You couldn’t make it up, the singer says. At that moment preparing for her comeback record in nearly a decade, deeply enamored with her newish partner, and at long last the mother of a toddler after dealing with conception issues for a decade, feeling invincible. Then in spring she was diagnosed with a breast cancer diagnosis.
The singer-songwriter, birth name J. Cornish, is known for telling it as it is. The album, her latest release, was supposed to be an open book, tackling every moment of pain she’d endured since she last made an album (endometriosis, losing a baby, unsuccessful partnerships, psychological manipulation, suicide) with characteristic openness. The initial release, the song No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there existed a huge secret. The illness. Later follow-up track, Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and Cornish was talking to press about how she was living her best life, while all the while dealing with breast cancer. Subsequently she went public, and in early July she received surgical treatment.
She shoots me her best “What the fuck?” expression. “I release with a song called No Secrets. I’m conducting every interview, and they’re, like, ‘Any updates?’ and I’m, like, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” Cornish has just had to postpone shows because she’s yet to undergo cosmetic procedures.
We’re at a photo studio in the capital. She is dressed in a beige fake-leather jacket, denim trousers with detailed white appliqués, cream boots and big frames. Imagine motorcycle style meets vintage look. “I feel like I’m in the seventies and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Easy Rider, I say, referencing the film. “They used to call me that!” She grins. She is fast-thinking, irreverent and direct. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is planning to attempt her initial standup show in the coming year. “I enjoy humor. During performances I basically roast the crowd.”
Personal Battles and News
The artist was planning an appearance at the ceremony when she noticed an abnormality. “I immediately went to get it checked, had an scan, and they were, like, ‘It looks like nothing; your tissue is healthy.’ And I responded, ‘However, it’s there. I have arm pain and tingling in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they said, ‘We should biopsy it?’ The date was March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a Friday. The specialist told her if it was concerning she’d call on the start of the week. By then Cornish had persuaded herself it was fine. The way she explains it, it was simply too inconvenient to get cancer when she had so much on.
“It was a fortnight prior from releasing the album after a long hiatus and an extended break. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I thought, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I log in expecting it’s all going to be positive, and she says, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ The solemn tone? And she says, ‘Unfortunately but your test results have come back as aggressive cancer.’” How did you respond? “I said, ‘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 viewed the procedure scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. You’re escorted. During crises you roll down in a bed, but then I just marched with a medical attire and my rear exposed. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she adds, she’s been fortunate. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the op. “Cancer is awful, but you know what? I’m grateful it was caught soon. I underwent removal recently and my affected breast now looks like a fruit under fabric.” A further beam. “At least the nipple remains.”
The follow-up procedure is for health and appearance. Her breasts, she remarks, are now “asymmetrical. The size doesn’t match. How rude! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a rough time. So rude! It’s funny because I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got obsessive tendencies, and I know they’d never be flawless. My plans were disrupted.”
Previous Struggles
Cornish is accustomed to medical issues. She feels her attitude toward illness has been so positive because she’s used to medical emergencies. Frequently they align with professional successes, functioning as a wake-up call, or shock, to make her recall not to be complacent. “Truly, I feel life goes, ‘You having a good time? Sit down.’ Ever since I was a child, it has often paired with achievements for me; a major or strange event has affected my well-being.”
She recalls to her youth, already making her debut performing in the London theater in Whistle Down the Wind (she was chosen at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was told about the heart condition Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as lightheadedness and palpitations. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an IV drip, and being readmitted at night.” She skips forward half a dozen years, and teenage Jess has joined the girl group Soul Deep while attending the academy. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a stroke. Then when I was planning to release songs in 2020 I had a automobile accident and my throat was injured and I lost my voice for a twelve months.”
Hey, I say, hold on, I am overwhelmed. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
