You can’t imagine it, the singer states. At that moment readying for her first album release in nearly a decade, deeply enamored with her newish partner, and at long last the mom to a little one after facing fertility challenges for ten years, feeling invincible. Then in March she was found to have cancer in her breast.
The singer-songwriter, real name J. Cornish, is famous for being brutally honest. The record, her latest release, was meant as an transparent story, addressing every bit of hardship she’d endured since she last worked on songs (a gynecological condition, miscarriage, unsuccessful partnerships, emotional abuse, suicide) with typical candour. The lead track, her single No Secrets, was dropped in April. But by then there existed a huge secret. The cancer. Later next release, Living My Best Life, came out in May and she was speaking publicly about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while still secretly coping with the disease. Four weeks after she shared the news, and in July she received surgical treatment.
She shoots me her best “Are you kidding?” glance. “I release with a song called No Secrets. I’m conducting every media appearance, and they ask, ‘Any updates?’ and I’m, like, ‘Uh, nothing really’” Cornish has just had to postpone shows because she’s still waiting for cosmetic procedures.
We meet at a photography studio in the capital. She is wearing a beige fake-leather jacket, jeans with elaborate white patches, cream boots and big frames. Imagine motorcycle style meets vintage look. “It seems like I’m in the 1970s and I should have a man with facial hair.” Like the film, I say, thinking of the film. “They used to call me that!” She beams. Jessie is sharp-witted, bold and direct. She says she has always been interested in humor and is hoping to make her initial standup show next year. “I love making people laugh. During performances I basically roast the audience.”
Personal Battles and News
The artist was preparing for an slot at the ceremony when she noticed an abnormality. “I promptly visited to get it looked at, had an scan, 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 wake up.’ And they suggested, ‘We should biopsy it?’ It happened on March 28, the following my birthday.” It was a Friday. The specialist told her if it was concerning she’d contact on the start of the week. By then Cornish had persuaded herself it was nothing. The way she explains it, it was simply too inconvenient to receive a diagnosis when she had a busy schedule.
“It was a fortnight prior from releasing the album after a long hiatus and an extended break. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I thought, ‘Oh, it’s a Zoom, it won’t be anything.’ So I jump on the Zoom expecting it’s all going to be good, and she informs me, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ The solemn tone? And she says, ‘I regret to inform you but your reports have indicated aggressive cancer.’” What did you say? “I answered, ‘Well, that’s not great. The timing is terrible.’ Immediately I felt was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”
Men have called me difficult because I’m a strong person who understands who I am
She found the surgery frightening and surreal. “I fear going under. They walk you down. In urgent cases you go on a gurney, but now I just strolled down with a gown on and my backside out. It felt surreal.” But, Cornish says, she’s been fortunate. Without chemo or radio, just the procedure. “Cancer is awful, but however I’m grateful it was caught soon. I had the mastectomy four months ago and my right breast now appears as a odd shape.” A further beam. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The next operation is for health and appearance. Her boobs, she remarks, are now “different sizes. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a difficult experience. Such disrespect! Amusingly I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be ideal. Cancer ruined that plan.”
A History of Health Challenges
She is no stranger to illness. She feels her attitude toward illness has been so optimistic because she’s experienced in health crises. Frequently they align with career highs, functioning as a wake-up call, or punch in the stomach, to highlight not to take anything for granted. “Frankly, I feel fate says, ‘Enjoying yourself? Hold on.’ Since childhood, it has always gone alongside achievements for me; something severe or obscure has impacted my body.”
She recalls to her youth, already starting her career 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 heart condition Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as lightheadedness and palpitations. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an intravenous line, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward several years, and young Jessica has joined the girl group the group while studying at the performing arts school. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was ready to debut in recently I had a automobile accident and my throat was injured and I couldn’t sing for a long period.”
Hey, I say, hold on, I need a moment. You really had a stroke at 17? She nods|agrees
