You can’t imagine it, Jessie J states. There she was readying for her comeback record in nearly a decade, blissfully happy with her recent boyfriend, and at long last the parent to a young child after struggling to conceive for a decade, on top of the world. Then in spring she was told she had cancer in her breast.
The singer-songwriter, birth name Jess Cornish, is renowned for speaking her mind. The LP, her latest release, was intended as an transparent story, dealing with every moment of pain she’d experienced since she last recorded music (endometrial issues, losing a baby, unsuccessful partnerships, gaslighting, suicidal thoughts) with typical candour. The lead track, her single No Secrets, was released in the spring. But by then there existed a huge secret. Her diagnosis. Then second single, Living My Best Life, came out in late spring and she was speaking publicly about how she was living her best life, while all the while coping with the disease. Subsequently she shared the news, and in the start of summer she had a mastectomy.
She offers me her best “Are you kidding?” glance. “I put out with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m conducting every press talk, and they’re, like, ‘Any updates?’ and I’m, like, ‘Well, not much…’” she has just had to call off performances because she’s awaiting follow-up surgery.
Our interview takes place at a studio in the capital. She is dressed in a tan faux-leather coat, jeans with detailed white appliqués, off-white boots and big frames. Imagine rocker vibe meets 70s singer aesthetic. “It seems like I’m in the 1970s and I should have a man with facial hair.” A biker reference, I say, thinking of the movie. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She grins. She is fast-thinking, irreverent and direct. She says she has always been interested in humor and is planning to attempt her first comedy performance soon. “I like entertaining. When performing I basically roast the audience.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
She was preparing for an performance at the Baftas when she discovered a mass. “I promptly visited to get it checked, had an scan, and they said, ‘It appears fine; your breasts are normal.’ And I responded, ‘But I can feel it. I’ve got an achy arm and pins and needles in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they said, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the post-birthday.” It was a Friday. The specialist told her if it was bad news she’d contact on the Monday. By then she had convinced herself it was fine. The way she explains it, it was simply too inconvenient to get cancer when she had a busy schedule.
“It was a fortnight prior from releasing the album after years away and no new music. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I was, like, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I join the call expecting it’s all going to be positive, and she goes, ‘Please take a seat.’ That sympathetic voice? And she reveals, ‘Unfortunately but your reports have come back as aggressive cancer.’” What did you say? “I said, ‘That’s unfortunate. What awful timing.’ My initial 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 found the surgery scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. They lead you. During crises you roll down in a bed, but now I just walked with a gown on and my backside out. It felt surreal.” But, Cornish says, she’s been lucky. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the op. “It’s terrible, but you know what? Luckily it was detected early. The surgery happened a few months back and my right breast now appears as a odd shape.” She smiles again. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The next operation is for health and appearance. Her boobs, she remarks, are now “asymmetrical. The implant is larger than before. How rude! I felt, no need to bully me, I’m already having a hard period. How offensive! It’s funny because I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be perfect. My plans were disrupted.”
Previous Struggles
Cornish is accustomed to medical issues. She feels her attitude toward illness has been so positive because she’s experienced in physical challenges. Frequently they align with peak moments, acting as a reminder, or punch in the stomach, to highlight not to assume everything is fine. “Honestly, I feel fate says, ‘Enjoying yourself? Hold on.’ From a young age, it has consistently accompanied achievements for me; something severe or obscure has impacted my body.”
She recalls to her childhood, already starting her career starring in the London theater in the production (she was selected at the age of nine). That’s when she was diagnosed with the medical problem a syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as dizziness and irregular beats. “I rehearsed between visits on an IV drip, and being readmitted at night.” She jumps ahead several years, and young Jessica has become part of the girl group the group while enrolled in the academy. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a stroke. Then when I was ready to debut in the year 2020 I had a collision and my larynx moved up and I couldn’t sing for a year.”
Oi, I say, wait, I need a moment. At just 17? She nods|agrees
