Irish Singer Sinead O'Connor dies age 56

Remembering the Legendary Irish Singer Sinead O'Connor: A Tribute to Her Impactful Legacy

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Irish singer Sinead O’Connor died at the age of 56 on Wednesday. Her death was announced by friends of the psalmist, while the reason for her death remained unclear.

A statement released by the singer’s family on WednesdaY “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinead. Her family and friends are devastated and have asked for privacy at this difficult time.”

Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar reacted to news of the singer’s death, writing on Twitter: “Really sad to hear of the death of Sinead O’Connor. Her music was popular all over the world and her talent was unparalleled and unparalleled. Condolences to her family, friends, and all those who loved her music. They're going to raib a hanam.

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Who Was Sinead O’Connor?

Sinead O’Connor was known for her expressive songs and sensual acts. She rose to fame with her debut album, The Lion and the Cobra, and her cover of the Prince ballad Nothing Compares 2 You was an instant chart-topper from Europe to Australia.

Conner was a reluctant shaver in response to pressure from records officials to look conventionally pretty. The singer had also opened up about her mental struggles in a Facebook video in 2017, noting that she lived for others and that if it had been hers, she would have been gone.

O'Connor was born on December 8, 1966, in Dublin. Her childhood was often traumatic: Her parents divorced when she was eight, and she later said she was often abused by her mother, who died in a car crash in 1985. After being expelled from a Catholic school, O'Connor was caught for stealing and transferred to a juvenile detention center; at the age of 15, she was seen performing a copy of Barbra Streisand's "Evergreen" during her wedding. After co-writing her first In Tua Nua single, "Take My Hand," with O'Connor, she quit boarding school to focus on a music career and began performing in local coffeehouses. She helped herself by singing and giving out strings.

O'Connor moved to London after inking a deal with Ensign Records in 1985, and the following year, she made her recording début alongside U2 guitarist The Edge on the soundtrack of the movie Captive. She assumed the producer's chair and started re-recording the album, which was given the name The Lion and the Cobra in allusion to Psalm 91, after dumping the earlier tapes for it because the production was too Celtic. The outcome was one of the most praised debut albums of 1987, which included the alternative radio successes "Mandinka" and "Troy." O'Connor, however, was a contentious media personality almost from the beginning of her career. In interviews given following the LP's publication, she justified the IRA's acts, drawing harsh condemnation from all sides. She even damaged relationships by disparaging longstanding allies U2, whose music she called "bombastic."

But O'Connor remained a cult figure before releasing the chart-topping I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got in 1990, a masterpiece of heartbreak that her marriage to guitarist John Reynolds' recent marriage breakdown spurred her on, but it also came up in controversy as tabloids attacked her outspoken politics and targeted her romance with black singer Hugh Harris. On American shores, O'Connor also became the subject of ridicule for refusing to perform in New Jersey if "The Star-Spangled Banner" was played before her appearance, a move that drew less public censure than threatening Frank Sinatra to "beat him up." She also made headlines by appearing on NBC's Saturday Night Live in response to guest host Andrew Dice Clay's misogynistic personality and withdrew from competition at the annual Grammy Awards in spite of being elected four times.

O’Connor also appeared on her third album, 1992’s ‘Am I Not Your Girl? However, any discussion of the record's creative qualities quickly became moot after its most controversial and damaging act: After finally appearing on Saturday Night Live, O'Connor ended her performance by tearing up a portrait of Pope John Paul II, setting off a wave unlike any she had faced before. The wave of condemnation came two weeks after the SNL appearance, she attended a Dylan tribute concert in New York City Madison Square Park and was soon booed backstage.

By then a pariah of sorts, O’Connor was later reported to have retired from the music industry, although she was later said to have returned to Dublin with the sole intention of studying opera. She grounded over the next few years, starring in a theatrical production of Hamlet and later Peter Gabriel WOMAD. She wandered with the festival. She was also reportedly depressed and even attempted half-hearted suicide. But in 1994, O’Connor returned to pop with the LP Universal Mother, which failed to garner that kind of stardom despite critical acclaim. The following year, she announced that she would no longer speak to the media. In 1997, O'Connor released the Gospel Oak EP, and in the middle of 2000, she put out Faith and Courage, her first album in six years. Two years later, Shin-nos Nua followed, widely acclaimed for its return to Irish folklore as its inspiration.

O’Connor used the album’s press release to reassert herself as she waits to release music. In September 2003, the binary She Who Dwells… appeared through Vanguard. It collects rare and previously unreleased studio tracks, as well as selected live material from a 2002 date in Dublin. The album was pitched as O’Connor’s swan song, though the official statement hadn’t arrived. A collaboration followed in 2005, bringing together images that other artists have played in her long career on record. Later that year, she released Throw Down Your Arms, a reggae compilation by Burning Spear, Peter Tosh, and Bob Marley that managed to reach number four on the Billboard Top Reggae Albums chart. O'Connor the following year Faith and Courage returned to the studio to begin work on her first album of brand new material. The resulting theology, inspired by the complex post-9/11 world, was released in 2007 on the artist’s own imprint That’s Why There’s Chocolate & Vanilla through Koch Records.

How About I Be Me (And You Be You), O'Connor's ninth studio album, was released in 2012, touched on familiar themes of sex, religion, hope, and despair, all issues that dominated her personal and public life after theology in a relatively quiet period singer Miley Cyrus received in 2013 after writing an open letter warning her about exploitation and dangers in the music industry. Cyrus responded with an open letter that seemed to mock the Irish singer's documented mental health. O'Connor's tenth album, I'm Not Bossy, I'm the Boss came out in August 2014. Inspired by the Lean In women's empowerment campaign "Ban Bossy," the set was a rock-oriented and melodic affair, as the main- Heard on the single "Take me to church."