You can’t imagine it, the singer says. At that moment readying for her first album release in nearly a decade, deeply enamored with her recent boyfriend, and at long last the mom to a little one after dealing with conception issues for a decade, feeling invincible. Then in March she was told she had breast cancer.
The artist, real name Jess Cornish, is known for speaking her mind. The LP, the provocatively titled album, was supposed to be an candid account, dealing with every ounce of devastation she’d experienced since she last worked on songs (endometrial issues, miscarriage, broken romances, gaslighting, mental health struggles) with typical candour. The lead track, her single No Secrets, was launched in April. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The illness. Then next release, her song Living My Best Life, came out in late spring and Cornish was giving interviews about how she was thriving, while at the same time dealing with breast cancer. A month later she disclosed her condition, and in July she underwent breast removal surgery.
She offers me her best “Are you kidding?” glance. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they inquire, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I answer, ‘Well, not much…’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s still waiting for cosmetic procedures.
We’re at a photography studio in the capital. She is sporting a light brown synthetic jacket, denim trousers with elaborate white patches, beige footwear and oversized specs. Imagine biker chic meets 70s singer aesthetic. “As if I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” Like the film, I say, thinking of the picture. “They used to call me that!” She grins. She is quick, irreverent and blunt. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is planning to attempt her initial standup show soon. “I like entertaining. During performances I frequently joke about the fans.”
Medical Challenges and Discovery
She was preparing for an appearance at the awards show when she noticed an abnormality. “I promptly visited to get it checked, had an ultrasound, and they were, like, ‘It seems benign; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I was, like, ‘But I can feel it. I’ve got an achy arm and numbness in my fingers whenever I rise.’ And they replied, ‘How about a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a Friday. The doctor told her if it was serious she’d reach out on the start of the week. By then Cornish had persuaded herself it was okay. The way she describes it, it was simply too inconvenient to face illness when she had a busy schedule.
“Just two weeks before from releasing the album after years away and no new music. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Is six okay?’ And I assumed, ‘Oh, it’s a Zoom, it won’t be anything.’ So I join the call thinking it’s all going to be positive, and she informs me, ‘You might want to sit.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she continues, ‘Unfortunately but your biopsy results have come back as malignant cells.’” What was your reaction? “I replied, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. The timing is terrible.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”
Some men find me challenging due to my self-awareness
She found the surgery terrifying and absurd. “I dislike anesthesia. They walk you down. During crises you roll down in a bed, but now I just marched with a hospital gown and my bum hanging out. Like a dystopian scene.” But, Cornish says, she’s been blessed. Without chemo or radio, just the op. “Cancer is awful, but however I’m grateful it was caught soon. The surgery happened recently and my right breast now looks like a odd shape.” A further beam. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”
The subsequent surgery is for health and appearance. Her breasts, she remarks, are now “asymmetrical. The size doesn’t match. So inconsiderate! I reflected, why make it worse, I’m already having a difficult experience. So rude! It’s funny because I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be flawless. My plans were disrupted.”
Previous Struggles
She is familiar with health problems. She thinks her attitude toward illness has been so upbeat because she’s used to medical emergencies. Many times they occur alongside professional successes, functioning as a wake-up call, or punch in the stomach, to highlight not to take anything for granted. “Honestly, I feel fate says, ‘You having a good time? Hold on.’ From a young age, it has consistently accompanied moments of success for me; a major or strange event has impacted my body.”
She reminisces to her childhood, already making her debut featuring in the stage in a musical (she was selected at the age of nine years old). That’s when she was found to have the cardiac issue a syndrome, which can cause a rapid pulse as well as lightheadedness and irregular beats. “I rehearsed between visits on an IV drip, and returning to the hospital at night.” She jumps ahead six years, and teenage Jess has joined the girl group the group while studying at the performing arts school. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a cerebral event. Then when I was ready to debut in 2020 I had a automobile accident and my throat was injured and I couldn’t sing for a twelve months.”
Wow, I say, hold on, I can’t keep up. At just 17? She nods|agrees
