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You can’t imagine it, the singer remarks. At that moment readying for her comeback record in nearly a decade, ecstatically in love with her newish partner, and at long last the parent to a young child after dealing with conception issues for ten years, riding high. Suddenly in spring she was told she had cancer in her breast.

The artist, real name Jess Cornish, is renowned for telling it as it is. The LP, the provocatively titled album, was intended as an transparent story, dealing with every moment of pain she’d endured since she last recorded music (a gynecological condition, pregnancy loss, unsuccessful partnerships, emotional abuse, suicidal thoughts) with characteristic openness. The first single, the song No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there existed a huge secret. The illness. Later second single, the upbeat Living My Best Life, came out in May and Cornish was speaking publicly about how she was thriving, while at the same time coping with the disease. Subsequently she disclosed her condition, and in July she had a mastectomy.

She gives me her best “What the fuck?” expression. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m giving every media appearance, and they ask, ‘Any updates?’ and I’m, like, ‘Well, not much…’” Cornish has just had to postpone shows because she’s awaiting reconstructive surgery.

We meet at a studio in the capital. She is wearing a beige fake-leather jacket, denim trousers with detailed white appliqués, cream boots and oversized specs. Picture rocker vibe meets 1970s Nana Mouskouri. “As if I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” Easy Rider, I say, thinking of the movie. “That’s what people called me at school!” She beams. Jessie is quick, bold and direct. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is planning to attempt her first comedy performance in the coming year. “I love making people laugh. During performances I frequently joke about the crowd.”

Personal Battles and News

Cornish was planning an slot at the awards show when she noticed an abnormality. “I immediately went to get it looked at, had an test, and they were, like, ‘It appears fine; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I responded, ‘However, it’s there. I have arm pain and numbness in my fingers whenever I get up.’ And they suggested, ‘How about a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the following my birthday.” It was a Friday. The doctor told her if it was concerning she’d reach out on the start of the week. By then Cornish had persuaded herself it was okay. The way she explains it, it was just bad timing to face illness when she had a busy schedule.

“We’re two weeks away from debuting the project after a long hiatus and an extended break. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I thought, ‘It’s virtual, probably routine.’ So I jump on the Zoom believing 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 reveals, ‘Unfortunately but your reports have shown malignant cells.’” What was your reaction? “I replied, ‘Well, that’s not great. That’s not fucking great timing.’ Immediately I felt was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”

Men have called me difficult because I’m a strong person who understands who I am

She viewed the procedure terrifying and absurd. “I fear going under. You’re escorted. You know when you have emergency surgery you roll down in a bed, but this time I just marched with a hospital gown and my backside out. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, she notes, she’s been lucky. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the surgery. “Cancer is awful, but however Thank fuck I found it early. I underwent removal a few months back and my one side now resembles a odd shape.” Another grin. “The nipple was preserved.”

The follow-up procedure is both medical and cosmetic. Her boobs, she observes, are now “asymmetrical. They didn’t do an implant as small as my original. That’s impolite! I reflected, don’t add insult to injury, I’m already having a rough time. Such disrespect! Ironically 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.”

Past Medical Issues

She is accustomed to medical issues. She believes her perspective on the cancer has been so positive because she’s used to health crises. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, acting as a reminder, or shock, to make her recall not to assume everything is fine. “Frankly, I feel life goes, ‘Things going well? Hold on.’ Ever since I was a child, it has always gone alongside achievements for me; something severe or obscure has impacted my body.”

She recalls to her youth, already beginning starring in the West End in Whistle Down the Wind (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 dizziness and irregular beats. “I rehearsed between visits on an intravenous line, and returning to the hospital at night.” She skips forward six years, and young Jessica has become part of the trio the group while enrolled in the Brit School. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a stroke. Then when I was planning to release songs in recently I had a automobile accident and my throat was injured and I lost my voice for a twelve months.”

Wow, I say, slow down, I need a moment. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees