You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J remarks. There she was preparing for her new album launch in eight years, deeply enamored with her newish partner, and finally the parent to a young child after dealing with conception issues for ten years, feeling invincible. Then in March she was told she had a breast cancer diagnosis.
The artist, actual name J. Cornish, is renowned for being brutally honest. The LP, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was meant as an candid account, addressing every bit of hardship she’d faced since she last recorded music (a gynecological condition, pregnancy loss, unsuccessful partnerships, emotional abuse, suicide) with typical candour. The lead track, No Secrets, was dropped in the spring. But by then there was a mighty secret. The illness. Then second single, Living My Best Life, came out in late spring and she was talking to press about how she was living her best life, while still secretly dealing with her cancer. A month later she shared the news, and in the start of summer she underwent breast removal surgery.
She shoots me her best “Are you kidding?” expression. “I come out with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every interview, and they’re, like, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I respond, ‘Well, not much…’” Cornish has just had to postpone shows because she’s yet to undergo reconstructive surgery.
We’re at a studio in London. She is wearing a light brown synthetic jacket, blue jeans with elaborate white patches, cream boots and oversized specs. Think motorcycle style meets 70s singer aesthetic. “I feel like I’m in the seventies and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Like the film, I say, recalling the film. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She beams. Jessie is fast-thinking, bold and direct. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is aiming for her standup debut soon. “I love making people laugh. During performances I basically roast the fans.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
Cornish was preparing for an appearance at the awards show when she found a lump. “I promptly visited to get it examined, had an scan, and they were, like, ‘It looks like nothing; your breasts are normal.’ And I was, like, ‘Yet I sense it. I have arm pain and pins and needles in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they replied, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ The date was March 28, the following 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 assured herself it was nothing. The way she describes it, it was inopportune to face illness when she had a busy schedule.
“We’re two weeks away from debuting the project after eight years without an album and no new music. And she contacted me and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I was, like, ‘Oh, it’s a Zoom, it won’t be anything.’ So I join the call expecting it’s all going to be good, and she goes, ‘Please take a seat.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she says, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your test results have indicated high-grade cancer cells.’” How did you respond? “I said, ‘Well, that’s not great. That’s not fucking great timing.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”
Some men find me challenging due to my self-awareness
She considered the operation frightening and surreal. “I hate being put under. They lead you. During crises you roll down in a bed, but this time I just marched with a medical attire and my backside out. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, Cornish says, she’s been lucky. Without chemo or radio, just the surgery. “Cancer is awful, but however I’m grateful it was caught soon. I underwent removal four months ago and my one side now looks like a odd shape.” She smiles again. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The next operation is for health and appearance. Her chest, she remarks, are now “uneven. They didn’t do an implant as small as my original. That’s impolite! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a hard period. How offensive! It’s funny because I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be perfect. Cancer ruined that plan.”
Past Medical Issues
She is no stranger to illness. She believes her perspective on the cancer has been so optimistic because she’s familiar with medical emergencies. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, functioning as a wake-up call, or shock, to highlight not to assume everything is fine. “Truly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘You having a good time? Take a seat.’ Ever since I was a child, it has often paired with high points for me; something severe or obscure has impacted my body.”
She recalls to her childhood, already beginning starring in the London theater in the production (she was chosen at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was diagnosed with the heart condition WPW, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as lightheadedness and heart flutters. “I rehearsed between visits on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward half a dozen years, and teenage Jess has entered the female band the group while studying at the academy. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a cerebral event. Then when I was planning to release songs in 2020 I had a automobile accident and my larynx moved up and I couldn’t sing for a year.”
Wow, I say, wait, I need a moment. At just 17? She nods|agrees
