You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J states. There she was preparing for her new album launch in eight years, ecstatically in love with her recent boyfriend, and at long last the parent to a young child after dealing with conception issues for ten years, riding high. Suddenly in March she was found to have a breast cancer diagnosis.
The artist, real name J. Cornish, is renowned for being brutally honest. The album, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was intended as an transparent story, addressing every bit of hardship she’d faced since she last made an album (a gynecological condition, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, emotional abuse, suicide) with characteristic openness. The first single, No Secrets, was launched in April. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The cancer. Later next release, Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and the artist was speaking publicly about how she was thriving, while still secretly living with the disease. Subsequently she shared the news, and in July she received surgical treatment.
She shoots me her best “What the fuck?” look. “I release with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m giving every press talk, and they inquire, ‘Any updates?’ and I’m, like, ‘Uh, nothing really’” Cornish has just had to call off performances because she’s still waiting for cosmetic procedures.
Our interview takes place at a studio in London. She is sporting a tan faux-leather coat, blue jeans with elaborate white patches, off-white boots and large glasses. Imagine rocker vibe meets 70s singer aesthetic. “It seems like I’m in the seventies and I should have a partner with a mustache.” Easy Rider, I say, recalling the picture. “That’s what people called me at school!” She grins. Cornish is sharp-witted, unfiltered and blunt. She says she has always been interested in humor and is planning to attempt her initial standup show next year. “I like entertaining. During performances I basically roast the audience.”
Personal Battles and News
The artist was preparing for an appearance at the ceremony when she found a lump. “I immediately went to get it examined, had an test, and they told me, ‘It appears fine; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I was, like, ‘But I can feel it. My arm hurts and tingling in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they replied, ‘How about a biopsy?’ The date was March 28, the following my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The doctor told her if it was serious she’d reach out on the Monday. By then the singer had assured herself it was nothing. The way she explains it, it was simply too inconvenient to receive a diagnosis when she had a busy schedule.
“We’re two weeks away from launching this thing after a long hiatus and four years without a single. And she contacted me and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I assumed, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I join the call believing it’s all going to be positive, and she informs me, ‘You might want to sit.’ That sympathetic voice? And she continues, ‘I regret to inform you but your biopsy results have come back as aggressive cancer.’” What was your reaction? “I replied, ‘Well, that’s not great. What awful timing.’ 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 found the surgery scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. They walk you down. In urgent cases you go on a gurney, but then I just strolled down with a gown on and my backside out. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, she notes, she’s been lucky. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the op. “Cancer is awful, but however I’m grateful it was caught soon. I underwent removal four months ago and my right breast now appears as a odd shape.” She smiles again. “At least the nipple remains.”
The next operation is for health and appearance. Her breasts, she remarks, are now “uneven. The size doesn’t match. That’s impolite! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a difficult experience. Such disrespect! Ironically I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be ideal. Cancer ruined that plan.”
Past Medical Issues
The singer is no stranger to illness. She feels her attitude toward illness has been so optimistic because she’s familiar with health crises. Frequently they align with career highs, acting as a reminder, or punch in the stomach, to remind her not to be complacent. “Truly, I feel life goes, ‘You having a good time? Take a seat.’ From a young age, it has often paired with high points for me; a serious or unusual issue has happened to my health.”
She takes me back to her youth, already beginning featuring in the stage in the production (she was chosen at the age of 9). That’s when she was told about the cardiac issue WPW, which can cause a rapid pulse as well as lightheadedness and palpitations. “I rehearsed between visits on an intravenous line, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward half a dozen years, and young Jessica has entered the girl group the group while attending the Brit School. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was about to put out music in recently I had a car crash and my larynx moved up and I lost my voice for a twelve months.”
Hey, I say, slow down, I am overwhelmed. At just 17? She nods|agrees
