You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J says. At that moment preparing for her first album release in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her current love, and at long last the mother of a toddler after facing fertility challenges for a decade, on top of the world. Then in March she was found to have a breast cancer diagnosis.
The artist, birth name J. Cornish, is known for being brutally honest. The album, the provocatively titled album, was intended as an candid account, addressing every bit of hardship she’d endured since she last recorded music (a gynecological condition, losing a baby, failed relationships, gaslighting, suicide) with her usual frankness. The first single, No Secrets, was dropped in the spring. But by then there was a mighty secret. The cancer. Later follow-up track, the upbeat 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 dealing with breast cancer. A month later she went public, and in early July she underwent breast removal surgery.
She gives me her best “Seriously?” look. “I release with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m giving every media appearance, and they’re, like, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I answer, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” Cornish has just had to cancel tour dates because she’s yet to undergo reconstructive surgery.
We meet at a photo studio in London. She is sporting a beige fake-leather jacket, blue jeans with elaborate white patches, cream boots and large glasses. Think biker chic meets 70s singer aesthetic. “I feel like I’m in the 1970s and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Easy Rider, I say, recalling the movie. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She beams. Jessie is sharp-witted, bold and filter-free. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is aiming for her initial standup show next year. “I enjoy humor. During performances I often tease the crowd.”
Personal Battles and News
The artist was preparing for an appearance at the Baftas when she discovered a mass. “I quickly sought to get it examined, had an scan, and they said, ‘It looks like nothing; your breasts are normal.’ And I insisted, ‘But I can feel it. I have arm pain and pins and needles in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they suggested, ‘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 serious she’d reach out on the Monday. By then Cornish had convinced herself it was okay. The way she explains it, it was inopportune to receive a diagnosis when she had many commitments.
“Just two weeks before from debuting the project after eight years without an album and four years without a single. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I was, like, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I jump on the Zoom believing it’s all going to be positive, and she informs me, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ The solemn tone? And she reveals, ‘Unfortunately but your reports have shown high-grade cancer cells.’” What did you say? “I said, ‘Well, that’s not great. What awful timing.’ My initial thought was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”
I’ve been labeled difficult for knowing myself
She found the surgery frightening and surreal. “I dislike anesthesia. You’re escorted. During crises you are wheeled, but then I just marched with a gown on and my bum hanging out. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she notes, she’s been blessed. Without chemo or radio, just the procedure. “Cancer is awful, but however Thank fuck I found it early. I underwent removal recently 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 boobs, she notes, are now “different sizes. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I felt, don’t add insult to injury, I’m already having a difficult experience. Such disrespect! It’s funny because I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be flawless. Cancer ruined that plan.”
Previous Struggles
The singer is no stranger to illness. She thinks her outlook on her diagnosis has been so upbeat because she’s used to medical emergencies. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, functioning as a wake-up call, or shock, to highlight not to be complacent. “Frankly, I feel fate says, ‘Enjoying yourself? Hold on.’ From a young age, it has often paired with moments of success for me; something severe or obscure has impacted my body.”
She reminisces to her youth, already beginning starring in the West End in Whistle Down the Wind (she was cast at the age of 9). That’s when she was found to have the heart condition Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as lightheadedness and heart flutters. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She fast-forwards six years, and young Jessica has entered the girl group the group while studying at the performing arts school. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was about to put out music in 2020 I had a car crash and my throat was injured and I was unable to vocalize for a twelve months.”
Oi, I say, wait, I can’t keep up. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
