You couldn’t make it up, the singer remarks. There she was gearing up for her comeback record in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her current love, and at long last the mom to a little one after facing fertility challenges for a decade, riding high. Then in spring she was diagnosed with cancer in her breast.
The musician, real name Jess Cornish, is famous for speaking her mind. The album, her latest release, was intended as an transparent story, tackling every bit of hardship she’d experienced since she last made an album (endometrial issues, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, psychological manipulation, mental health struggles) with typical candour. The initial release, the song No Secrets, was released in the spring. But by then there was a mighty secret. Her diagnosis. Later follow-up track, Living My Best Life, debuted in May and Cornish was speaking publicly about how she was living her best life, while all the while coping with her cancer. A month later she disclosed her condition, and in July she underwent breast removal surgery.
She offers me her best “What the fuck?” expression. “I release with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m doing every interview, and they ask, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I’m, like, ‘Uh, nothing really’” Cornish has just had to call off performances because she’s yet to undergo cosmetic procedures.
We meet at a photo studio in the capital. She is wearing a tan faux-leather coat, blue jeans with ornate white designs, off-white boots and large glasses. Think biker chic meets 70s singer aesthetic. “I feel like I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” A biker reference, I say, referencing the movie. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She grins. Jessie is quick, bold and filter-free. She says she has always been interested in humor and is planning to attempt her first comedy performance in the coming year. “I love making people laugh. On stage I often tease the fans.”
Personal Battles and News
The artist was preparing for an slot at the awards show when she found a lump. “I promptly visited to get it looked at, had an test, and they were, like, ‘It appears fine; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I responded, ‘Yet I sense it. I’ve got an achy arm and tingling in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they said, ‘How about a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the post-birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The physician told her if it was concerning she’d reach out on the start of the week. By then Cornish had convinced herself it was nothing. The way she explains it, it was inopportune to receive a diagnosis when she had many commitments.
“It was a fortnight prior from debuting the project after eight years without an album and four years without a single. And she contacted me and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I assumed, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I jump on the Zoom expecting it’s all going to be good, and she says, ‘You might want to sit.’ That sympathetic voice? And she continues, ‘Unfortunately but your biopsy results have come back as malignant cells.’” What was your reaction? “I replied, ‘Well, that’s not great. What awful timing.’ Immediately I felt was, ‘My child depends on me.’”
Some men find me challenging due to my self-awareness
She considered the operation terrifying and absurd. “I dislike anesthesia. They lead you. You know when you have emergency surgery you go on a gurney, but this time I just strolled down with a gown on and my backside out. It felt surreal.” But, she notes, she’s been fortunate. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the op. “Cancer sucks, man, but you know what? Thank fuck I found it early. I had the mastectomy recently and my right breast now appears as a fruit under fabric.” Another grin. “At least the nipple remains.”
The next operation is for health and appearance. Her chest, she notes, are now “uneven. They didn’t do an implant as small as my original. So inconsiderate! I thought, no need to bully me, 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. My plans were disrupted.”
Previous Struggles
Cornish is accustomed to medical issues. She believes her perspective on the cancer has been so upbeat because she’s familiar with physical challenges. They have often coincided with peak moments, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or shock, to remind her not to be complacent. “Truly, I feel life goes, ‘Enjoying yourself? Hold on.’ From a young age, it has often paired with moments of success for me; a serious or unusual issue has happened to my health.”
She reminisces to her 11-year-old self, already beginning featuring in the West End in a musical (she was selected at the age of 9). That’s when she was found to have the medical problem WPW, which can cause a rapid pulse as well as lightheadedness and irregular beats. “I rehearsed between visits on an IV drip, and returning to the hospital at night.” She fast-forwards half a dozen years, and teenage Jess has joined the trio Soul Deep while studying at the Brit School. “I secured a deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was ready to debut in 2020 I had a collision and my larynx moved up and I lost my voice for a year.”
Hey, I say, wait, I am overwhelmed. At just 17? She nods|agrees
