Mourners Gather In Ireland To Pay Their Respects To Singer Sinéad O’Connor
08.08.2023 - 13:27
/ etcanada.com
Fans lined the streets of Sinéad O’Connor’s former hometown in Ireland on Tuesday to bid farewell to the elfin singer who left a big impression on her devoted followers and the music world.
Ruth O’Shea, who had come to the coastal town of Bray south of Dublin with her two daughters, became teary as she spoke of O’Connor’s significance, saying she had “meant the world to her.”
READ MORE: Sinéad O’Connor Instructed Her Kids To Protect Her Art And Finances After Her Death
“She was so rebellious and empowering and inspiring, and my mother hated me listening to her music,” O’Shea said. “She was just brilliant. Brilliant — I loved her, and then the kids, I suppose by osmosis because I played her when they were both growing up, they’d go, ‘Oh God, mom’s listening to Sinéad O’Connor, she’s obviously had a rough day.’ She just gave me hope. And I just loved her, I loved her.”
O’Connor, 56, was found unresponsive at her London home on July 26. Police have not shared a cause of death, though they said her death was not suspicious.
O’Connor’s family invited the public to line the waterfront as her funeral procession passed by, following a private service.
“Sinead loved living in Bray and the people in it,” her family said in a statement. “With this procession, her family would like to acknowledge the outpouring of love for her from the people of Wicklow (county) and beyond, since she left … to go to another place.”
Fans tucked handwritten notes and flowers behind a chain wrapped around a granite post at the entrance to her former home, thanking her for sharing her voice and her music. One sign listed causes that the singer had expressed support for, including welcoming refugees.
“Thanks for your short special life,” one note