the following my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The specialist told her if it was serious she’d reach out on the start of the week. By then she had convinced herself it was okay. The way she explains it, it was inopportune to get cancer when she had many commitments.
“It was a fortnight prior from launching this thing after a long hiatus and four years without a single. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I assumed, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I jump on the Zoom expecting it’s all going to be good, and she informs me, ‘You might want to sit.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she continues, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your biopsy results have shown aggressive cancer.’” How did you respond? “I answered, ‘That’s unfortunate. That’s not fucking great timing.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘My child depends on me.’”
I’ve been labeled difficult for knowing myself
She viewed the procedure frightening and surreal. “I hate being put under. They walk you down. In urgent cases you go on a gurney, but then I just marched with a hospital gown and my backside out. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she adds, she’s been lucky. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the op. “Cancer sucks, man, but you know what? Thank fuck I found it early. I had the mastectomy four months ago and my affected breast now appears as a fruit under fabric.” A further beam. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The subsequent surgery is for health and appearance. Her chest, she remarks, are now “uneven. The size doesn’t match. That’s impolite! I thought, no need to bully me, I’m already having a difficult experience. So rude! Ironically I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be flawless. Illness changed that.”
Past Medical Issues
Cornish is no stranger to illness. She believes her outlook on her diagnosis has been so positive because she’s familiar with physical challenges. Frequently they align with professional successes, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or punch in the stomach, to highlight not to be complacent. “Truly, I feel life goes, ‘Enjoying yourself? Sit down.’ From a young age, it has consistently accompanied high points for me; a serious or unusual issue has impacted my body.”
She takes me back to her childhood, already starting her career featuring in the London theater in Whistle Down the Wind (she was chosen 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 heart flutters. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an intravenous line, and returning to the hospital at night.” She skips forward six years, and teenage Jess has become part of the female band Soul Deep while enrolled in the performing arts school. “I secured a deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was ready to debut in 2020 I had a collision and my throat was injured and I lost my voice for a year.”
Oi, I say, hold on, I can’t keep up. At just 17? She nods|agrees
