Sinéad O’Connor, Legendary ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ Singer, Dead at 56
Paul Dailly
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The world has lost a great talent.
It was reported Wednesday afternoon that Irish singer and musician Sinéad O'Connor has died.
She was 56.
A cause of death has not been revealed.
"It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad," the star's family shared in a statement.
"Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time."
O'Connor shot to stardom in 1990 for her cover of Prince's Nothing Compares 2 U and released ten albums throughout her career.
Her first album, The Lion and the Cobra, was released in 1987 and earned her a Grammy nomination.
Her last album, I'm Not Bossy, I'm the Boss, was released in 2014.
O'Connor was popular on the awards front.
Sinead was nominated for four Grammy Awards in 1991 but elected to boycott the ceremony because she felt the academy "acknowledge[s] mostly the commercial side of art."
In 1993, she made headlines for ripping up a picture of the Pope while singing Bob Marley's "War" on an episode of Saturday Night Live to protest against sexual abuse within the church.
NBC received over 4000 complaint calls as a result.
"A lot of people say or think that tearing up the pope's photo derailed my career," she wrote in her 2021 book Rememberings, revealing she did not regret the move.
"That's not how I feel about it."
"I feel that having a number-one record derailed my career and my tearing the photo put me back on the right track."
O'Connor had been vocal about her years-long struggle with mental health, revealing in a 2007 interview with Oprah Winfrey that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2003.
However, she revealed years later that she had sought additional opinions and was not bipolar.
She shared via Facebook earlier this month that she was working on a new album that was eyed to launch next year, followed by a global tour from 2024-25.
The news of Sinead's passing comes a year after the mother-of-four's son Shane, 17, took his own life in January 2022.
May Sinead O'Connor rest in peace.
Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.
