Sinéad Marie-Bernadette O'Connor was born on 8 December, 1966 in Dublin, Eire.
While at school, Sinéad took up playing the guitar and began writing songs. She was asked to sing at a wedding where she met Paul Byrne, drummer with the Irish band In Tua Nua. Sinéad co-wrote the band's first single, "Take My Hand" (1984).
Soon afterwards, she became the singer of Ton Ton Macoute, who auditioned for Ensign Records. The band split soon afterwards but Ensign remembered Sinéad and in 1985 she signed to Ensign and moved to London. Before releasing her debut album she recorded "Heroine" with The Edge as part of a soundtrack for the film "The Captive".
In 1987 Sinéad's first child, Jake, was born and she released her debut album, "The Lion and the Cobra" to huge critical acclaim. As a result, she spent the next year touring the UK, Europe and the USA. Her June 1988 concert at London's Dominion Theatre was filmed and released on video in 1989 as "The Value of Ignorance". Also during 1989, Sinéad made her acting debut in the film "Hush-A-Bye-Baby".
Her second album, "I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got", was released in March 1990 in the UK. The album contained a song written by Prince that Sinéad had heard three years earlier on an album by a Minneapolis group, The Family; the song was "Nothing Compares 2 U". Released on 8 January, 1990, Sinéad's version catapulted to the top of the UK singles chart accompanied by a stunningly simple but highly potent video directed by John Maybury. The single went on to top the charts in 17 countries and in September 1990 Sinéad collected three MTV Awards including Best Video.
During a world tour in 1990 two concerts were filmed in Brussels and Rotterdam and released on video in 1991 as "The Year of the Horse".
Sinéad's third album, "Am I Not Your Girl?", was released in the UK in September 1992 and was preceded by a single, "Success Has Made a Failure of Our Home". Recorded in New York City with a forty-seven-piece orchestra, "Am I Not Your Girl?" contained songs that Sinéad had always wanted to record. During the recording a film crew documented the sessions for a 40-minute television special entitled, "Coffee and Cigarettes". In November, a second single, "Don't Cry For Me Argentina", was released from the album. Also during 1992, Sinéad appeared in the film "Wuthering Heights".
In between the release of her third and fourth albums, Sinéad was involved in a number of projects including recording the track "Be Still" for the Peace Together project, appearing at the Dublin Peace rally where she sang an unaccompanied version of "Make Me the Channel of Your Peace", guesting on Peter Gabriel's WOMAD world tour and enrolling at the Parnell School of Music in Dublin for singing and piano lessons.
Her fourth album, "Universal Mother", was released in the UK in September 1994. Three singles were released from the album: "Fire on Babylon", "Thank You for Hearing Me" and "Famine". This album was Sinéad's final album with Ensign/Chrysalis.
In 1996 Sinéad's second child, a daughter named Roísín, was born.
Three years passed before her next release, a "mini-album" of six songs entitled "Gospel Oak". A single, "This IS a Rebel Song", was taken from the album. 1997 also saw the release of "So Far... The Best Of", a collection of her best-known tracks from various albums as well as "Empire", the track she recorded with Bomb The Bass and on which she dueted with Benjamin Zephaniah.
During the summer of 1998, Sinéad joined the Lillith Fair tour. She also appeared in the film "The Butcher Boy", as well as contributing two tracks to the soundtrack album.
In 1999 Sinéad joined Thomas Dolby and the Coldcut production team to record the world's first internet single, "Them Belly Full (But We Hungry)", in aid of the War Child charity. Using "virtual studio" technology, the track was simultaneously recorded at three different locations.
Sinéad signed to Atlantic Records and released "Faith and Courage" in 2000. The production and mixing team included Brian Eno, John Reynolds, Wyclef Jean, Destiny's Child producer Jerry "Te Bass" Duplessis and Adrian Sherwood. Contributing musicians included long-time Lee "Scratch" Perry colleagues, Junior Delgado and Little Roy, Jah Wobble, Dave Stewart, Chucho Merchán, Aswad bassist Carlton Ogilvie and Ednaswap's Anne Preven and Scott Cutler among others. A single, "No Man's Woman", was released from the album that year.
In 2002 Sinéad released her album, "Sean-Nós Nua" and toured Ireland, the UK and Europe. The album was awarded Double Platinum in Ireland as well as receiving outstanding world-wide acclaim.
Throughout her career, Sinéad has collaborated with many artists as well as contributing tracks to film soundtracks, including Veronica Guerin to be released in the summer 2003, and charity albums. Some of the artists with whom Sinéad has collaborated include: Jah Wobble, The Chieftains, Shane McGowan, Peter Gabriel, MC Lyte, Willie Nelson, The The, Bomb the Bass, Afro-Celt Sound System, Roger Waters, Aslan, Ghostland, Davey Spillane and more recently, Luka Bloom, Asian Dub Foundation, Moby, Massive Attack and Sharon Shannon.. Sinéad has also contributed tracks for various charity projects including: the "Red, Hot and Blue" album (a charity album for AIDS research), and "Brand New Boots and Panties" (in aid of Backup, a cancer charity) on which she was backed by Ian Dury's band, The Blockheads. Soundtrack contributions include "Lullaby for Cain" (for The Talented Mr. Ripley), "Skibbereen" (for The Long Journey Home) and "You Made Me the Thief of Your Heart" (for In the Name of the Father).
Sinéad’s new album, "She Who Dwells" is released in September 2003 and is a double CD. The first CD contains rare and unreleased material plus new songs especially recorded for the album. The second CD is a live recording of her show at Vicar Street in Dublin in October 2002.
