You wouldn’t believe it, the singer states. At that moment gearing up for her first album release in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her newish partner, and at long last the parent to a young child after struggling to conceive for a decade, on top of the world. Suddenly in spring she was told she had breast cancer.
The singer-songwriter, birth name Jessica Cornish, is known for speaking her mind. The record, the provocatively titled album, was meant as an open book, dealing with every ounce of devastation she’d experienced since she last worked on songs (endometrial issues, pregnancy loss, unsuccessful partnerships, emotional abuse, suicide) with her usual frankness. The initial release, the song No Secrets, was dropped in the spring. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The illness. Then follow-up track, Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and the artist was giving interviews about how she was thriving, while all the while coping with breast cancer. A month later she went public, and in early July she received surgical treatment.
She gives me her best “Seriously?” look. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every press talk, and they inquire, ‘Any updates?’ and I’m, like, ‘Uh, nothing really’” Cornish has just had to postpone shows because she’s yet to undergo follow-up surgery.
We’re at a photo studio in London. She is sporting a beige fake-leather jacket, denim trousers with detailed white appliqués, beige footwear and big frames. Think motorcycle style meets 70s singer aesthetic. “It seems like I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” Easy Rider, I say, thinking of the picture. “They used to call me that!” She beams. She is quick, bold and blunt. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is planning to attempt her first comedy performance in the coming year. “I like entertaining. When performing I frequently joke about the crowd.”
Medical Challenges and Discovery
Cornish was planning an performance at the awards show when she noticed an abnormality. “I promptly visited to get it looked at, had an test, and they told me, ‘It seems benign; your tissue is healthy.’ And I responded, ‘But I can feel it. My arm hurts and tingling in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they said, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the post-birthday.” It was a Friday. The doctor told her if it was bad news she’d reach out on the Monday. By then the singer had assured herself it was okay. The way she explains it, it was inopportune 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 four years without a single. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I assumed, ‘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.’ The solemn tone? And she continues, ‘Unfortunately but your test results have shown aggressive cancer.’” What was your reaction? “I answered, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. The timing is terrible.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘My child depends on me.’”
Some men find me challenging due to my self-awareness
She found the surgery scary and bizarre. “I hate being put under. They walk you down. You know when you have emergency surgery you roll down in a bed, but this time I just strolled down with a gown on and my bum hanging out. It felt surreal.” But, she adds, she’s been lucky. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the op. “Cancer is awful, but you know what? Thank fuck I found it early. I had the mastectomy recently and my affected breast now resembles a grapefruit under a tight bedsheet.” She smiles again. “The nipple was preserved.”
The subsequent surgery is for health and appearance. Her breasts, she observes, are now “different sizes. The implant is larger than before. That’s impolite! I felt, 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 perfectionism, and I know they’d never be perfect. Cancer ruined that plan.”
A History of Health Challenges
She is no stranger to illness. She believes her outlook on her diagnosis has been so optimistic because she’s experienced in medical emergencies. Frequently they align with career highs, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or punch in the stomach, to highlight not to assume everything is fine. “Honestly, I feel fate says, ‘Enjoying yourself? Sit down.’ Since childhood, it has often paired with achievements for me; a serious or unusual issue has happened to my health.”
She reminisces to her 11-year-old self, already making her debut featuring in the stage in a musical (she was chosen at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was told about the medical problem Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as vertigo and heart flutters. “I rehearsed between visits on an drip, and being readmitted at night.” She jumps ahead six years, and young Jessica has joined the female band the group while enrolled in the Brit School. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was ready to debut in 2020 I had a collision and my voice box shifted and I was unable to vocalize for a year.”
Hey, I say, slow down, I am overwhelmed. At just 17? She nods|agrees
