You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J says. At that moment preparing for her new album launch in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her newish partner, and finally the parent to a young child after facing fertility challenges for ten years, on top of the world. Suddenly in spring she was diagnosed with cancer in her breast.
The singer-songwriter, real name J. Cornish, is known for telling it as it is. The album, the provocatively titled album, was intended as an transparent story, tackling every ounce of devastation she’d endured since she last made an album (endometrial issues, losing a baby, broken romances, psychological manipulation, mental health struggles) with characteristic openness. The first single, No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there was a mighty secret. Her diagnosis. Then next release, Living My Best Life, was released in May and she was speaking publicly about how she was thriving, while at the same time living with breast cancer. A month later she went public, and in early July she had a mastectomy.
She offers me her best “Seriously?” look. “I release with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every press talk, and they ask, ‘What’s happening?’ and I respond, ‘Well, not much…’” Cornish has just had to call off performances because she’s awaiting reconstructive surgery.
We’re at a photo studio in the capital. She is sporting a beige fake-leather jacket, denim trousers with detailed white appliqués, cream boots and big frames. Picture biker chic meets 70s singer aesthetic. “I feel like I’m in the seventies and I should have a partner with a mustache.” Easy Rider, I say, thinking of the movie. “They used to call me that!” She grins. Cornish is fast-thinking, bold and blunt. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is planning to attempt her standup debut next year. “I like entertaining. On stage I often tease the audience.”
Personal Battles and News
The artist was preparing for an appearance at the awards show when she discovered a mass. “I quickly sought to get it checked, had an test, and they said, ‘It looks like nothing; your breasts are normal.’ And I insisted, ‘However, it’s there. I’ve got an achy arm and numbness in my fingers whenever I wake up.’ And they replied, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ The date was March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The physician told her if it was concerning she’d reach out on the start of the week. By then she had convinced herself it was nothing. The way she explains it, it was inopportune to get cancer when she had a busy schedule.
“Just two weeks before from debuting the project after a long hiatus and an extended break. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I was, like, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I jump on the Zoom 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 biopsy results have shown malignant cells.’” What was your reaction? “I replied, ‘That’s unfortunate. What awful timing.’ 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 viewed the procedure scary and bizarre. “I hate being put under. They lead you. In urgent cases you are wheeled, but now I just strolled down with a hospital gown and my backside out. It felt surreal.” But, she adds, she’s been lucky. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the procedure. “Cancer is awful, but however I’m grateful it was caught soon. I underwent removal recently and my one side now appears as a fruit under fabric.” A further beam. “At least the nipple remains.”
The subsequent surgery is for health and appearance. Her chest, she remarks, are now “uneven. They didn’t do an implant as small as my original. That’s impolite! I reflected, don’t add insult to injury, I’m already having a rough time. Such disrespect! Amusingly I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be ideal. Illness changed that.”
A History of Health Challenges
The singer is accustomed to medical issues. She feels her perspective on the cancer has been so positive because she’s experienced in physical challenges. They have often coincided with peak moments, acting as a reminder, or shock, to highlight not to assume everything is fine. “Truly, I feel fate says, ‘You having a good time? Hold on.’ From a young age, it has consistently accompanied achievements for me; a serious or unusual issue has affected my well-being.”
She takes me back to her childhood, already starting her career performing in the stage in Whistle Down the Wind (she was cast at the age of nine). That’s when she was diagnosed with the cardiac issue Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as vertigo and heart flutters. “I rehearsed between visits on an drip, and returning to the hospital at night.” She fast-forwards several years, and young Jessica has become part of the girl group Soul Deep while enrolled in the performing arts school. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was about to put out music in the year 2020 I had a automobile accident and my larynx moved up and I was unable to vocalize for a long period.”
Hey, I say, hold on, I need a moment. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
