You can’t imagine it, the singer remarks. At that moment gearing up for her first album release in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her recent boyfriend, and at long last the mother of a toddler after dealing with conception issues for ten years, riding high. Then in spring she was told she had cancer in her breast.
The musician, real name J. Cornish, is renowned for being brutally honest. The record, her latest release, was meant as an open book, addressing every ounce of devastation she’d experienced since she last recorded music (endometriosis, pregnancy loss, broken romances, gaslighting, suicide) with characteristic openness. The lead track, No Secrets, was launched in April. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The illness. Later follow-up track, her song Living My Best Life, was released in May and the artist was giving interviews about how she was living her best life, while all the while coping with breast cancer. Four weeks after she shared the news, and in early July she received surgical treatment.
She offers me her best “Are you kidding?” glance. “I come out with a song called No Secrets. I’m giving every media appearance, and they inquire, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I respond, ‘Well, not much…’” Cornish has just had to cancel tour dates because she’s yet to undergo cosmetic procedures.
Our interview takes place at a photography studio in London. She is wearing a light brown synthetic jacket, blue jeans with elaborate white patches, off-white boots and large glasses. Think 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, thinking of the film. “That’s what people called me at school!” She beams. Jessie is sharp-witted, irreverent and filter-free. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is aiming for her standup debut in the coming year. “I enjoy humor. When performing I basically roast the audience.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
Cornish was planning an appearance at the ceremony when she discovered a mass. “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, ‘But I can feel it. I’ve got an achy arm and pins and needles in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they replied, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the post-birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The doctor told her if it was serious she’d contact on the start of the week. By then the singer had assured herself it was nothing. The way she describes it, it was inopportune to face illness when she had a busy schedule.
“It was a fortnight prior from launching this thing after a long hiatus 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 jump on the Zoom thinking it’s all going to be positive, and she informs me, ‘Please take a seat.’ The solemn tone? And she continues, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your test results have shown high-grade cancer cells.’” What did you say? “I replied, ‘Well, that’s not great. The timing is terrible.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”
I’ve been labeled difficult for knowing myself
She viewed the procedure frightening and surreal. “I hate being put under. They walk you down. In urgent cases you go on a gurney, but now I just walked with a medical attire and my rear exposed. It felt surreal.” But, she notes, she’s been fortunate. Without chemo or radio, just the surgery. “Cancer sucks, man, but however Luckily it was detected early. I underwent removal recently and my one side now resembles a grapefruit under a tight bedsheet.” Another grin. “The nipple was preserved.”
The follow-up procedure is both medical and cosmetic. Her chest, she observes, are now “asymmetrical. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I felt, don’t add insult to injury, I’m already having a rough time. Such disrespect! Ironically I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be ideal. Illness changed that.”
Past Medical Issues
Cornish is familiar with health problems. She feels her outlook on her diagnosis has been so positive because she’s used to medical emergencies. Frequently they align with professional successes, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or blow, to make her recall not to assume everything is fine. “Truly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘You having a good time? Take a seat.’ Since childhood, it has always gone alongside high points for me; something severe or obscure has impacted my body.”
She recalls to her youth, already starting her career performing in the London theater in Whistle Down the Wind (she was chosen at the age of 9). That’s when she was diagnosed with the medical problem Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as lightheadedness and irregular beats. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an intravenous line, and going back into hospital at night.” She jumps ahead half a dozen years, and teenage Jess has entered the female band the group while attending the Brit School. “I secured a deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was ready to debut in recently I had a collision and my voice box shifted and I couldn’t sing for a long period.”
Hey, I say, hold on, I need a moment. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
