You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J states. There she was readying for her comeback record in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her current love, and at long last the mother of a toddler after dealing with conception issues for a decade, on top of the world. Then in March she was told she had a breast cancer diagnosis.
The artist, actual name Jess Cornish, is renowned for speaking her mind. The LP, her latest release, was supposed to be an candid account, addressing every moment of pain she’d faced since she last made an album (a gynecological condition, losing a baby, broken romances, emotional abuse, suicide) with her usual frankness. The initial release, her single No Secrets, was dropped in the spring. But by then there was a mighty secret. The illness. Later next release, the upbeat Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and the artist was speaking publicly about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while all the while dealing with the disease. Four weeks after she went public, and in the start of summer she underwent breast removal surgery.
She gives me her best “What the fuck?” expression. “I release with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m conducting every interview, and they ask, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I respond, ‘Well, not much…’” she has just had to postpone shows because she’s still waiting for cosmetic procedures.
We’re at a photography studio in the capital. She is dressed in a beige fake-leather jacket, denim trousers with elaborate white patches, beige footwear and large glasses. Picture motorcycle style meets 1970s Nana Mouskouri. “I feel like I’m in the 70s and I should have a partner with a mustache.” Easy Rider, I say, thinking of the picture. “They used to call me that!” She grins. Jessie is sharp-witted, unfiltered and blunt. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is aiming for her standup debut next year. “I enjoy humor. When performing I often tease the audience.”
Personal Battles and News
She was planning an slot at the Baftas when she discovered a mass. “I immediately went to get it examined, had an scan, and they told me, ‘It looks like nothing; your breasts are normal.’ And I responded, ‘Yet I sense it. I’ve got an achy arm and pins and needles in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they said, ‘We should biopsy it?’ That was 28 March, the day after my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The specialist told her if it was bad news she’d call on the Monday. By then Cornish had convinced herself it was fine. The way she describes it, it was simply too inconvenient to face illness when she had a busy schedule.
“It was a fortnight prior from debuting the project after a long hiatus and four years without a single. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I thought, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I jump on the Zoom thinking it’s all going to be fine, and she goes, ‘You might want to sit.’ The solemn tone? And she says, ‘Unfortunately but your reports have shown aggressive cancer.’” What was your reaction? “I said, ‘Well, that’s not great. The timing is terrible.’ 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 viewed the procedure terrifying and absurd. “I dislike anesthesia. You’re escorted. In urgent cases you are wheeled, but this time I just strolled down with a gown on and my backside out. It felt surreal.” But, she notes, she’s been lucky. No chemotherapy or radiation, 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 looks like a fruit under fabric.” Another grin. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The follow-up procedure is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her breasts, she observes, are now “uneven. The size doesn’t match. How rude! I reflected, why make it worse, I’m already having a difficult experience. So rude! It’s funny because I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be flawless. Cancer ruined that plan.”
Previous Struggles
She is familiar with health problems. She thinks her attitude toward illness has been so positive because she’s experienced in physical challenges. They have often coincided with career highs, acting as a reminder, or blow, to remind her not to be complacent. “Frankly, I feel fate says, ‘You having a good time? Sit down.’ Since childhood, it has often paired with moments of success for me; a major or strange event has affected my well-being.”
She reminisces to her childhood, already making her debut starring in the stage in a musical (she was chosen at the age of 9). That’s when she was told about the heart condition a syndrome, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as vertigo and palpitations. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She jumps ahead six years, and teenage Jess has become part of the trio Soul Deep while studying at the academy. “I secured a deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was about to put out music in the year 2020 I had a automobile accident and my voice box shifted and I couldn’t sing for a twelve months.”
Wow, I say, wait, I am overwhelmed. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
