‘It has taught me to embrace life more’: Jessica Cornish on cancer, career returns and cracking China

You wouldn’t believe it, the singer states. At that moment readying for her new album launch in eight years, deeply enamored with her newish partner, and at long last the mother of a toddler after dealing with conception issues for a decade, riding high. Suddenly in spring she was diagnosed with a breast cancer diagnosis.

The singer-songwriter, real name J. Cornish, is known for telling it as it is. The record, her latest release, was intended as an candid account, addressing every bit of hardship she’d faced since she last worked on songs (endometrial issues, losing a baby, broken romances, psychological manipulation, suicidal thoughts) with her usual frankness. The initial release, the song No Secrets, was released in the spring. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The cancer. Then next release, her song Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and the artist was talking to press about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while all the while coping with the disease. Four weeks after she shared the news, and in early July she underwent breast removal surgery.

She shoots me her best “Are you kidding?” glance. “I come out with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every press talk, and they inquire, ‘What’s happening?’ and I’m, like, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s awaiting cosmetic procedures.

Our interview takes place at a photography studio in London. She is sporting a beige fake-leather jacket, jeans with ornate white designs, cream boots and oversized specs. Imagine rocker vibe meets 70s singer aesthetic. “I feel like I’m in the 70s and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Like the film, I say, referencing the picture. “They used to call me that!” She smiles. She is sharp-witted, unfiltered and filter-free. She says she has always been interested in humor and is aiming for her standup debut next year. “I love making people laugh. On stage I often tease the fans.”

Health Struggles and Diagnosis

Cornish was preparing for an appearance at the Baftas when she discovered a mass. “I quickly sought to get it examined, had an ultrasound, and they said, ‘It seems benign; you’ve got really good dense breast tissue.’ And I insisted, ‘But I can feel it. I have arm pain and pins and needles in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they said, ‘We should biopsy it?’ The date was March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a Friday. The doctor told her if it was bad news she’d reach out on the Monday. By then Cornish had persuaded herself it was nothing. The way she explains it, it was just bad timing to receive a diagnosis when she had a busy schedule.

“Just two weeks before from releasing the album after eight years without an album and four years without a single. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Are you free at six?’ And I was, like, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I jump on the Zoom believing it’s all going to be good, and she goes, ‘Are you sitting down?.’ That sympathetic voice? And she reveals, ‘Unfortunately but your reports have come back as high-grade cancer cells.’” How did you respond? “I replied, ‘Oh, that’s not ideal, is it?. The timing is terrible.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘My child depends on me.’”

I’ve been labeled difficult for knowing myself

She considered the operation scary and bizarre. “I fear going under. They walk you down. You know when you have emergency surgery you are wheeled, but this time I just walked with a gown on and my rear exposed. You feel like you’re in an episode of Black Mirror.” But, Cornish says, she’s been blessed. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the procedure. “It’s terrible, but you know what? Luckily it was detected early. The surgery happened four months ago and my one side now resembles a fruit under fabric.” Another grin. “I got to keep the nipple, though.”

The next operation is both medical and cosmetic. Her boobs, she observes, are now “different sizes. The size doesn’t match. So inconsiderate! I felt, why make it worse, I’m already having a rough time. How offensive! Ironically I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got obsessive tendencies, and I know they’d never be ideal. Cancer ruined that plan.”

Past Medical Issues

She is familiar with health problems. She feels her outlook on her diagnosis has been so upbeat because she’s experienced in medical emergencies. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, acting as a reminder, or shock, to highlight not to be complacent. “Frankly, I feel fate says, ‘Enjoying yourself? Take a seat.’ Ever since I was a child, it has consistently accompanied moments of success for me; something severe or obscure has affected my well-being.”

She reminisces to her youth, already beginning performing in the London theater in a musical (she was cast at the age of 9). That’s when she was found to have the cardiac issue Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a tachycardia as well as lightheadedness and heart flutters. “I rehearsed between visits on an drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She fast-forwards several years, and 17-year-old Jess has joined the female band the group while studying at the academy. “I just got my first record deal, and I had a brain incident. Then when I was planning to release songs in 2020 I had a automobile accident and my throat was injured and I couldn’t sing for a year.”

Hey, I say, wait, I can’t keep up. You really had a stroke at 17? She nods|agrees