You can’t imagine it, Jessie J states. At that moment gearing up for her new album launch in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her newish partner, and finally the mother of a toddler after dealing with conception issues for ten years, on top of the world. Then in March she was told she had a breast cancer diagnosis.
The singer-songwriter, birth name J. Cornish, is famous for speaking her mind. The LP, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was supposed to be an open book, addressing every moment of pain she’d experienced since she last recorded music (endometrial issues, pregnancy loss, unsuccessful partnerships, psychological manipulation, mental health struggles) with characteristic openness. The first single, No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there existed a huge secret. The illness. Later second single, her song Living My Best Life, debuted in late spring and Cornish was giving interviews about how she was living her best life, while still secretly living with the disease. Subsequently she disclosed her condition, and in early July she received surgical treatment.
She offers me her best “Are you kidding?” look. “I put out with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they ask, ‘What’s happening?’ and I respond, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” Cornish has just had to cancel tour dates because she’s still waiting for follow-up surgery.
We’re at a photo studio in London. She is sporting a beige fake-leather jacket, jeans with elaborate white patches, cream boots and big frames. Imagine biker chic meets vintage look. “It seems like I’m in the seventies and I should have a man with facial hair.” A biker reference, I say, thinking of the movie. “They used to call me that!” She grins. Jessie is fast-thinking, bold and blunt. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is planning to attempt her standup debut next year. “I like entertaining. During performances I often tease the audience.”
Personal Battles and News
She was preparing for an appearance at the ceremony when she noticed an abnormality. “I promptly visited to get it examined, had an ultrasound, and they were, like, ‘It seems benign; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I was, like, ‘Yet I sense it. I’ve got an achy arm and numbness in my fingers whenever I rise.’ And they suggested, ‘How about a biopsy?’ The date was March 28, the following my birthday.” It was a Friday. The doctor told her if it was concerning she’d contact on the Monday. By then the singer had persuaded herself it was okay. The way she describes 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 a long hiatus and an extended break. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I was, like, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I join the call thinking it’s all going to be positive, and she informs me, ‘You might want to sit.’ That sympathetic voice? And she says, ‘I regret to inform you but your biopsy results have shown high-grade cancer cells.’” What was your reaction? “I answered, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. The timing is terrible.’ 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 terrifying and absurd. “I fear going under. They lead you. During crises you are wheeled, but then I just strolled down with a medical attire and my bum hanging out. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, she notes, she’s been fortunate. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the op. “Cancer is awful, but yet I’m grateful it was caught soon. I had the mastectomy a few months back and my one side now resembles a grapefruit under a tight bedsheet.” Another grin. “The nipple was preserved.”
The next operation is both medical and cosmetic. Her chest, she observes, are now “different sizes. The size doesn’t match. So inconsiderate! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a rough time. Such disrespect! Ironically I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got obsessive tendencies, and I know they’d never be perfect. Illness changed that.”
Past Medical Issues
The singer is accustomed to medical issues. She believes her outlook on her diagnosis has been so positive because she’s experienced in physical challenges. They have often coincided with career highs, functioning as a wake-up call, or blow, to remind her not to be complacent. “Honestly, I feel fate says, ‘Enjoying yourself? Sit down.’ From a young age, it has often paired with moments of success for me; a major or strange event has impacted my body.”
She takes me back to her youth, already starting her career starring in the West End in the production (she was selected at the age of nine). That’s when she was told about the heart condition WPW, which can cause a tachycardia as well as vertigo and irregular beats. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward several years, and 17-year-old Jess has joined the female band Soul Deep while attending the Brit School. “I secured a deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was about to put out music in the year 2020 I had a collision and my larynx moved up and I lost my voice for a twelve months.”
Hey, I say, slow down, I can’t keep up. At just 17? She nods|agrees