You wouldn’t believe it, the singer remarks. There she was gearing up for her first album release in nearly a decade, deeply enamored with her current love, and at long last the mother of a toddler after struggling to conceive for a decade, feeling invincible. Suddenly in spring she was told she had cancer in her breast.
The artist, real name J. Cornish, is known for telling it as it is. The album, her latest release, was meant as an candid account, addressing every ounce of devastation she’d endured since she last recorded music (endometrial issues, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, psychological manipulation, mental health struggles) with characteristic openness. The first single, the song No Secrets, was released in the spring. But by then there existed a huge secret. Her diagnosis. Later second single, her song Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and Cornish was speaking publicly about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while still secretly coping with her cancer. Four weeks after she went public, and in the start of summer she had a mastectomy.
She offers me her best “Are you kidding?” look. “I release with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every interview, and they inquire, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I respond, ‘Well, not much…’” she has just had to call off performances because she’s still waiting for cosmetic procedures.
We’re at a photography studio in the capital. She is dressed in a beige fake-leather jacket, denim trousers with detailed white appliqués, off-white boots and large glasses. Picture motorcycle style meets vintage look. “I feel like I’m in the 1970s and I should have a partner with a mustache.” A biker reference, I say, referencing the film. “They used to call me that!” She beams. Cornish is fast-thinking, bold and blunt. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is planning to attempt her initial standup show in the coming year. “I like entertaining. When performing I frequently joke about the crowd.”
Personal Battles and News
Cornish was getting ready for an performance at the Baftas when she discovered a mass. “I immediately went to get it examined, had an test, and they were, like, ‘It seems benign; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I responded, ‘But I can feel it. I’ve got an achy arm and tingling in my hands whenever I wake up.’ And they replied, ‘How about a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the following my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The specialist told her if it was concerning she’d reach out on the start of the week. By then she had persuaded herself it was okay. The way she describes it, it was just bad timing to face illness when she had many commitments.
“It was a fortnight prior from launching this thing after eight years without an album 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 expecting it’s all going to be fine, and she says, ‘Please take a seat.’ The solemn tone? And she continues, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your reports have indicated aggressive cancer.’” How did you respond? “I answered, ‘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 found the surgery scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. You’re escorted. You know when you have emergency surgery you roll down in a bed, but then I just marched with a medical attire and my bum hanging out. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, Cornish says, she’s been lucky. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the op. “Cancer is awful, but yet Luckily it was detected early. I underwent removal recently and my affected breast now appears as a fruit under fabric.” She smiles again. “At least the nipple remains.”
The follow-up procedure is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her chest, she notes, are now “asymmetrical. The size doesn’t match. How rude! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a rough time. How offensive! Amusingly I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got obsessive tendencies, and I know they’d never be perfect. Illness changed that.”
Previous Struggles
Cornish is accustomed to medical issues. She thinks her outlook on her diagnosis has been so upbeat because she’s used to medical emergencies. Many times they occur alongside career highs, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or shock, to remind her not to take anything for granted. “Truly, I feel life goes, ‘You having a good time? Take a seat.’ From a young age, it has often paired with high points for me; something severe or obscure has affected my well-being.”
She takes me back to her youth, already making her debut starring in the West End in a musical (she was selected at the age of 9). That’s when she was told about the medical problem a syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as vertigo and palpitations. “I rehearsed between visits on an IV drip, and being readmitted at night.” She jumps ahead several years, and young Jessica has joined the female band the group while enrolled in the academy. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was about to put out music in 2020 I had a automobile accident and my throat was injured and I was unable to vocalize for a year.”
Wow, I say, slow down, I can’t keep up. At just 17? She nods|agrees
