You couldn’t make it up, the singer states. There she was preparing for her new album launch in eight years, ecstatically in love with her newish partner, and at long last the parent to a young child after struggling to conceive for ten years, riding high. Suddenly in spring she was diagnosed with cancer in her breast.
The artist, real name J. Cornish, is famous for telling it as it is. The record, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was supposed to be an open book, dealing with every bit of hardship she’d endured since she last worked on songs (endometriosis, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, gaslighting, suicidal thoughts) with typical candour. The initial release, No Secrets, was dropped in April. But by then there was a mighty secret. The illness. Then next release, the upbeat Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and the artist was speaking publicly about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while at the same time dealing with her cancer. A month later she shared the news, and in July she had a mastectomy.
She gives me her best “What the fuck?” expression. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m conducting every media appearance, and they’re, like, ‘What’s happening?’ and I answer, ‘Uh, nothing really’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s awaiting reconstructive surgery.
We’re at a studio in London. She is wearing a light brown synthetic jacket, jeans with detailed white appliqués, cream boots and large glasses. Picture rocker vibe meets 1970s Nana Mouskouri. “I feel like I’m in the seventies and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Like the film, I say, referencing the picture. “They used to call me that!” She smiles. Cornish is fast-thinking, unfiltered and direct. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is aiming for her standup debut soon. “I enjoy humor. When performing I often tease the fans.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
Cornish was preparing for an slot at the awards show when she found a lump. “I immediately went to get it checked, had an ultrasound, and they were, like, ‘It appears fine; your tissue is healthy.’ And I was, like, ‘However, it’s there. I have arm pain and pins and needles in my hands whenever I wake up.’ And they suggested, ‘We should biopsy it?’ The date was March 28, the following my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The doctor told her if it was bad news she’d contact on the Monday. By then Cornish had convinced herself it was okay. The way she tells it, it was just bad timing to face illness when she had a busy schedule.
“It was a fortnight prior from releasing the album after eight years without an album and four years without a single. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I assumed, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I jump on the Zoom thinking it’s all going to be fine, and she goes, ‘You might want to sit.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she says, ‘I regret to inform you but your reports have indicated malignant cells.’” How did you respond? “I replied, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. The timing is terrible.’ Immediately I felt 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 frightening and surreal. “I fear going under. They lead you. In urgent cases you are wheeled, but now I just strolled down with a medical attire and my rear exposed. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she notes, she’s been fortunate. Without chemo or radio, just the procedure. “Cancer sucks, man, but you know what? Thank fuck I found it early. The surgery happened a few months back and my one side now resembles a grapefruit under a tight bedsheet.” Another grin. “The nipple was preserved.”
The next operation is for health and appearance. Her breasts, she observes, are now “asymmetrical. The implant is larger than before. That’s impolite! I thought, why make it worse, I’m already having a difficult experience. How offensive! It’s funny because I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got obsessive tendencies, and I know they’d never be flawless. Cancer ruined that plan.”
Past Medical Issues
She is accustomed to medical issues. She feels her perspective on the cancer has been so positive because she’s familiar with health crises. They have often coincided with peak moments, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or shock, to make her recall not to take anything for granted. “Honestly, I feel fate says, ‘You having a good time? Take a seat.’ Ever since I was a child, it has often paired with achievements for me; a serious or unusual issue has affected my well-being.”
She recalls to her childhood, already beginning starring in the London theater in a musical (she was chosen at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was told about the medical problem Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as lightheadedness and palpitations. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an drip, and being readmitted at night.” She skips forward six years, and teenage Jess has entered the female band the group while studying at the Brit School. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was about to put out music in recently I had a car crash and my larynx moved up and I was unable to vocalize for a year.”
Wow, I say, hold on, I need a moment. You really had a stroke at 17? She nods|agrees
