You can’t imagine it, the singer remarks. At that moment readying for her comeback record in eight years, deeply enamored with her current love, and finally the mother of a toddler after struggling to conceive for a decade, riding high. Suddenly in March she was told she had breast cancer.
The singer-songwriter, actual name Jessica Cornish, is renowned for being brutally honest. The LP, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was supposed to be an transparent story, tackling every ounce of devastation she’d experienced since she last recorded music (a gynecological condition, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, gaslighting, suicidal thoughts) with typical candour. The initial release, her single No Secrets, was dropped in the spring. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. The cancer. Then follow-up track, the upbeat Living My Best Life, debuted in late spring and Cornish was talking to press about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while at the same time coping with the disease. A month later she went public, and in early July she underwent breast removal surgery.
She offers me her best “What the fuck?” glance. “I come out with a song called No Secrets. I’m giving every press talk, and they’re, like, ‘Any updates?’ and I answer, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” she has just had to postpone shows because she’s yet to undergo reconstructive surgery.
We’re at a photography studio in the capital. She is dressed in a tan faux-leather coat, blue jeans with detailed white appliqués, off-white boots and oversized specs. Imagine biker chic meets 70s singer aesthetic. “As if I’m in the seventies and I should have a partner with a mustache.” A biker reference, I say, recalling the picture. “That’s what people called me at school!” She beams. Cornish is sharp-witted, bold and filter-free. She says she has always wanted to try comedy and is planning to attempt her initial standup show next year. “I love making people laugh. When performing I often tease the audience.”
Health Struggles and Diagnosis
Cornish was getting ready for an appearance at the Baftas when she discovered a mass. “I immediately went to get it checked, had an ultrasound, and they said, ‘It looks like nothing; your breasts are normal.’ And I was, like, ‘However, it’s there. I’ve got an achy arm and pins and needles in my hands whenever I rise.’ And they said, ‘How about a biopsy?’ That was 28 March, the post-birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The specialist told her if it was serious she’d reach out on the start of the week. By then she had convinced herself it was nothing. The way she explains it, it was inopportune to receive a diagnosis when she had many commitments.
“We’re two weeks away from releasing the album after a long hiatus and no new music. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I assumed, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I log in expecting it’s all going to be good, and she goes, ‘You might want to sit.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she continues, ‘I regret to inform you but your biopsy results have shown aggressive cancer.’” How did you respond? “I replied, ‘Well, that’s not great. The timing is terrible.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘My child depends on me.’”
Men have called me difficult because I’m a strong person who understands who I am
She viewed the procedure scary and bizarre. “I dislike anesthesia. You’re escorted. During crises you are wheeled, but this time I just marched with a hospital gown and my bum hanging out. It felt surreal.” But, she notes, she’s been fortunate. No chemotherapy or radiation, just the surgery. “Cancer sucks, man, but you know what? I’m grateful it was caught soon. The surgery happened recently and my one side now appears as a fruit under fabric.” A further beam. “At least the nipple remains.”
The follow-up procedure is therapeutic and aesthetic. Her breasts, she notes, are now “uneven. The size doesn’t match. So inconsiderate! I felt, no need to bully me, I’m already having a hard period. Such disrespect! Ironically I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be ideal. My plans were disrupted.”
Previous Struggles
She is familiar with health problems. She thinks her outlook on her diagnosis has been so upbeat because she’s experienced in physical challenges. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, functioning as a wake-up call, or blow, to highlight not to assume everything is fine. “Frankly, I feel life goes, ‘Things going well? Hold on.’ Ever since I was a child, it has often paired with moments of success for me; something severe or obscure has impacted my body.”
She reminisces to her youth, already starting her career performing in the West End in a musical (she was chosen at the age of 9). That’s when she was told about the cardiac issue WPW, which can cause a rapid pulse as well as vertigo and heart flutters. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She skips forward six years, and teenage Jess has become part of the female band Soul Deep while enrolled in the academy. “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 car crash and my voice box shifted and I was unable to vocalize for a year.”
Hey, I say, wait, I need a moment. At just 17? She nods|agrees
