Sinead O’Connor had many ups and downs throughout her childhood and after she caught the “limelight” of fame. The singer didn’t have a good start to an adult life because of her traumas at home and later in the Magdalene Asylum and reflected these traumas during her performances and interviews. According to Silversun Pickups’ Nikki and Brian, the singer is very underrated but she couldn’t handle her fame well.
O’Connor battled with mental and physical abuse throughout her life, and not having mentally stable parents around her made her life much harder. She was sent to the Magdalene Asylum at the age of 15 as a consequence of her shoplifting crime. The singer later faced the harsh actions of nuns and priests, hence her hatred towards the Roman Catholic Church began. Perhaps the most scandalous thing she did in her career to reflect on this hatred was ripping up the Pope’s photo after her performance of “War” on Saturday Night Live.
This was the breaking point for so many people, and Silversun Pickups’ Nikki and Brian reflected on her in their recent interview. While picking the most underrated bands, they mentioned that Sinead is at the top. Although her music is very underrated, they think that fame was too much for her, and indicated that she didn’t know what to do with it.
Nikki first said:
“I think Sinead O’Connor got a bad rep because there was so much other publicity with her that sometimes her music got lost in that.”
Brian added:
“I think she got too big. That song was too big for somebody like her.“
Nikki continued:
“Yeah, but her actual albums are wonderful and really innovative.”
Brian finally said:
“The first record is punk rock. She’s so punk rock and to the point on Saturday Night Live; that whole thing is like a bunch of garbage.”
She had offended so many people and created controversy among her fans. The singer later converted to Islam and changed her name various times to Magda Davitt and Shuhada Sadaqat. She continued fighting against child abuse and organized religion while rooting for human rights, anti-racism, and women’s rights. She used her fame to attract recognition to these matters, but her mental challenges did not help her promote her cases strongly.
