Sinéad O’Connor, the Irish singer and songwriter who passed away in July, died of natural causes, a London coroner’s office said Tuesday.
“Ms. O’Connor died of natural causes,” the office said in a statement to the New York Times. Due to this, the coroner’s office has “therefore ceased their involvement in her death.”
On July 26, 2023, O’Conner was found unresponsive in her South London flat and later confirmed to be dead. At the time, authorities said that her death was not being treated as suspicious. A private funeral was held Aug. 8.
O’Connor was best known for her single, “Nothing Compares 2 U,” which was honored as the top world single at the Billboard Music Awards the year of its release. The single came from her commercially successful second album “I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got.” Released in 1990, it was her biggest commercial success, selling over seven million copies worldwide. Her debut album, 1987’s “The Lion and the Cobra,” also saw chart success, and two of her other albums — 1992’s “Am I Not Your Girl?” and 1994’s “Universal Mother” — were both certified gold in the U.K.
Almost more than her music, O’Connor was known for her activism. During her lifetime, she routinely used her music and celebrity to draw attention to issues such as child abuse, human rights violations, racism, criticizing organized religion and women’s rights. Famously during her appearance on “Saturday Night Live” in 1992, O’Connor tore up a photograph of Pope John Paul II to protest abuse in the Catholic church.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad,” O’Connor’s family said in a statement over the summer. “Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time.”
