You wouldn’t believe it, the singer states. There she was preparing for her first album release in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her current love, and at long last the mom to a little one after facing fertility challenges for a decade, on top of the world. Then in spring she was found to have breast cancer.
The musician, actual name J. Cornish, is renowned for speaking her mind. The LP, the provocatively titled album, was supposed to be an transparent story, addressing every ounce of devastation she’d experienced since she last recorded music (a gynecological condition, losing a baby, 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 illness. Later next release, the upbeat Living My Best Life, debuted in May and Cornish was talking to press about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while all the while living with her cancer. Subsequently she shared the news, and in early July she received surgical treatment.
She shoots me her best “What the fuck?” expression. “I come out with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m doing every press talk, and they’re, like, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I’m, like, ‘Well, not much…’” Cornish has just had to cancel tour dates because she’s yet to undergo follow-up surgery.
We’re at a photography studio in the capital. She is sporting a beige fake-leather jacket, jeans with elaborate white patches, off-white boots and big frames. Imagine rocker vibe meets 70s singer aesthetic. “As if I’m in the seventies and I should have a partner with a mustache.” A biker reference, I say, recalling the picture. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She beams. Cornish is sharp-witted, bold and filter-free. She says she has always been interested in humor and is aiming for her standup debut next year. “I enjoy humor. On stage I frequently joke about the fans.”
Personal Battles and News
Cornish was planning an slot at the Baftas when she discovered a mass. “I promptly visited to get it looked at, had an test, and they told me, ‘It looks like nothing; your breasts are normal.’ And I insisted, ‘But I can feel it. I’ve got an achy arm and numbness in my fingers whenever I get up.’ And they replied, ‘How about a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the day after my birthday.” It was a Friday. The physician told her if it was concerning she’d call on the Monday. By then Cornish had assured herself it was okay. The way she describes it, it was just bad timing to face illness when she had a busy schedule.
“Just two weeks before from launching this thing after a long hiatus and an extended break. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I was, like, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I join the call thinking it’s all going to be good, and she goes, ‘You might want to sit.’ The solemn tone? And she says, ‘I regret to inform you but your test results have shown high-grade cancer cells.’” What was your reaction? “I said, ‘That’s unfortunate. The timing is terrible.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘My child depends on 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 hate being put under. They walk you down. In urgent cases you are wheeled, but now I just walked with a hospital gown and my rear exposed. It felt surreal.” But, she adds, she’s been blessed. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the op. “It’s terrible, but yet Luckily it was detected early. I had the mastectomy recently and my affected breast now appears as a odd shape.” Another grin. “At least the nipple remains.”
The follow-up procedure is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her breasts, she remarks, are now “different sizes. The size doesn’t match. How rude! I thought, no need to bully me, I’m already having a rough time. Such disrespect! Amusingly I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got obsessive tendencies, and I know they’d never be perfect. Cancer ruined that plan.”
Previous Struggles
She is no stranger to illness. She believes her attitude toward illness has been so positive because she’s experienced in health crises. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, functioning as a wake-up call, or punch in the stomach, to make her recall not to assume everything is fine. “Honestly, I feel life goes, ‘You having a good time? Take a seat.’ Ever since I was a child, it has always gone alongside high points for me; a serious or unusual issue has impacted my body.”
She recalls to her youth, already starting her career performing in the stage in the production (she was cast at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was diagnosed with the cardiac issue WPW, which can cause a rapid pulse as well as vertigo and palpitations. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an intravenous line, and being readmitted at night.” She skips forward half a dozen years, and young Jessica has become part of the trio Soul Deep while studying at the Brit School. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was planning to release songs in 2020 I had a car crash and my throat was injured and I was unable to vocalize for a twelve months.”
Hey, I say, wait, I can’t keep up. At just 17? She nods|agrees
