You wouldn’t believe it, the singer remarks. At that moment readying for her new album launch in eight years, deeply enamored with her newish partner, and at long last the mom to a little one after facing fertility challenges for ten years, on top of the world. Then in spring she was found to have a breast cancer diagnosis.
The musician, real name Jessica Cornish, is famous for being brutally honest. The record, the provocatively titled album, was supposed to be an open book, addressing every bit of hardship she’d faced since she last worked on songs (a gynecological condition, miscarriage, failed relationships, emotional abuse, suicidal thoughts) with characteristic openness. The initial release, the song No Secrets, was launched in April. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The cancer. Then follow-up track, her song Living My Best Life, debuted in late spring and Cornish was giving interviews about how she was living her best life, while at the same time dealing with breast cancer. Four weeks after she went public, and in July she received surgical treatment.
She gives me her best “Seriously?” expression. “I release with a song called No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they’re, like, ‘Any updates?’ and I’m, like, ‘Well, not much…’” Cornish has just had to cancel tour dates because she’s still waiting for cosmetic procedures.
Our interview takes place 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 rocker vibe meets vintage look. “As if I’m in the 70s and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Easy Rider, I say, referencing the film. “I was nicknamed that in school!” She grins. Cornish is sharp-witted, irreverent and direct. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is aiming for her first comedy performance in the coming year. “I enjoy humor. When performing I often tease the fans.”
Personal Battles and News
She was getting ready for an performance at the awards show when she discovered a mass. “I quickly sought to get it checked, had an ultrasound, and they told me, ‘It appears fine; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I responded, ‘Yet I sense it. My arm hurts and pins and needles in my hands whenever I wake up.’ And they replied, ‘We should biopsy it?’ The date was March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The specialist told her if it was concerning she’d call on the Monday. By then she had persuaded herself it was okay. The way she explains it, it was inopportune to receive a diagnosis when she had so much on.
“Just two weeks before from debuting the project after eight years without an album and four years without a single. And she contacted me 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 positive, and she informs me, ‘Please take a seat.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she reveals, ‘Unfortunately but your biopsy results have indicated malignant cells.’” What did you say? “I replied, ‘Well, that’s not great. The timing is terrible.’ 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 fear going under. They walk you down. During crises you roll down in a bed, but now I just marched with a medical attire and my rear exposed. It felt surreal.” But, she adds, she’s been fortunate. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the surgery. “Cancer is awful, but yet I’m grateful it was caught soon. I underwent removal recently and my affected breast now appears as a grapefruit under a tight bedsheet.” A further beam. “At least the nipple remains.”
The follow-up procedure is for health and appearance. Her boobs, she observes, are now “asymmetrical. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I reflected, why make it worse, I’m already having a hard period. So rude! Ironically I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be perfect. Cancer ruined that plan.”
A History of Health Challenges
Cornish is no stranger to illness. She believes her attitude toward illness has been so optimistic because she’s familiar with medical emergencies. They have often coincided with career highs, acting as a reminder, or punch in the stomach, to remind her not to take anything for granted. “Honestly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘Enjoying yourself? Hold on.’ Since childhood, it has always gone alongside moments of success for me; something severe or obscure has happened to my health.”
She takes me back to her 11-year-old self, already starting her career starring in the London theater in Whistle Down the Wind (she was chosen at the age of 9). That’s when she was diagnosed with the medical problem Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as dizziness and irregular beats. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an intravenous line, and being readmitted at night.” She fast-forwards several years, and 17-year-old Jess has joined the trio Soul Deep while enrolled in the performing arts school. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a cerebral event. Then when I was about to put out music in 2020 I had a collision and my larynx moved up and I was unable to vocalize for a twelve months.”
Hey, I say, slow down, I can’t keep up. At just 17? She nods|agrees
