You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J says. At that moment gearing up for her first album release in nearly a decade, deeply enamored with her recent boyfriend, and finally the mother of a toddler after facing fertility challenges for ten years, riding high. Suddenly in spring she was found to have cancer in her breast.
The musician, real name Jessica Cornish, is known for speaking her mind. The LP, the provocatively titled album, was supposed to be an open book, addressing every moment of pain she’d experienced since she last made an album (a gynecological condition, losing a baby, failed relationships, gaslighting, suicide) with her usual frankness. The first single, No Secrets, was dropped in the spring. But by then there was a mighty secret. The cancer. Then follow-up track, the upbeat Living My Best Life, was released in May and she was talking to press about how she was thriving, while still secretly dealing with her cancer. Subsequently she went public, and in early July she received surgical treatment.
She gives me her best “Seriously?” expression. “I put out with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they’re, like, ‘What’s happening?’ and I’m, like, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s awaiting cosmetic procedures.
Our interview takes place at a photography studio in London. She is sporting a light brown synthetic jacket, blue jeans with elaborate white patches, beige footwear and oversized specs. Picture rocker vibe meets vintage look. “It seems like I’m in the seventies and I should have a partner with a mustache.” Like the film, I say, thinking of the film. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She smiles. Cornish is fast-thinking, bold and filter-free. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is aiming for her first comedy performance soon. “I enjoy humor. During performances I basically roast the crowd.”
Medical Challenges and Discovery
She was preparing for an slot at the Baftas when she found a lump. “I quickly sought to get it examined, had an scan, and they said, ‘It seems benign; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I was, like, ‘But I can feel it. My arm hurts and numbness in my fingers whenever I get up.’ And they suggested, ‘How about a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the post-birthday.” It was a Friday. The specialist told her if it was concerning she’d call on the Monday. By then she had persuaded herself it was fine. The way she tells it, it was inopportune to get cancer when she had so much on.
“It was a fortnight prior from releasing the album after a long hiatus and an extended break. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I was, like, ‘Oh, it’s a Zoom, it won’t be anything.’ So I jump on the Zoom thinking it’s all going to be good, and she says, ‘You might want to sit.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she says, ‘I regret to inform you but your reports have shown malignant cells.’” What was your reaction? “I said, ‘That’s unfortunate. The timing is terrible.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs 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 roll down in a bed, but this time I just strolled down with a medical attire and my bum hanging out. It felt surreal.” But, Cornish says, she’s been lucky. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the surgery. “Cancer sucks, man, but you know what? Thank fuck I found it early. I underwent removal a few months back and my right breast now appears as a odd shape.” Another grin. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The next operation is both medical and cosmetic. Her boobs, she notes, are now “different sizes. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I thought, why make it worse, I’m already having a hard period. Such disrespect! Amusingly I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be flawless. Illness changed that.”
Previous Struggles
The singer is familiar with health problems. She feels her outlook on her diagnosis has been so optimistic because she’s used to physical challenges. Many times they occur alongside professional successes, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or shock, to make her recall not to take anything for granted. “Honestly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘Things going well? Sit down.’ Ever since I was a child, it has always gone alongside high points for me; a serious or unusual issue has happened to my health.”
She takes me back to her youth, already starting her career starring in the London theater in the production (she was chosen at the age of nine). That’s when she was told about the cardiac issue WPW, which can cause a rapid pulse as well as dizziness and palpitations. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an drip, and returning to the hospital at night.” She fast-forwards six years, and 17-year-old Jess has joined the girl group Soul Deep while studying at the Brit School. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was planning to release songs in 2020 I had a automobile accident and my throat was injured and I was unable to vocalize for a twelve months.”
Hey, I say, wait, I am overwhelmed. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
