You couldn’t make it up, the singer says. At that moment readying for her comeback record in eight years, blissfully happy with her newish partner, and finally the parent to a young child after struggling to conceive for a decade, feeling invincible. Then in March she was found to have cancer in her breast.
The artist, birth name J. Cornish, is known for speaking her mind. The record, the provocatively titled album, was intended as an candid account, addressing every ounce of devastation she’d faced since she last recorded music (endometrial issues, losing a baby, failed relationships, gaslighting, suicidal thoughts) with typical candour. The initial release, the song No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there was a mighty secret. Her diagnosis. Then next release, the upbeat Living My Best Life, debuted in May and she was talking to press about how she was thriving, while still secretly coping with the disease. Subsequently she shared the news, and in the start of summer she underwent breast removal surgery.
She shoots me her best “Seriously?” glance. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every press talk, and they’re, like, ‘Any updates?’ and I respond, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” Cornish has just had to postpone shows because she’s awaiting cosmetic procedures.
We’re at a photography studio in London. She is sporting a beige fake-leather jacket, jeans with elaborate white patches, cream boots and big frames. Think motorcycle style meets 70s singer aesthetic. “It seems like I’m in the 70s and I should have a partner with a mustache.” Like the film, I say, recalling the film. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She smiles. Cornish is sharp-witted, irreverent and filter-free. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is planning to attempt her initial standup show soon. “I enjoy humor. During performances I frequently joke about the fans.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
She was planning an slot at the Baftas when she noticed an abnormality. “I immediately went to get it looked at, had an ultrasound, and they told me, ‘It seems benign; your tissue is healthy.’ And I was, like, ‘But I can feel it. I have arm pain and pins and needles in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they suggested, ‘How about a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the post-birthday.” It was a Friday. The physician told her if it was bad news she’d reach out on the Monday. By then she had convinced herself it was fine. The way she explains it, it was inopportune to get cancer when she had many commitments.
“Just two weeks before from releasing the album after years away and no new music. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I was, like, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I jump on the Zoom believing it’s all going to be positive, and she says, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she says, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your biopsy results have come back as high-grade cancer cells.’” What was your reaction? “I answered, ‘Well, that’s not great. The timing is terrible.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I have to survive for my boy.’”
I’ve been labeled difficult for knowing myself
She viewed the procedure frightening and surreal. “I dislike anesthesia. You’re escorted. During crises you go on a gurney, but then I just strolled down with a gown on and my backside out. It felt surreal.” But, she adds, she’s been fortunate. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the op. “It’s terrible, but yet Thank fuck I found it early. The surgery happened four months ago and my one side now resembles a odd shape.” Another grin. “The nipple was preserved.”
The next operation is both medical and cosmetic. Her chest, she notes, are now “uneven. The implant is larger than before. That’s impolite! I thought, why make it worse, I’m already having a rough time. 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
Cornish is no stranger to illness. She believes her attitude toward illness has been so positive because she’s used to health crises. Many times they occur alongside professional successes, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or blow, to highlight not to be complacent. “Honestly, I feel life goes, ‘Enjoying yourself? Take a seat.’ From a young age, it has often paired with high points for me; a major or strange event has happened to my health.”
She takes me back to her childhood, already making her debut performing in the West End in Whistle Down the Wind (she was cast at the age of 9). That’s when she was told about the heart condition WPW, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as dizziness and irregular beats. “I rehearsed between visits on an drip, and being readmitted at night.” She jumps ahead several years, and young Jessica has entered the female band Soul Deep while attending the performing arts school. “I just got my first record 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 voice box shifted and I lost my voice for a year.”
Hey, I say, hold on, I need a moment. At just 17? She nods|agrees
