You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J remarks. There she was preparing for her first album release in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her current love, and finally the parent to a young child after struggling to conceive for ten years, riding high. Suddenly in spring she was found to have breast cancer.
The artist, birth name Jess Cornish, is known for telling it as it is. The album, her latest release, was supposed to be an transparent story, dealing with every moment of pain she’d experienced since she last worked on songs (endometrial issues, miscarriage, unsuccessful partnerships, psychological manipulation, suicidal thoughts) with characteristic openness. The lead track, the song No Secrets, was released in April. But by then there existed a huge secret. The illness. Later second single, her song Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and Cornish was giving interviews about how she was thriving, while still secretly living with her cancer. Four weeks after she went public, and in the start of summer she underwent breast removal surgery.
She shoots me her best “What the fuck?” glance. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they inquire, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I respond, ‘Uh, nothing really’” she has just had to postpone shows because she’s awaiting follow-up surgery.
We meet at a photo studio in London. She is dressed in a light brown synthetic jacket, denim trousers with elaborate white patches, off-white boots and large glasses. Picture biker chic meets vintage look. “As if I’m in the 1970s and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Like the film, I say, recalling the picture. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She beams. She is sharp-witted, bold and blunt. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is aiming for her standup debut next year. “I like entertaining. When performing I basically roast the audience.”
Medical Challenges and Discovery
The artist was planning an slot at the ceremony when she discovered a mass. “I quickly sought to get it examined, had an scan, and they were, like, ‘It looks like nothing; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I insisted, ‘Yet I sense it. I’ve got an achy arm and numbness in my fingers whenever I wake up.’ And they said, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the post-birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The physician told her if it was serious she’d reach out on the Monday. By then she had assured herself it was nothing. The way she describes it, it was just bad timing to face illness when she had so much on.
“We’re two weeks away from launching this thing after a long hiatus and no new music. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I was, like, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I join the call expecting it’s all going to be good, and she says, ‘You might want to sit.’ The solemn tone? And she continues, ‘Unfortunately but your test results have indicated high-grade cancer cells.’” What was your reaction? “I said, ‘That’s unfortunate. The timing is terrible.’ My initial thought was, ‘My child depends on me.’”
Men have called me difficult because I’m a strong person who understands who I am
She considered the operation frightening and surreal. “I dislike anesthesia. They walk you down. In urgent cases you go on a gurney, but this time I just marched with a medical attire and my rear exposed. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she adds, she’s been lucky. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the op. “It’s terrible, but however I’m grateful it was caught soon. The surgery happened four months ago and my right breast now resembles a fruit under fabric.” A further beam. “At least the nipple remains.”
The follow-up procedure is for health and appearance. Her chest, she remarks, are now “asymmetrical. The size doesn’t match. So inconsiderate! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a rough time. Such disrespect! It’s funny because I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be ideal. Cancer ruined that plan.”
A History of Health Challenges
The singer is familiar with health problems. She thinks her perspective on the cancer has been so optimistic because she’s used to medical emergencies. They have often coincided with career highs, functioning as a wake-up call, or shock, to highlight not to be complacent. “Truly, I feel life goes, ‘Enjoying yourself? Hold on.’ Since childhood, it has always gone alongside high points for me; a major or strange event has impacted my body.”
She reminisces to her youth, already starting her career featuring in the stage in a musical (she was chosen at the age of 9). That’s when she was found to have the heart condition WPW, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as vertigo and irregular beats. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an intravenous line, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward half a dozen years, and young Jessica has entered the trio the group while studying at the Brit School. “I secured a deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was about to put out music in recently I had a automobile accident and my larynx moved up and I was unable to vocalize for a twelve months.”
Oi, I say, hold on, I can’t keep up. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
