You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J states. At that moment preparing for her comeback record in nearly a decade, deeply enamored with her newish partner, and finally the mother of a toddler after struggling to conceive for ten years, riding high. Then in March she was diagnosed with a breast cancer diagnosis.
The singer-songwriter, birth name Jess Cornish, is renowned for telling it as it is. The record, the provocatively titled album, was supposed to be an candid account, addressing every bit of hardship she’d faced since she last made an album (endometrial issues, miscarriage, failed relationships, gaslighting, suicidal thoughts) with characteristic openness. The initial release, 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 Cornish was talking to press about how she was living her best life, while still secretly living with her cancer. Four weeks after she disclosed her condition, and in July she underwent breast removal surgery.
She offers me her best “Seriously?” expression. “I release with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every press talk, and they’re, like, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I’m, like, ‘Uh, nothing really’” the singer has just had to call off performances because she’s still waiting for reconstructive surgery.
Our interview takes place at a photography studio in the capital. She is wearing a light brown synthetic jacket, denim trousers with ornate white designs, beige footwear and big frames. Think motorcycle style meets vintage look. “As if I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” Easy Rider, I say, recalling the movie. “That’s what people called me at school!” She beams. Cornish is quick, bold and filter-free. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is hoping to make her initial standup show next year. “I enjoy humor. During performances I often tease the crowd.”
Personal Battles and News
Cornish was preparing for an performance at the awards show when she found a lump. “I promptly visited to get it looked at, had an ultrasound, and they told me, ‘It seems benign; your tissue is healthy.’ And I was, like, ‘But I can feel it. I’ve got an achy arm and tingling in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they replied, ‘How about a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the post-birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The physician told her if it was bad news she’d reach out on the Monday. By then the singer had assured herself it was fine. The way she explains it, it was simply too inconvenient to receive a diagnosis when she had many commitments.
“It was a fortnight prior from launching this thing after years away and four years without a single. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I thought, ‘Oh, it’s a Zoom, it won’t be anything.’ So I join the call thinking it’s all going to be good, and she informs me, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ The solemn tone? And she reveals, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your reports have come back as malignant cells.’” How did you respond? “I said, ‘Well, that’s not great. The timing is terrible.’ My initial thought 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 lead you. You know when you have emergency surgery you roll down in a bed, but then I just strolled down with a hospital gown and my rear exposed. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she notes, she’s been fortunate. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the op. “It’s terrible, but yet I’m grateful it was caught soon. I underwent removal a few months back and my affected breast now looks like a grapefruit under a tight bedsheet.” She smiles again. “At least the nipple remains.”
The follow-up procedure is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her chest, she notes, are now “uneven. The size doesn’t match. How rude! I reflected, why make it worse, I’m already having a difficult experience. So rude! Ironically I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be perfect. Illness changed that.”
Past Medical Issues
She is familiar with health problems. She feels her outlook on her diagnosis has been so optimistic because she’s familiar with medical emergencies. They have often coincided with peak moments, acting as a reminder, or shock, to make her recall not to take anything for granted. “Truly, I feel fate says, ‘You having a good time? Sit down.’ From a young age, it has often paired with high points for me; a serious or unusual issue has impacted my body.”
She reminisces to her childhood, already starting her career performing in the stage in Whistle Down the Wind (she was cast at the age of 9). That’s when she was told about the heart condition a syndrome, which can cause a rapid pulse as well as vertigo and palpitations. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an intravenous line, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward several years, and teenage Jess has joined the trio the group while studying at the performing arts school. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a cerebral event. Then when I was ready to debut in recently I had a car crash and my voice box shifted and I was unable to vocalize for a twelve months.”
Oi, I say, hold on, I can’t keep up. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
