Sinead O’Connor died at the age of 56 on Wednesday. “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad,” the singer’s family said in a statement, according to BBC. “Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time.”
The Irish singer, who will be remembered for her emotional hit cover of Prince’s song “Nothing Compares 2 U,” had a punk attitude, with matching punk style. In 1989, O’Connor became the first artist to publicly attack the Grammys while being nominated for four awards that same year. In 1992, she famously tore up a picture of Pope John Paul II on stage on “Saturday Night Live” in protest of the Catholic Church’s alleged complicity with child abuse cases.
O’Connor’s rise to fame was documented in “Nothing Compares.” Released in 2022, the documentary directed by Kathryn Ferguson shone a light on her life and career from 1987 to 1993. During this time, the singer’s style became synonymous with the punk and grunge aesthetic. She would often wear leather jackets, high-waisted and distressed jeans, white Ts and Dr. Martens boots. O’Connor was also famous for wearing graphic T-shirts with messages considered defiant for the time.
Here, WWD remembers some of her memorable fashion moments.
Olympic Ballroom, 1988
In one of her earlier performances, O’Connor took the stage at the Olympic Ballroom in Dublin wearing black semi-sheer tights with a cropped leather jacket and lace-up combat boots. She added an edgy update to her all-black outfit with a tutu skirt.
Grammy Awards 1989
During the Grammy Awards in 1989, when she was nominated in four categories, including Record of the Year, O’Connor contrasted the glamour of the red carpet in a grunge look, wearing a biker leather jacket, ripped jeans and a graphic T-shirt with an artistic print of the Virgin Mary. O’Connor protested against the ceremony with a letter. “We are allowing ourselves to be portrayed as being in some way more important, more special than the very people we are supposed to be helping — by the way we dress, by the cars we travel in, by the ‘otherworldliness’ of our shows and by a lot of what we say in our music,” she wrote.
Germany, 1990
In 1990, the singer was invited to perform at a television show in Cologne, Germany. She kept her signature leather jacket and paired the item with her white denim pants and matching hoodie. O’Connor added a symbolic white flower to complete the outfit.
MTV Video Music Awards 1993
In 1993, O’Connor accompanied her then-boyfriend Peter Gabriel at MTV’s Video Music Awards in Los Angeles. They both had released the song “Come Talk To Me” a year before. This time, O’Connor, who was being attacked in the media for her views on the Catholic Church, decided to wear a somber look, opting for a monochromatic tailored suit, which she paired with her signature leather boots.
PHOTOS: Remember Sinead O’Connor’s life and career throughout the years in pictures.