You can’t imagine it, Jessie J states. At that moment gearing up for her first album release in eight years, ecstatically in love with her recent boyfriend, and at long last the mom to a little one after dealing with conception issues for ten years, riding high. Then in spring she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
The musician, actual name Jessica Cornish, is famous for speaking her mind. The LP, her latest release, was meant as an transparent story, addressing every ounce of devastation she’d experienced since she last made an album (endometriosis, pregnancy loss, unsuccessful partnerships, gaslighting, mental health struggles) with typical candour. The lead track, her single No Secrets, was launched in April. But by then there was a mighty secret. The illness. Later follow-up track, her song Living My Best Life, came out in May and the artist was talking to press about how she was thriving, while at the same time dealing with the disease. Four weeks after she disclosed her condition, and in early July she had a mastectomy.
She offers me her best “Are you kidding?” expression. “I release with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they inquire, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I answer, ‘Uh, nothing really’” she has just had to postpone shows because she’s yet to undergo reconstructive surgery.
Our interview takes place at a studio in the capital. She is wearing a beige fake-leather jacket, denim trousers with elaborate white patches, off-white boots and big frames. Think motorcycle style meets vintage look. “It seems like I’m in the 1970s and I should have a partner with a mustache.” A biker reference, I say, recalling the film. “That’s what people called me at school!” She beams. She is quick, irreverent and direct. She says she has always been interested in humor and is hoping to make her initial standup show soon. “I like entertaining. During performances I often tease the audience.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
Cornish was getting ready for an performance at the awards show when she discovered a mass. “I immediately went to get it looked at, had an test, and they were, like, ‘It seems benign; your tissue is healthy.’ And I insisted, ‘But I can feel it. I have arm pain and tingling in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they replied, ‘How about a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the post-birthday.” It was a Friday. The physician told her if it was concerning she’d reach out on the start of the week. By then Cornish had assured herself it was nothing. The way she explains it, it was simply too inconvenient to receive a diagnosis when she had a busy schedule.
“It was a fortnight prior from launching this thing after a long hiatus and no new music. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I assumed, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I join the call believing it’s all going to be fine, and she goes, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ The solemn tone? And she reveals, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your test results have shown aggressive cancer.’” What was your reaction? “I answered, ‘That’s unfortunate. What awful timing.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I have to survive for my boy.’”
Men have called me difficult because I’m a strong person who understands who I am
She considered the operation scary and bizarre. “I fear going under. You’re escorted. During crises you are wheeled, but this time I just walked with a hospital gown and my bum hanging out. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, she adds, she’s been blessed. Without chemo or radio, just the op. “Cancer is awful, but however Thank fuck I found it early. I had the mastectomy recently and my affected breast now resembles a grapefruit under a tight bedsheet.” Another grin. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The follow-up procedure is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her boobs, she observes, are now “different sizes. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a hard period. How offensive! It’s funny because I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be flawless. Illness changed that.”
Past Medical Issues
Cornish is accustomed to medical issues. She thinks her perspective on the cancer has been so upbeat because she’s familiar with health crises. Many times they occur alongside professional successes, acting as a reminder, or shock, to remind her not to be complacent. “Honestly, I feel fate says, ‘Things going well? Take a seat.’ Ever since I was a child, it has often paired with high points for me; something severe or obscure has impacted my body.”
She reminisces to her childhood, already making her debut featuring in the West End in a musical (she was selected at the age of 9). That’s when she was found to have the cardiac issue WPW, which can cause a tachycardia as well as dizziness and heart flutters. “I rehearsed between visits on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She fast-forwards half a dozen years, and teenage Jess has entered the female band Soul Deep while enrolled in the Brit School. “I secured a deal, and I had a cerebral event. Then when I was ready to debut in recently I had a automobile accident and my throat was injured and I was unable to vocalize for a long period.”
Oi, I say, slow down, I need a moment. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
