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You wouldn’t believe it, Jessie J states. At that moment readying for her new album launch in eight years, ecstatically in love with her newish partner, and at long last the parent to a young child after facing fertility challenges for a decade, feeling invincible. Suddenly in spring she was told she had breast cancer.

The singer-songwriter, birth name Jess Cornish, is famous for speaking her mind. The album, Don’t Tease Me With a Good Time, was intended as an transparent story, addressing every moment of pain she’d experienced since she last recorded music (a gynecological condition, miscarriage, broken romances, gaslighting, suicide) with typical candour. The initial release, her single No Secrets, was launched in the spring. But by then there existed a huge secret. Her diagnosis. Later next release, her song Living My Best Life, was released in late spring and she was speaking publicly about how she was living her best life, while still secretly living with the disease. Four weeks after she went public, and in July she underwent breast removal surgery.

She shoots me her best “What the fuck?” glance. “I release with a song called No Secrets. I’m conducting every press talk, and they’re, like, ‘Any updates?’ and I respond, ‘Well, not much…’” the singer has just had to postpone shows because she’s yet to undergo cosmetic procedures.

Our interview takes place at a studio in the capital. She is sporting a tan faux-leather coat, jeans with detailed white appliqués, off-white boots and big frames. Picture rocker vibe meets vintage look. “As if I’m in the 70s and I should have a man with facial hair.” Easy Rider, I say, referencing the film. “That’s what people called me at school!” She smiles. Jessie is quick, bold and filter-free. She says she has always been interested in humor and is hoping to make her first comedy performance soon. “I love making people laugh. When performing I frequently joke about the fans.”

Medical Challenges and Discovery

The artist was getting ready for an performance at the awards show when she noticed an abnormality. “I quickly sought to get it checked, had an ultrasound, and they were, like, ‘It seems benign; your tissue is healthy.’ And I insisted, ‘But I can feel it. I have arm pain and tingling in my hands whenever I get up.’ And they said, ‘How about a biopsy?’ It happened on March 28, the day after my birthday.” It was a weekend eve. The doctor told her if it was concerning she’d call on the start of the week. By then Cornish had assured herself it was nothing. The way she tells 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 four years without a single. And the doctor messaged and said, ‘Can you talk at six?’ And I thought, ‘Oh, it’s a Zoom, it won’t be anything.’ So I log in expecting it’s all going to be good, and she informs me, ‘Please take a seat.’ You know that sad tone they use? And she reveals, ‘I’m so, so sorry but your test results have shown high-grade cancer cells.’” What did you say? “I answered, ‘Well, that’s not great. What awful timing.’ The first thing I thought was, ‘I have to survive for my boy.’”

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. They lead you. You know when you have emergency surgery you are wheeled, but this time I just strolled down with a gown on and my bum hanging 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 sucks, man, but you know what? I’m grateful it was caught soon. The surgery happened four months ago and my affected breast now resembles a fruit under fabric.” She smiles again. “At least the nipple remains.”

The next operation is both medical and cosmetic. Her chest, she remarks, are now “uneven. The implant is larger than before. So inconsiderate! I felt, why make it worse, I’m already having a difficult experience. So rude! Amusingly I said I’d not undergo augmentation because I’ve got obsessive tendencies, and I know they’d never be flawless. Illness changed that.”

Past Medical Issues

The singer is no stranger to illness. She thinks her attitude toward illness has been so positive because she’s familiar with medical emergencies. They have often coincided with professional successes, serving as a tap on the shoulder, or shock, to highlight not to be complacent. “Honestly, I feel fate says, ‘You having a good time? Take a seat.’ From a young age, it has often paired with achievements for me; a major or strange event has happened to my health.”

She reminisces to her youth, already beginning performing in the stage in Whistle Down the Wind (she was cast at the age of 9). That’s when she was told about the heart condition Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, which can cause a rapid pulse as well as dizziness and irregular beats. “I was going in and out of rehearsals on an IV drip, and going back into hospital at night.” She fast-forwards several years, and 17-year-old Jess has joined the girl group 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 collision and my voice box shifted and I lost my voice for a twelve months.”

Oi, I say, wait, I am overwhelmed. A stroke so young? She nods|agrees