You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J says. At that moment preparing for her comeback record in eight years, ecstatically in love with her recent boyfriend, and finally the mother of a toddler after dealing with conception issues for ten years, feeling invincible. Suddenly in March she was found to have cancer in her breast.
The artist, actual name Jessica Cornish, is known for telling it as it is. The album, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was intended as an open book, tackling every moment of pain she’d endured since she last recorded music (endometriosis, losing a baby, broken romances, gaslighting, suicide) with typical candour. The initial release, the song No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there existed a huge secret. The illness. Later second single, her song Living My Best Life, debuted in late spring and she was talking to press about how she was living her best life, while all the while living with her cancer. Subsequently she shared the news, and in early July she had a mastectomy.
She gives me her best “What the fuck?” expression. “I put out with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they inquire, ‘What’s happening?’ and I’m, like, ‘Uh, nothing really’” Cornish has just had to call off performances because she’s still waiting for cosmetic procedures.
Our interview takes place at a studio in the capital. She is sporting a beige fake-leather jacket, jeans with ornate white designs, beige footwear and large glasses. Think biker chic meets vintage look. “I feel like I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” Easy Rider, I say, thinking of the picture. “They used to call me that!” She smiles. Cornish is quick, irreverent and filter-free. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is hoping to make her first comedy performance in the coming year. “I enjoy humor. During performances I basically roast the crowd.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
She was getting ready for an slot at the ceremony when she found a lump. “I immediately went to get it looked at, had an test, and they said, ‘It seems benign; your breasts are normal.’ And I was, like, ‘But I can feel it. I’ve got an achy arm and numbness in my fingers whenever I rise.’ And they replied, ‘We should biopsy it?’ That was 28 March, the post-birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The physician told her if it was concerning she’d call on the Monday. By then she had assured herself it was nothing. The way she explains it, it was inopportune to receive a diagnosis when she had a busy schedule.
“We’re two weeks away from releasing the album after years away and no new music. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I assumed, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I jump on the Zoom believing it’s all going to be fine, and she goes, ‘Please take a seat.’ The solemn tone? And she reveals, ‘Unfortunately but your test results have come back as high-grade cancer cells.’” What did you say? “I said, ‘Well, that’s not great. The timing is terrible.’ Immediately I felt 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 frightening and surreal. “I dislike anesthesia. They lead you. You know when you have emergency surgery you roll down in a bed, 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 notes, she’s been blessed. Without chemo or radio, just the procedure. “Cancer is awful, but however Luckily it was detected early. The surgery happened four months ago and my one side now appears as a grapefruit under a tight bedsheet.” She smiles again. “The nipple was preserved.”
The follow-up procedure is for health and appearance. Her chest, she notes, are now “uneven. The size doesn’t match. That’s impolite! I thought, why make it worse, I’m already having a rough time. How offensive! Ironically I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be perfect. My plans were disrupted.”
Previous Struggles
Cornish is accustomed to medical issues. She feels her outlook on her diagnosis has been so optimistic because she’s familiar with health crises. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, functioning as a wake-up call, or shock, to highlight not to be complacent. “Truly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘You having a good time? Hold on.’ Ever since I was a child, it has always gone alongside high points for me; a major or strange event has affected my well-being.”
She recalls to her youth, already starting her career featuring in the West End in a musical (she was chosen at the age of nine). That’s when she was diagnosed with the heart condition Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as dizziness and irregular beats. “I rehearsed between visits on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward half a dozen years, and young Jessica has entered the trio the group while studying at the performing arts school. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a cerebral event. Then when I was planning to release songs in the year 2020 I had a car crash and my throat was injured and I was unable to vocalize for a twelve months.”
Hey, I say, slow down, I can’t keep up. At just 17? She nods|agrees
