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A year after she died, we finally know what killed Sinead O’Connor–and it’s not much of a surprise.

Sinead O’Connor was found dead in her London flat on July 24, 2023. Police immediately ruled out foul play and any kind of misadventure, so the cause of death had to be something health related. Back in January, it was announced she died of natural causes, but nothing specific was mentioned.

However, if you know anything about Sinead’s lifestyle, this shouldn’t come as much as a surprise. Sinead was a heavy–and I mean HEAVY–smoker. Not just tobacco, either, but a lot of weed, She had to seek help a couple of times for her addiction to smoking marijuana.

Last Wednesday (July 24), her husband, John Reynolds, registered her death certificate. It listed her cause of death as “exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and bronchial asthma together with low grade lower respiratory tract infection.” COPD is the result of smoking.

(Via Billboard)

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 39653 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

One thought on “A year after she died, we finally know what killed Sinead O’Connor–and it’s not much of a surprise.

  • It should be noted that while smoking may very well be a significant contributing factor to COPD, it’s not the only one. Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull) attributes his COPD to all the dry ice & smoke pumped out on stage at shows during the 1970’s. In several interviews I’ve seen, he has also cited research into the rapid increase in COPD in young people being connected to vaping where many of the same chemicals used in smoke machines in the 70’s are being used today.

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