Farrewell Sinéad O’Connor Acclaimed & Rebel Singer Died At 56 / Adieu Sinéad Morte À 56 ans

July 31, 2023

Across the world, stars are coming together to mourn the death of Sinéad O’Connor.

O’Connor died at age 56 on Wednesday, July 26. Her family confirmed the news in a statement to RTE, noting,

A cause of death was not revealed at the time. O’Connor is survived by her three children: Jake, Roison and Yeshua. In January 2022, O’Connor announced that her son Shane died by suicide at age 17.

O’Connor became a household name for her rendition of “Nothing Compares 2 U.” Her take on the iconic Prince song earned a series of Grammy nominations

One of the most formidable and often controversial figures in '90s music, O'Connor's career was too often defined by headline-grabbing behaviours that saw her lambasted by religious and conservative groups.

The most memorable of these was a 1992 performance on NBC's Saturday Night Live in which the singer tore up a photo of Pope John Paul II.

In a Sept. 6 interview with The Times, O’Connor strongly criticized the Roman Catholic Church. “Even if you don’t practice Catholicism, all the rules by which we live have been passed down for centuries by them,” she said.

“They’ve been telling us God is outside of us, that we are powerless. That’s why so many people feel lost, why they get so frustrated that they feel there is nothing to live for and they abuse their children.”

“I don’t think it’s an obligation (for artists to speak out) at all. It should be something that you genuinely feel” – Sinéad O’Connor.

See articles about her at NY Times, New Yorker and here. Her interviews and tibute at Double J and Dazed magazine and homage from Irish Times and here.