You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J states. At that moment readying for her new album launch in nearly a decade, blissfully happy with her recent boyfriend, and finally the parent to a young child after facing fertility challenges for a decade, feeling invincible. Suddenly in March she was told she had breast cancer.
The artist, real name J. Cornish, is famous for being brutally honest. The record, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was meant as an open book, addressing every moment of pain she’d faced since she last made an album (endometrial issues, losing a baby, unsuccessful partnerships, emotional abuse, suicide) with typical candour. The lead track, her single No Secrets, was released in the spring. But by then there was a mighty secret. The cancer. Then next release, the upbeat Living My Best Life, debuted in May and the artist was speaking publicly about how she was thriving, while at the same time living with the disease. A month later she went public, and in early July she underwent breast removal surgery.
She offers me her best “Seriously?” glance. “I release with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m conducting every media appearance, and they inquire, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I’m, like, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” she has just had to cancel tour dates because she’s awaiting cosmetic procedures.
We’re at a photo studio in London. She is dressed in a beige fake-leather jacket, denim trousers with ornate white designs, off-white boots and large glasses. Imagine biker chic meets vintage look. “As if I’m in the 1970s and I should have a partner with a mustache.” A biker reference, I say, recalling the movie. “They used to call me that!” She grins. She is fast-thinking, irreverent and filter-free. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is aiming for her first comedy performance next year. “I like entertaining. When performing I frequently joke about the crowd.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
The artist was preparing for an slot at the ceremony when she found a lump. “I quickly sought to get it checked, had an ultrasound, and they were, like, ‘It looks like nothing; your tissue is healthy.’ And I was, like, ‘Yet I sense it. My arm hurts and tingling in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they suggested, ‘How about a biopsy?’ The date was March 28, the following my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The physician told her if it was bad news she’d call on the start of the week. By then Cornish had convinced herself it was okay. The way she explains it, it was just bad timing to receive a diagnosis when she had a busy schedule.
“Just two weeks before from releasing the album after eight years without an album and an extended break. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I thought, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I join the call thinking it’s all going to be good, and she goes, ‘You might want to sit.’ The solemn tone? And she reveals, ‘Unfortunately but your test results have indicated aggressive cancer.’” What did you say? “I said, ‘Well, that’s not great. That’s not fucking great timing.’ My initial thought was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”
Men have called me difficult because I’m a strong person who understands who I am
She found the surgery scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. You’re escorted. During crises you are wheeled, but this time I just walked with a medical attire and my bum hanging out. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she notes, she’s been fortunate. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the surgery. “Cancer is awful, but however I’m grateful it was caught soon. The surgery happened a few months back and my affected breast now looks like a odd shape.” Another grin. “At least the nipple remains.”
The subsequent surgery is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her breasts, she remarks, are now “asymmetrical. They didn’t do an implant as small as my original. That’s impolite! I felt, no need to bully me, I’m already having a rough time. So rude! Ironically I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be ideal. My plans were disrupted.”
Past Medical Issues
The singer is familiar with health problems. She believes her outlook on her diagnosis has been so positive because she’s familiar with physical challenges. They have often coincided with professional successes, acting as a reminder, or punch in the stomach, to make her recall not to take anything for granted. “Honestly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘Enjoying yourself? Take a seat.’ Since childhood, it has always gone alongside achievements for me; a major or strange event has impacted my body.”
She recalls to her 11-year-old self, already beginning starring in the London theater in the production (she was chosen at the age of 9). That’s when she was told about the heart condition a syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as dizziness and heart flutters. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward several years, and young Jessica has joined the trio Soul Deep while attending the academy. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a stroke. Then when I was planning to release songs in the year 2020 I had a car crash and my larynx moved up and I couldn’t sing for a twelve months.”
Wow, I say, slow down, I am overwhelmed. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
