You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J remarks. At that moment gearing up for her comeback record in eight years, ecstatically in love with her newish partner, and at long last the mother of a toddler after struggling to conceive for ten years, riding high. Then in March she was found to have breast cancer.
The singer-songwriter, actual name Jessica Cornish, is renowned for being brutally honest. The LP, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was supposed to be an transparent story, tackling every moment of pain she’d endured since she last made an album (endometriosis, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, psychological manipulation, suicidal thoughts) with characteristic openness. The initial release, her single No Secrets, was dropped in April. But by then there was a mighty secret. The cancer. Then second single, the upbeat Living My Best Life, was released in May and Cornish was speaking publicly about how she was thriving, while at the same time dealing with her cancer. Four weeks after she disclosed her condition, and in July she received surgical treatment.
She shoots me her best “Seriously?” look. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they’re, like, ‘What’s happening?’ and I respond, ‘Well, not much…’” she has just had to call off performances because she’s still waiting for cosmetic procedures.
We meet at a photo studio in the capital. She is dressed in a tan faux-leather coat, jeans with ornate white designs, beige footwear and big frames. Imagine 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, referencing the film. “They used to call me that!” She smiles. Jessie is quick, unfiltered and filter-free. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is aiming for her first comedy performance next year. “I enjoy humor. During performances I frequently joke about the audience.”
Medical Challenges and Discovery
The artist was preparing for an slot at the awards show when she noticed an abnormality. “I immediately went to get it looked at, had an test, and they were, like, ‘It appears fine; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I was, like, ‘But I can feel it. I’ve got an achy arm and pins and needles in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they suggested, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the following my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The physician told her if it was serious she’d contact on the Monday. By then the singer had convinced herself it was okay. The way she tells it, it was just bad timing to get cancer when she had a busy schedule.
“It was a fortnight prior from debuting the project after eight years without an album and four years without a single. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I thought, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I log in expecting it’s all going to be positive, and she goes, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she says, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your reports have shown malignant cells.’” How did you respond? “I answered, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. That’s not fucking great timing.’ Immediately I felt was, ‘My child depends on me.’”
Some men find me challenging due to my self-awareness
She found the surgery terrifying and absurd. “I fear going under. You’re escorted. During crises you roll down in a bed, 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 lucky. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the surgery. “It’s terrible, but yet Luckily it was detected early. The surgery happened a few months back and my affected breast now appears as a fruit under fabric.” Another grin. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The follow-up procedure is both medical and cosmetic. Her chest, she remarks, are now “different sizes. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I thought, 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 perfect. Illness changed that.”
Previous Struggles
The singer is no stranger to illness. She thinks her perspective on the cancer has been so optimistic because she’s used to medical emergencies. Many times they occur alongside professional successes, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or punch in the stomach, to remind her not to assume everything is fine. “Frankly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘Things going well? Hold on.’ From a young age, it has always gone alongside high points for me; a major or strange event has affected my well-being.”
She takes me back to her 11-year-old self, already starting her career starring in the stage in Whistle Down the Wind (she was chosen at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was told about the medical problem a syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as lightheadedness and irregular beats. “I rehearsed between visits on an intravenous line, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward half a dozen years, and 17-year-old Jess has joined the female band Soul Deep while enrolled in the Brit School. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a stroke. Then when I was about to put out music in 2020 I had a automobile accident and my larynx moved up and I lost my voice for a twelve months.”
Hey, I say, hold on, I am overwhelmed. You really had a stroke at 17? She nods|agrees
