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You wouldn’t believe it, the singer remarks. At that moment readying for her comeback record in eight years, blissfully happy with her recent boyfriend, and finally the mother of a toddler after facing fertility challenges for a decade, on top of the world. Then in March she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

The artist, birth name J. Cornish, is famous for being brutally honest. The album, the provocatively titled album, was supposed to be an transparent story, tackling every moment of pain she’d faced since she last worked on songs (endometrial issues, pregnancy loss, failed relationships, gaslighting, mental health struggles) with typical candour. The first single, the song No Secrets, was released in the spring. But by then there remained a major undisclosed truth. Her diagnosis. Later next release, her song Living My Best Life, came out in late spring and the artist was speaking publicly about how she was enjoying life to the fullest, while at the same time living with breast cancer. Four weeks after she shared the news, and in July she received surgical treatment.

She gives me her best “Seriously?” look. “I put out with a song called No Secrets. I’m doing every press talk, and they’re, like, ‘Any updates?’ and I answer, ‘Erm, yeah, nothing …’” she has just had to call off performances because she’s yet to undergo reconstructive surgery.

We meet at a photo studio in the capital. She is dressed in a beige fake-leather jacket, blue jeans with detailed white appliqués, cream boots and oversized specs. Imagine rocker vibe meets 1970s Nana Mouskouri. “As if I’m in the 1970s and I should have a boyfriend with a big tache.” Easy Rider, I say, thinking of the film. “They used to call me that!” She grins. She is sharp-witted, unfiltered and direct. She says she has always been interested in humor and is planning to attempt her initial standup show in the coming year. “I love making people laugh. On stage I often tease the crowd.”

Health Struggles and Diagnosis

Cornish was preparing for an appearance at the awards show when she found a lump. “I immediately went to get it checked, had an scan, and they told me, ‘It appears fine; your breasts are normal.’ And I was, like, ‘However, it’s there. I have arm pain and numbness in my fingers whenever I get up.’ And they said, ‘Well, let’s just do a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the following my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The specialist told her if it was bad news she’d contact on the start of the week. By then Cornish had assured herself it was fine. The way she describes it, it was just bad timing to face illness when she had a busy schedule.

“It was a fortnight prior from debuting the project after years away and no new music. And she [the doctor] texted and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I assumed, ‘A video call, likely minor.’ So I log in thinking it’s all going to be positive, and she goes, ‘You might want to sit.’ The solemn tone? And she reveals, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your test results have indicated high-grade cancer cells.’” What was your reaction? “I said, ‘That’s unfortunate. What awful timing.’ My initial thought was, ‘I can’t die because my son needs me.’”

I’ve been labeled difficult for knowing myself

She found the surgery terrifying and absurd. “I hate being put under. You’re escorted. In urgent cases you are wheeled, but now I just marched with a hospital gown and my backside out. It felt surreal.” But, Cornish says, she’s been fortunate. No chemo, no radiotherapy, just the procedure. “Cancer is awful, but however Thank fuck I found it early. I underwent removal four months ago and my affected breast now appears as a odd shape.” She smiles again. “The nipple was preserved.”

The next operation is both medical and cosmetic. Her breasts, she remarks, are now “uneven. They didn’t do an implant as small as my original. How rude! I felt, don’t add insult to injury, I’m already having a hard period. How offensive! It’s funny because I said I’d avoid breast surgery because I’ve got perfectionism, and I know they’d never be perfect. Cancer ruined that plan.”

Previous Struggles

Cornish is no stranger to illness. She feels her outlook on her diagnosis has been so optimistic because she’s experienced in medical emergencies. Many times they occur alongside peak moments, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or punch in the stomach, to highlight not to assume everything is fine. “Honestly, I feel the universe whispers, ‘Enjoying yourself? Take a seat.’ From a young age, it has often paired with moments of success for me; a major or strange event has affected my well-being.”

She takes me back to her youth, already starting her career performing in the West End in the production (she was selected at the age of 9). That’s when she was told about the cardiac issue Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a rapid pulse as well as lightheadedness and irregular beats. “I attended rehearsals intermittently on an intravenous line, and going back into hospital at night.” She jumps ahead six years, and 17-year-old Jess has joined the female band Soul Deep while studying at the Brit School. “I secured a 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 was unable to vocalize for a year.”

Wow, I say, wait, I need a moment. You really had a stroke at 17? She nods|agrees