Phoebe Bridgers Remembers Sinéad O’Connor: ‘It’s Abuse to Be Told to Shut Up and Sing’

Phoebe Bridgers is remembering Sinéad O'Connor and the impact she made on not only her fans, but artists around the globe.

On Wednesday, the American singer-songwriter penned a lengthy essay in Rolling Stone detailing O'Connor's legacy — and why her sudden death hits home for so many people.

"When I heard she died, I was heartbroken," the Boygenius member said of the late singer, who was discovered “unresponsive” at a London residence on July 26. "It reminded me of that one year, 2016, when everyone was dying, like Leonard Cohen and David Bowie. I thought, 'There's a hero I won't meet.' When Sinéad died, it hit me the same way."

Bridgers went on to explain that O'Connor, "believed things that she actually believed, not things she was told to believe by somebody else, even if it was completely subversive." 

"Whether it’s about the famine or the Catholic Church or Margaret Thatcher, history is on her side in a way it wasn't at the time," Bridgers continued. "People and the media were not nice to her. She was ostracized from so many things, and so many people thought she was a grumpy person. It's abuse to be told to shut up and sing. It's abuse to be worshiped and then hated."

"It's such a sad and heartbreaking story," she added. "Behind every famous woman are tons and tons of rape and death threats. She made a huge sacrifice for women and for musicians and for people who believe in things. She was so not rewarded for it."

O'Connor's cause of death has not been confirmed. The Irish Times was the first to report the news.

In a statement to RTE, the singer's family said: "It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad. Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time."

Following the death of her son Shane in January 2022, O'Connor was hospitalized after posting a since-deleted message on Twitter, seen by People magazine at the time, saying she had "decided to follow [her] son."

In 2007, O'Connor revealed that she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. She was also diagnosed with complex post-traumatic stress disorder and borderline personality disorder, and in 2015 she underwent a radical hysterectomy to treat endometriosis.

While O’Connor admitted in social media posts she continued to struggle with the loss of her son, she also was working on a nearly completed new album and had announced plans to tour next year.

"She embodied what it means to be a musician and stand for something," Bridgers wrote about the late star. "Maybe it's the internet, but in today's landscape, people are told what is kosher to believe in and they just do that or the bare minimum. She was not like that at all. She made me feel like I was allowed to stand for things."

She concluded: "It's still hard, but I feel so lucky to be in a landscape where I can feel validated and my beliefs are taken seriously. And that world exists because of Sinéad’s sacrifice."