The news of Sinéad O’Connor’s tragic death on July 26 stunned the entertainment industry.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad,” her family said in a statement to The Irish Times. “Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy during this very difficult time.”
O’Connor’s music received critical acclaim and global recognition, but she also battled mental illness and was embroiled in a number of scandals as a result of her outspoken political and social ideas.
Her debut album, The Lion and the Cobra, was published while she was only 20 years old, in 1987. The album was a worldwide success, garnering O’Connor a Grammy nomination.
Slant Magazine and Pitchfork named it one of the best albums of the 1980s, with Slant describing it as “one of the most electrifying debuts in rock history” and Pitchfork praising the album’s “themes of patriotism, sexuality, Catholicism, and social oppression set the stage for a career marked by a resolute sense of independence.”
O’Connor’s follow-up album, I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got, was her biggest success, with her rendition of Prince’s “Nothing Compares 2 U,” her most famous and highest-charting song. It was named the “#1 World Single” of 1990 by the Billboard Music Awards, and it frequently features on lists of the greatest songs of all time.
British police discovered the singer “unresponsive” at her London home on Wednesday, and she was pronounced dead at the scene after they were called. An autopsy is currently being undertaken, and the results could take “several weeks” to be ready, delaying the determination of the official cause of death.
Authorities have claimed, however, that her death is not being probed as “suspicious.”
According to the Daily Mirror, shortly after O’Connor’s untimely death was revealed, the London Inner South Coroner’s Court stated that they will decide whether to hold an inquest if autopsy results were available and applications from her relatives were received.
O’Connor’s remains were recently returned to her family, who are clearly still grieving her tragic loss now that the autopsy has been completed.
O’Connor sparked uproar not long before her death by tweeting about her son, who committed himself in January 2022 after being missing in Ireland.
Following her son’s death, the famous singer resorted to social media to share her sadness and anguish. She described feeling “lost” and living as an “undead night creature” without him, emphasizing their close relationship.
“Since then, I’ve been living as an undead night creature…” O’Connor hailed her kid on Twitter as “the love of my life, the lamp of my soul.” “We were one soul divided in two. He was the only person who actually cared about me. I’m lost in the bardo without him.”
Aside from her son’s death, she has openly expressed suicidal intentions on multiple occasions in recent years, most notably when she went missing in Chicago in 2016.
Following her death, fellow musicians and celebrities paid tribute to the late singer on social media, praising her for her music as well as her advocacy efforts.
Our thoughts and prayers are with her family, friends, and fans during this difficult time.
