You wouldn’t believe it, the singer states. There she was readying for her new album launch in eight years, deeply enamored with her newish partner, and finally the mom to a little one after struggling to conceive for a decade, on top of the world. Suddenly in spring she was told she had cancer in her breast.
The singer-songwriter, real name Jessica Cornish, is renowned for being brutally honest. The record, her latest release, was meant as an open book, tackling every bit of hardship she’d experienced since she last worked on songs (endometrial issues, miscarriage, failed relationships, emotional abuse, 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. Then second single, her song Living My Best Life, came out in May and she was giving interviews about how she was living her best life, while at the same time dealing with the disease. Four weeks after she disclosed her condition, and in July she received surgical treatment.
She gives me her best “What the fuck?” expression. “I put out with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m doing every interview, and they ask, ‘Any updates?’ and I answer, ‘Uh, nothing really’” the singer has just had to call off performances because she’s awaiting cosmetic procedures.
We meet at a studio in London. She is dressed in a light brown synthetic jacket, denim trousers with detailed white appliqués, beige footwear and oversized specs. Picture motorcycle style meets vintage look. “It seems like I’m in the 1970s and I should have a partner with a mustache.” Easy Rider, I say, referencing the film. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She beams. Cornish is sharp-witted, bold and filter-free. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is hoping to make her standup debut soon. “I love making people laugh. When performing I often tease the crowd.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
The artist was planning an slot at the ceremony when she discovered a mass. “I quickly sought to get it looked at, had an test, and they told me, ‘It looks like nothing; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I responded, ‘Yet I sense it. My arm hurts and numbness in my fingers whenever I get up.’ And they replied, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The doctor told her if it was concerning she’d call on the start of the week. By then she had assured herself it was fine. The way she describes it, it was simply too inconvenient to receive a diagnosis when she had a busy schedule.
“We’re two weeks away from releasing the album after eight years without an album and no new music. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I assumed, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I log in expecting it’s all going to be good, and she says, ‘Please take a seat.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she continues, ‘Unfortunately but your reports have shown high-grade cancer cells.’” How did you respond? “I answered, ‘Well, that’s not great. That’s not fucking great timing.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘My child depends on me.’”
I’ve been labeled difficult for knowing myself
She found the surgery terrifying and absurd. “I hate being put under. They walk you down. During crises you are wheeled, but now I just strolled down with a hospital gown and my bum hanging out. Like a dystopian scene.” But, she notes, she’s been lucky. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the op. “It’s terrible, but yet Luckily it was detected early. The surgery happened recently and my right breast now appears as a fruit under fabric.” A further beam. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The next operation is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her chest, she observes, are now “asymmetrical. The size doesn’t match. That’s impolite! I felt, no need to bully me, I’m already having a rough time. Such disrespect! Ironically I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be flawless. Cancer ruined that plan.”
Past Medical Issues
She is familiar with health problems. She believes her perspective on the cancer has been so upbeat because she’s familiar with medical emergencies. Frequently they align with peak moments, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or punch in the stomach, to highlight not to assume everything is fine. “Frankly, I feel life goes, ‘Enjoying yourself? Hold on.’ Ever since I was a child, it has consistently accompanied high points for me; a serious or unusual issue has happened to my health.”
She reminisces to her childhood, already making her debut performing in the West End in the production (she was cast at the age of nine). That’s when she was found to have the heart condition WPW, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as vertigo and palpitations. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward several years, and teenage Jess has joined the female band the group while studying at the Brit School. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a cerebral event. Then when I was planning to release songs in the year 2020 I had a car crash and my throat was injured and I was unable to vocalize for a long period.”
Oi, I say, hold on, I need a moment. At just 17? She nods|agrees
