You can’t imagine it, Jessie J remarks. There she was preparing for her first album release in eight years, blissfully happy with her recent boyfriend, and finally the mother of a toddler after dealing with conception issues for ten years, riding high. Then in March she was told she had a breast cancer diagnosis.
The artist, actual name Jess Cornish, is famous for being brutally honest. The LP, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was meant as an candid account, addressing every bit of hardship she’d endured since she last recorded music (endometrial issues, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, gaslighting, suicidal thoughts) with typical candour. The first single, No Secrets, was dropped in April. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. Her diagnosis. Then follow-up track, the upbeat Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and Cornish was giving interviews about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while at the same time coping with breast cancer. Four weeks after she shared the news, and in the start of summer she underwent breast removal surgery.
She gives me her best “Seriously?” glance. “I put out with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m doing every media appearance, and they’re, like, ‘What’s happening?’ and I respond, ‘Uh, nothing really’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s awaiting reconstructive surgery.
We meet at a studio in London. She is wearing a tan faux-leather coat, denim trousers with elaborate white patches, cream boots and large glasses. Think biker chic meets vintage look. “As if I’m in the 1970s and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” A biker reference, I say, referencing the picture. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She smiles. Jessie is fast-thinking, bold and filter-free. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is planning to attempt her first comedy performance soon. “I enjoy humor. During performances I often tease the audience.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
She was getting ready for an performance at the ceremony when she found a lump. “I quickly sought to get it examined, had an ultrasound, and they were, like, ‘It seems benign; your tissue is healthy.’ And I insisted, ‘However, it’s there. I’ve got an achy arm and pins and needles in my hands whenever I wake up.’ And they said, ‘We should biopsy it?’ The date was March 28, the following my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The specialist told her if it was bad news she’d reach out on the start of the week. By then Cornish had persuaded herself it was nothing. The way she explains it, it was simply too inconvenient to face illness when she had many commitments.
“It was a fortnight prior from releasing the album after eight years without an album and an extended break. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I assumed, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I jump on the Zoom believing it’s all going to be fine, and she says, ‘Please take a seat.’ The solemn tone? And she reveals, ‘I regret to inform you but your biopsy results have shown high-grade cancer cells.’” What was your reaction? “I said, ‘Well, that’s not great. 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 viewed the procedure scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. You’re escorted. During crises you roll down in a bed, but then I just strolled down with a gown on and my bum hanging out. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she adds, she’s been fortunate. Without chemo or radio, just the procedure. “Cancer is awful, but you know what? Thank fuck I found it early. The surgery happened a few months back and my affected breast now appears as a fruit under fabric.” Another grin. “The nipple was preserved.”
The subsequent surgery is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her boobs, she remarks, are now “different sizes. The size doesn’t match. So inconsiderate! I felt, why make it worse, I’m already having a difficult experience. Such disrespect! Ironically I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be flawless. My plans were disrupted.”
A History of Health Challenges
The singer is no stranger to illness. She feels her outlook on her diagnosis has been so positive because she’s experienced in health crises. They have often coincided with career highs, acting as a reminder, or punch in the stomach, to highlight not to be complacent. “Truly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘Things going well? Sit down.’ From a young age, it has always gone alongside high points for me; a serious or unusual issue has affected my well-being.”
She recalls to her childhood, already making her debut starring in the West End in the production (she was selected at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was found to have the heart condition Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as lightheadedness and irregular beats. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an IV drip, and being readmitted at night.” She fast-forwards several years, and 17-year-old Jess has become part of the female band Soul Deep while studying at the Brit School. “I secured a deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was planning to release songs in the year 2020 I had a automobile accident and my throat was injured and I couldn’t sing for a twelve months.”
Hey, I say, hold on, I need a moment. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
