You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J remarks. There she was gearing up for her new album launch in eight years, ecstatically in love with her recent boyfriend, and at long last the mom to a little one after dealing with conception issues for a decade, feeling invincible. Suddenly in spring she was found to have cancer in her breast.
The musician, birth name J. Cornish, is known for speaking her mind. The album, the provocatively titled album, was meant as an candid account, dealing with every ounce of devastation she’d experienced since she last recorded music (a gynecological condition, miscarriage, failed relationships, emotional abuse, mental health struggles) with typical candour. The initial release, No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The illness. Then next release, the upbeat Living My Best Life, debuted in May and the artist was giving interviews about how she was thriving, while still secretly dealing with breast cancer. Subsequently she shared the news, and in the start of summer she had a mastectomy.
She shoots me her best “What the fuck?” look. “I come out with a song called No Secrets. I’m conducting every interview, and they ask, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I answer, ‘Uh, nothing really’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s awaiting follow-up surgery.
We’re at a photo studio in London. She is dressed in a light brown synthetic jacket, blue jeans with elaborate white patches, off-white boots and big frames. Think motorcycle style meets vintage look. “As if I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” A biker reference, I say, thinking of the film. “That’s what people called me at school!” She smiles. She is quick, bold and blunt. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is aiming for her initial standup show next year. “I like entertaining. When performing I frequently joke about the crowd.”
Medical Challenges and Discovery
The artist was getting ready for an performance at the Baftas when she noticed an abnormality. “I immediately went to get it looked at, had an scan, and they told me, ‘It looks like nothing; your tissue is healthy.’ And I insisted, ‘But I can feel it. My arm hurts and numbness in my fingers whenever I get up.’ And they said, ‘How about a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the following my birthday.” It was a Friday. The specialist told her if it was bad news she’d contact on the Monday. By then the singer had convinced herself it was okay. The way she explains it, it was inopportune to face illness when she had many commitments.
“It was a fortnight prior from releasing the album after a long hiatus and an extended break. And she contacted me and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I assumed, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I jump on the Zoom believing it’s all going to be positive, and she says, ‘Please take a seat.’ The solemn tone? And she reveals, ‘Unfortunately but your test results have indicated aggressive cancer.’” How did you respond? “I answered, ‘Well, that’s not great. What awful timing.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I have to survive for my boy.’”
I’ve been labeled difficult for knowing myself
She considered the operation scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. They lead you. You know when you have emergency surgery you are wheeled, but this time I just strolled down with a medical attire and my bum hanging out. It felt surreal.” But, she notes, she’s been fortunate. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the procedure. “Cancer is awful, but you know what? Luckily it was detected early. The surgery happened a few months back and my affected breast now resembles a fruit under fabric.” A further beam. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The follow-up procedure is both medical and cosmetic. Her breasts, she observes, are now “uneven. The size doesn’t match. That’s impolite! I reflected, don’t add insult to injury, I’m already having a rough time. Such disrespect! It’s funny because I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got obsessive tendencies, and I know they’d never be perfect. My plans were disrupted.”
Past Medical Issues
She is accustomed to medical issues. She feels her perspective on the cancer has been so positive because she’s used to health crises. Many times they occur alongside professional successes, acting as a reminder, or blow, to make her recall not to assume everything is fine. “Honestly, I feel life goes, ‘Things going well? Sit down.’ Since childhood, it has always gone alongside high points for me; a major or strange event has happened to my health.”
She recalls to her 11-year-old self, already making her debut performing in the London theater in a musical (she was selected at the age of 9). That’s when she was diagnosed with the cardiac issue a syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as dizziness and irregular beats. “I rehearsed between visits on an drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She fast-forwards several years, and 17-year-old Jess has joined the female band Soul Deep while enrolled in the academy. “I signed my initial contract, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was planning to release songs in recently I had a automobile accident and my voice box shifted and I was unable to vocalize for a year.”
Hey, I say, hold on, I need a moment. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
