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You can’t imagine it, Jessie J states. At that moment readying for her first album release in nearly a decade, blissfully happy with her current love, and finally the parent to a young child after facing fertility challenges for a decade, on top of the world. Then in spring she was told she had cancer in her breast.

The singer-songwriter, real name Jessica Cornish, is famous for being brutally honest. The LP, her latest release, was meant as an candid account, dealing with every ounce of devastation she’d faced since she last recorded music (endometrial issues, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, psychological manipulation, suicidal thoughts) with typical candour. The first single, her single No Secrets, was launched in April. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The illness. Later second single, Living My Best Life, was released in May and the artist was talking to press about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while at the same time coping with breast cancer. Four weeks after she disclosed her condition, and in July she had a mastectomy.

She offers me her best “Seriously?” look. “I release with a song called the track No Secrets. I’m giving every interview, and they’re, like, ‘So what’s new with you?’ and I respond, ‘Uh, nothing really’” Cornish has just had to call off performances because she’s awaiting reconstructive surgery.

We’re at a studio in the capital. She is wearing a beige fake-leather jacket, blue jeans with detailed white appliqués, beige footwear and large glasses. Imagine biker chic meets 70s singer aesthetic. “It seems like I’m in the 70s and I should have a partner with a mustache.” A biker reference, I say, recalling the movie. “That’s what people called me at school!” She beams. Cornish is sharp-witted, bold and blunt. She says she has always fancied doing comedy and is hoping to make her standup debut in the coming year. “I love making people laugh. When performing I often tease the crowd.”

Health Struggles and Diagnosis

The artist was getting ready for an performance at the ceremony when she noticed an abnormality. “I promptly visited to get it checked, had an test, and they told me, ‘It appears fine; your tissue is healthy.’ And I insisted, ‘But I can feel it. I’ve got an achy arm and numbness in my fingers whenever I wake up.’ And they said, ‘How about a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the post-birthday.” It was a Friday. The physician told her if it was concerning she’d reach out on the Monday. By then she had assured herself it was fine. The way she tells it, it was just bad timing to receive a diagnosis when she had so much on.

“Just two weeks before from debuting the project after a long hiatus and an extended break. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I was, like, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I log in expecting it’s all going to be positive, and she says, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ The solemn tone? And she says, ‘Unfortunately but your reports have shown high-grade cancer cells.’” What did you say? “I replied, ‘That’s unfortunate. That’s not fucking great timing.’ Immediately I felt was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”

Some men find me challenging due to my self-awareness

She found the surgery frightening and surreal. “I dislike anesthesia. They lead you. You know when you have emergency surgery you are wheeled, but now I just strolled down with a gown on and my backside out. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, she adds, she’s been lucky. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the op. “Cancer sucks, man, but you know what? Luckily it was detected early. I underwent removal a few months back and my affected breast now resembles a odd shape.” A further beam. “At least the nipple remains.”

The follow-up procedure is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her chest, she observes, are now “asymmetrical. The size doesn’t match. So inconsiderate! I reflected, no need to bully me, I’m already having a rough time. So rude! It’s funny because I said I’d never get my boobs done because I’ve got OCD, and I know they’d never be perfect. Cancer ruined that plan.”

Previous Struggles

She is no stranger to illness. She feels her perspective on the cancer has been so optimistic because she’s used to health crises. Frequently they align with professional successes, acting as a reminder, or blow, to highlight not to be complacent. “Truly, I feel life goes, ‘You having a good time? Sit down.’ From a young age, it has always gone alongside achievements for me; a serious or unusual issue has affected my well-being.”

She takes me back to her 11-year-old self, already making her debut performing in the stage in a musical (she was chosen at the age of 9). That’s when she was diagnosed with the heart condition WPW, which can cause a fast heartbeat as well as lightheadedness and palpitations. “I rehearsed between visits on an drip, and returning to the hospital at night.” She jumps ahead six years, and teenage Jess has entered the girl group Soul Deep while attending the academy. “I secured a deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was ready to debut in 2020 I had a collision and my larynx moved up and I couldn’t sing for a year.”

Oi, I say, wait, I can’t keep up. At just 17? She nods|agrees