Sinead O’Connor gave her children specific instructions to use in the event of her death.
The legendary Irish singer and musician died on Wednesday (26 July) aged 56, after being found “unresponsive” at a home in London.
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In a 2021 interview with People magazine about her memoir Rememberings, O’Connor revealed that she had told her children to call her accountant before the emergency services if she died.
“See, when the artists are dead, they’re much more valuable than when they’re alive. Tupac has released way more albums since he died than he ever did alive, so it’s kind of gross what record companies do,” she told People at the time.
”That’s why I’ve always instructed my children since they were very small, ‘If your mother drops dead tomorrow, before you called 911, call my accountant and make sure the record companies don’t start releasing my records and not telling you where the money is.’”
O’Connor, whose best-known song is her cover of Prince’s “Nothing Compares 2 U”, also shared her dismay at the “Purple Rain” singer’s discography being used commercially after his death in 2016.
Sinead O’Connor— (AP)
“One of the things that’s a great bugbear with me, I get very angry when I think of it, is the fact that they’re raping his vault,” she said
“All musicians, we have songs that we really are embarrassed about that are crap. We don’t want anyone hearing them. Now this is a man who released every song he ever recorded, so if he went to the trouble of building a vault, which is a pretty strong thing to do, that means he really did not want these songs released. And I can’t stand that people are, as I put it, raping the vault.”
O’Connor had four children, Shane Lunny, Jake Reynolds, Roisin Waters and Yeshua Bonadio.
Shane passed away in 2022 aged 17 after escaping hospital while on suicide watch.
In one of her final tweets, the singer wrote about her grief: “Been living as undead night creature since. He was the love of my life, the lamp of my soul. We were one soul in two halves. He was the only person who ever loved me unconditionally. I am lost in the bardo without him.”
O’Connor’s cause of death has not been disclosed.
If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.
