You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J says. There she was preparing for her comeback record in eight years, deeply enamored with her newish partner, and finally the mom to a little one after struggling to conceive for ten years, feeling invincible. Suddenly in spring she was told she had cancer in her breast.
The musician, birth name J. Cornish, is known for being brutally honest. The album, her latest release, was supposed to be an candid account, dealing with every bit of hardship she’d endured since she last recorded music (endometrial issues, losing a baby, broken romances, gaslighting, mental health struggles) with her usual frankness. The first single, her single No Secrets, was launched in April. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. Her diagnosis. Then follow-up track, the upbeat Living My Best Life, came out in late spring and she was giving interviews about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while all the while living with breast cancer. Four weeks after she went public, and in July she had a mastectomy.
She offers me her best “Are you kidding?” expression. “I release with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m doing every press talk, and they inquire, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I’m, like, ‘Uh, nothing really’” she has just had to postpone shows because she’s still waiting for follow-up surgery.
We’re at a studio in London. She is sporting a tan faux-leather coat, blue jeans with ornate white designs, beige footwear and oversized specs. Picture motorcycle style meets 1970s Nana Mouskouri. “It seems like I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” A biker reference, I say, recalling the film. “That’s what people called me at school!” She beams. She is sharp-witted, unfiltered and filter-free. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is planning to attempt her initial standup show in the coming year. “I enjoy humor. During performances I often tease the crowd.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
Cornish was preparing for an slot at the awards show when she found a lump. “I quickly sought to get it looked at, had an test, and they said, ‘It seems benign; your tissue is healthy.’ And I was, like, ‘However, it’s there. I have arm pain and tingling in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they suggested, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the following my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The specialist told her if it was bad news she’d reach out on the Monday. By then Cornish had persuaded herself it was fine. The way she explains it, it was just bad timing to face illness when she had many commitments.
“Just two weeks before from launching this thing after eight years without an album and no new music. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I thought, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I jump on the Zoom expecting it’s all going to be positive, and she says, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ That sympathetic voice? And she continues, ‘Unfortunately but your test results have shown aggressive cancer.’” How did you respond? “I answered, ‘That’s unfortunate. The timing is terrible.’ Immediately I felt 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 hate being put under. You’re escorted. During crises you are wheeled, but then I just walked with a hospital gown and my backside out. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she notes, she’s been blessed. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the surgery. “Cancer is awful, but yet Luckily it was detected early. The surgery happened a few months back and my one side now looks like a odd shape.” A further beam. “The nipple was preserved.”
The next operation is for health and appearance. Her breasts, she observes, are now “asymmetrical. The implant is larger than before. That’s impolite! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a rough time. How offensive! Amusingly I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be ideal. Illness changed that.”
A History of Health Challenges
She is familiar with health problems. She feels her attitude toward illness has been so upbeat because she’s used to physical challenges. Frequently they align with peak moments, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or shock, to remind her not to assume everything is fine. “Honestly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘You having a good time? Take a seat.’ From a young age, it has often paired with achievements for me; something severe or obscure has affected my well-being.”
She takes me back to her youth, already beginning performing in the London theater in Whistle Down the Wind (she was chosen at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was found to have the cardiac issue WPW, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as dizziness and palpitations. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an intravenous line, and being readmitted at night.” She skips forward several years, and 17-year-old Jess has become part of the girl group Soul Deep while attending the performing arts school. “I secured a deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was ready to debut in recently I had a car crash and my throat was injured and I lost my voice for a twelve months.”
Oi, I say, wait, I need a moment. At just 17? She nods|agrees
