You can’t imagine it, Jessie J says. At that moment readying for her comeback record in eight years, blissfully happy with her recent boyfriend, and finally the parent to a young child after facing fertility challenges for a decade, riding high. Suddenly in March she was told she had breast cancer.
The artist, birth name Jessica Cornish, is renowned for being brutally honest. The record, her latest release, was supposed to be an open book, dealing with every moment of pain she’d endured since she last worked on songs (endometrial issues, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, emotional abuse, suicidal thoughts) with characteristic openness. The first single, No Secrets, was dropped in the spring. But by then there existed a huge secret. The cancer. Later second single, Living My Best Life, came out in late spring and she was talking to press about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while still secretly living with her cancer. A month later she went public, and in July she received surgical treatment.
She offers me her best “Seriously?” look. “I put out with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m doing every interview, and they’re, like, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I respond, ‘Well, not much…’” the singer has just had to cancel tour dates because she’s awaiting cosmetic procedures.
Our interview takes place at a photography studio in the capital. She is dressed in a light brown synthetic jacket, blue jeans with ornate white designs, beige footwear and big frames. Think biker chic meets vintage look. “I feel like I’m in the 70s and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Easy Rider, I say, recalling the film. “They used to call me that!” She beams. She is quick, bold and blunt. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is aiming for her initial standup show in the coming year. “I like entertaining. When performing I often tease the crowd.”
Medical Challenges and Discovery
The artist was preparing for an slot at the Baftas when she noticed an abnormality. “I quickly sought to get it checked, had an scan, and they were, like, ‘It looks like nothing; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I was, like, ‘However, it’s there. I’ve got an achy arm and numbness in my fingers whenever I get up.’ And they suggested, ‘How about a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The specialist told her if it was concerning she’d contact on the Monday. By then the singer had convinced herself it was nothing. The way she describes it, it was just bad timing to get cancer when she had many commitments.
“We’re two weeks away from debuting the project after a long hiatus and an extended break. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I thought, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I log in thinking it’s all going to be fine, and she says, ‘You might want to sit.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she continues, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your reports have shown aggressive cancer.’” How did you respond? “I said, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. What awful timing.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I have to survive for my boy.’”
I’ve been labeled difficult for knowing myself
She considered the operation scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. They walk you down. During crises you go on a gurney, but then I just marched 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 fortunate. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the op. “Cancer is awful, but yet Luckily it was detected early. The surgery happened a few months back and my right breast now appears as a fruit under fabric.” A further beam. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The follow-up procedure is both medical and cosmetic. Her chest, she observes, are now “uneven. They didn’t do an implant as small as my original. That’s impolite! I thought, no need to bully me, I’m already having a rough time. So rude! Ironically I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be flawless. Cancer ruined that plan.”
A History of Health Challenges
She is accustomed to medical issues. She feels her outlook on her diagnosis has been so optimistic because she’s familiar with health crises. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, functioning as a wake-up call, or blow, to remind her not to take anything for granted. “Honestly, I feel fate says, ‘Things going well? Hold on.’ Since childhood, it has always gone alongside high points for me; something severe or obscure has happened to my health.”
She recalls to her 11-year-old self, already making her debut starring in the stage in Whistle Down the Wind (she was chosen at the age of nine). That’s when she was told about the heart condition WPW, which can cause a tachycardia as well as lightheadedness and palpitations. “I rehearsed between visits on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She fast-forwards six years, and young Jessica has joined the female band the group while attending the performing arts school. “I secured a deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was about to put out music in the year 2020 I had a collision and my throat was injured and I couldn’t sing for a year.”
Wow, I say, hold on, I need a moment. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
