‘It has taught me to embrace life more’: Jessica Cornish on her health battle, career returns and conquering the Chinese market

You couldn’t make it up, Jessie J states. At that moment preparing for her comeback record in nearly a decade, blissfully happy with her newish partner, and at long last the mom to a little one after dealing with conception issues for ten years, feeling invincible. Suddenly in spring she was told she had cancer in her breast.

The artist, birth name Jessica Cornish, is known for speaking her mind. The record, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was supposed to be an candid account, addressing every bit of hardship she’d faced since she last made an album (endometrial issues, losing a baby, failed relationships, gaslighting, suicide) with her usual frankness. The first single, her single No Secrets, was dropped in April. But by then there was a mighty secret. The illness. Then second single, her song Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and she was speaking publicly about how she was thriving, while still secretly living with breast cancer. A month later she disclosed her condition, and in July she received surgical treatment.

She gives me her best “What the fuck?” glance. “I release with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they inquire, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I answer, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” Cornish has just had to call off performances because she’s still waiting for follow-up surgery.

We meet at a photo studio in the capital. She is wearing a light brown synthetic jacket, denim trousers with ornate white designs, cream boots and oversized specs. Think rocker vibe meets vintage look. “As if I’m in the 70s and I should have a partner with a mustache.” A biker reference, I say, thinking of the movie. “They used to call me that!” She beams. Jessie is fast-thinking, unfiltered and direct. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is aiming for her standup debut in the coming year. “I enjoy humor. During performances I often tease the fans.”

Medical Challenges and Discovery

She was planning an slot at the awards show when she discovered a mass. “I immediately went to get it examined, had an test, and they told me, ‘It seems benign; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I was, like, ‘But I can feel it. My arm hurts and numbness in my fingers whenever I get up.’ And they replied, ‘We should biopsy it?’ The date was March 28, the post-birthday.” It was a Friday. The physician told her if it was bad news she’d call on the start of the week. By then the singer had assured herself it was fine. The way she describes it, it was just bad timing to face illness when she had many commitments.

“Just two weeks before from releasing the album after a long hiatus and no new music. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I was, like, ‘Oh, it’s a Zoom, it won’t be anything.’ So I join the call believing it’s all going to be positive, and she goes, ‘You might want to sit.’ That sympathetic voice? And she reveals, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your biopsy results have come back as aggressive cancer.’” What did you say? “I said, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. The timing is terrible.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I have to survive for my boy.’”

Men have called me difficult because I’m a strong person who understands who I am

She viewed the procedure terrifying and absurd. “I fear going under. They walk you down. You know when you have emergency surgery you are wheeled, but this time I just marched with a gown on and my backside out. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, she adds, she’s been fortunate. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the surgery. “Cancer is awful, but yet Thank fuck I found it early. I underwent removal recently and my affected breast now appears as a odd shape.” She smiles again. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”

The next operation is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her boobs, she observes, are now “asymmetrical. The implant is larger than before. That’s impolite! I reflected, why make it worse, I’m already having a hard period. So rude! Ironically I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be perfect. Illness changed that.”

Past Medical Issues

She is accustomed to medical issues. She feels her attitude toward illness has been so optimistic because she’s used to health crises. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, acting as a reminder, or blow, to remind her not to be complacent. “Honestly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘Things going well? Sit down.’ From a young age, it has consistently accompanied high points for me; something severe or obscure has affected my well-being.”

She recalls to her childhood, already beginning starring in the stage in Whistle Down the Wind (she was cast at the age of 9). That’s when she was found to have the medical problem WPW, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as lightheadedness and heart flutters. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward several years, and teenage Jess has entered the girl group the group while attending the performing arts school. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a cerebral event. Then when I was planning to release songs in 2020 I had a automobile accident and my larynx moved up and I lost my voice for a long period.”

Hey, I say, hold on, I need a moment. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees