Sinéad O’Connor has died at the age of 56, multiple outlets reported on Wednesday, July 26. The Dublin performer is survived by her kids, Jake Reynolds, Roisin Waters and Yeshua Bonadio.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad,” Sinéad’s family said in a statement, per multiple outlets. “Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time.”
The singer’s death was announced just 18 months after the death of son Shane O’Connor by suicide on January 7, 2022.
“My beautiful son, Nevi’im Nesta Ali Shane O’Connor, the very light of my life, decided to end his earthly struggle today and is now with God,” Sinéad wrote on Twitter at the time. “May he rest in peace and may no one follow his example. My baby. I love you so much. Please be at peace.”
After Shane’s death, Sinéad’s team announced that she would be canceling all of her scheduled shows for the rest of the year to focus on her own health and well-being.
“We would like to respectfully announce that due to continuing grief over the tragic loss of her beloved son Shane earlier this year, Sinead O’Connor will not be performing live in 2022,” reps for the entertainer said in a statement at the time. “Thank you to Sinead’s friends and fans whose support and understanding we hold in the highest esteem throughout this period. The love being shown has been a source of great comfort and peace for Sinead.”
Prior to her passing, Sinéad was awarded the RTÉ Choice Music Prize for Classic Irish Album for her 1990 album, I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got. The judging panel called the record “a stunning body of work by an Irish artist, scorching with originality in songs that are as resonant today as they were more than 30 years ago.” She released 10 studio albums between 1987 and 2014.
Her cause of death was not immediately revealed. The musician opened up on a number of occasions about suffering from mental health issues and bipolar disorder in the years before her death.
“I know that I’m just one of millions and millions of people in the world that suffer like I do that don’t necessarily have the resources that I have,” she once shared in an August 2017 Facebook video. “If you have a family member that suffers from mental illness, care for them, tenderness, love, care for them. Visit them in the hospital, don’t dump them in the hospital and bugger off.”
She added, “People who suffer from mental illness are the most vulnerable people on Earth. You’ve got to take care of us. We’re not like everybody.”
