You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J states. At that moment preparing for her comeback record in eight years, blissfully happy with her recent boyfriend, and at long last the mom to a little one after struggling to conceive for a decade, feeling invincible. Then in spring she was diagnosed with cancer in her breast.
The singer-songwriter, real name J. Cornish, is famous for being brutally honest. The record, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was supposed to be an candid account, tackling every ounce of devastation she’d experienced since she last recorded music (endometrial issues, pregnancy loss, broken romances, emotional abuse, suicidal thoughts) with her usual frankness. The initial release, No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there was a mighty secret. The cancer. Then second single, her song Living My Best Life, came out in late spring and the artist was speaking publicly about how she was living her best life, while all the while dealing with breast cancer. Subsequently she disclosed her condition, and in early July she received surgical treatment.
She gives me her best “Seriously?” look. “I release with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m conducting every interview, and they inquire, ‘Any updates?’ and I respond, ‘Well, not much…’” the singer has just had to call off performances because she’s still waiting for cosmetic procedures.
Our interview takes place at a photography studio in London. She is dressed in a light brown synthetic jacket, jeans with ornate white designs, cream boots and large glasses. Imagine rocker vibe meets 70s singer aesthetic. “It seems like I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” Easy Rider, I say, thinking of the film. “That’s what people called me at school!” She grins. Jessie is quick, bold and direct. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is planning to attempt her first comedy performance in the coming year. “I like entertaining. During performances I often tease the audience.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
She was planning an appearance at the awards show when she found a lump. “I quickly sought to get it checked, had an ultrasound, and they told me, ‘It appears fine; your tissue is healthy.’ And I insisted, ‘Yet I sense it. My arm hurts and tingling in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they said, ‘How about a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a Friday. The physician told her if it was concerning she’d call on the Monday. By then Cornish had assured herself it was nothing. The way she tells it, it was inopportune to receive a diagnosis when she had a busy schedule.
“We’re two weeks away from releasing the album after eight years without an album and no new music. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I thought, ‘Oh, it’s a Zoom, it won’t be anything.’ So I log in expecting it’s all going to be fine, and she goes, ‘You might want to sit.’ The solemn tone? And she says, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your reports have come back as aggressive cancer.’” What did you say? “I replied, ‘That’s unfortunate. The timing is terrible.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”
Some men find me challenging due to my self-awareness
She considered the operation terrifying and absurd. “I dislike anesthesia. They walk you down. In urgent cases you go on a gurney, but then I just strolled down with a medical attire and my bum hanging out. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, Cornish says, she’s been lucky. Without chemo or radio, just the op. “Cancer sucks, man, but however I’m grateful it was caught soon. I underwent removal a few months back and my right breast now appears as a fruit under fabric.” She smiles again. “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, no need to bully me, I’m already having a hard period. Such disrespect! Amusingly I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be flawless. My plans were disrupted.”
Past Medical Issues
Cornish is accustomed to medical issues. She believes her attitude toward illness has been so positive because she’s experienced in physical challenges. Many times they occur alongside career highs, functioning as a wake-up call, or blow, to highlight not to assume everything is fine. “Frankly, I feel fate says, ‘Enjoying yourself? Take a seat.’ Ever since I was a child, it has always gone alongside achievements for me; a serious or unusual issue has impacted my body.”
She recalls to her 11-year-old self, already starting her career featuring in the stage in a musical (she was selected at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was found to have the cardiac issue Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as dizziness and palpitations. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward half a dozen years, and teenage Jess has become part of the trio Soul Deep while enrolled in the academy. “I secured a deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was about to put out music in 2020 I had a automobile accident and my throat was injured and I was unable to vocalize for a long period.”
Wow, I say, slow down, I can’t keep up. At just 17? She nods|agrees
