You couldn’t make it up, the singer says. At that moment gearing up for her comeback record in nearly a decade, deeply enamored with her newish partner, and at long last the parent to a young child after facing fertility challenges for a decade, on top of the world. Then in March she was found to have a breast cancer diagnosis.
The musician, birth name Jess Cornish, is renowned for speaking her mind. The album, her latest release, was intended as an open book, addressing every bit of hardship she’d faced since she last worked on songs (endometriosis, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, gaslighting, mental health struggles) with typical candour. The first single, the song No Secrets, was released in April. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The cancer. Later second single, Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and Cornish was speaking publicly about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while still secretly dealing with the disease. Four weeks after she shared the news, and in early July she underwent breast removal surgery.
She shoots me her best “Seriously?” look. “I come out with a song called No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they’re, like, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I respond, ‘Uh, nothing really’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s yet to undergo cosmetic procedures.
We’re at a photo studio in London. She is wearing a beige fake-leather jacket, jeans with elaborate white patches, cream boots and big frames. Imagine rocker vibe meets 1970s Nana Mouskouri. “It seems like I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” A biker reference, I say, recalling the picture. “They used to call me that!” She grins. She is sharp-witted, bold and blunt. She says she has always been interested in humor and is planning to attempt her standup debut in the coming year. “I enjoy humor. When performing I basically roast the fans.”
Personal Battles and News
The artist was planning an slot at the awards show when she discovered a mass. “I immediately went to get it checked, had an scan, and they told me, ‘It looks like nothing; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I insisted, ‘But I can feel it. My arm hurts and pins and needles in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they suggested, ‘How about a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The doctor told her if it was serious she’d contact on the start of the week. By then the singer had convinced 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 a long hiatus and an extended break. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I was, like, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I join the call expecting it’s all going to be good, and she goes, ‘Please take a seat.’ That sympathetic voice? And she says, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your test results have indicated malignant cells.’” What did you say? “I answered, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. That’s not fucking great timing.’ My initial thought was, ‘I have to survive for my boy.’”
Some men find me challenging due to my self-awareness
She considered the operation scary and bizarre. “I fear going under. They walk you down. You know when you have emergency surgery you roll down in a bed, but this time I just marched with a medical attire and my bum hanging out. It felt surreal.” But, she adds, she’s been blessed. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the op. “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 grapefruit under a tight bedsheet.” Another grin. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The subsequent surgery is both medical and cosmetic. Her boobs, she remarks, are now “uneven. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I felt, don’t add insult to injury, I’m already having a difficult experience. Such disrespect! It’s funny because I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got obsessive tendencies, and I know they’d never be ideal. Illness changed that.”
Previous Struggles
Cornish is familiar with health problems. She feels her outlook on her diagnosis has been so upbeat because she’s familiar with physical challenges. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, acting as a reminder, or blow, to highlight not to take anything for granted. “Frankly, I feel fate says, ‘Enjoying yourself? Hold on.’ From a young age, it has always gone alongside achievements for me; a serious or unusual issue has impacted my body.”
She recalls to her youth, already making her debut performing in the London theater in Whistle Down the Wind (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 fast heartbeat as well as dizziness and palpitations. “I rehearsed between visits on an IV drip, and returning to the hospital at night.” She jumps ahead six years, and 17-year-old Jess has become part of the girl group Soul Deep while enrolled in the performing arts school. “I secured a deal, and I had a cerebral event. Then when I was planning to release songs in the year 2020 I had a automobile accident and my voice box shifted and I was unable to vocalize for a twelve months.”
Oi, I say, wait, I can’t keep up. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees
