Artists use music to express their feelings and thoughts, and Sinéad O’Connor used her art and fame to voice her advocacies and political stances. Even though she knew it would affect her career, she did it with no doubt and even gained the support of fellow musician Kris Kristofferson.
The late American singer once spoke about the controversial incident that immediately killed O’Connor’s career. He was there when the audience humiliated her following a previous shocking gesture she made on stage.
Kris Kristofferson Defended Sinéad O’Connor After Her Saturday Night Live Controversy
Fans would remember the tumultuous life and career of Irish singer and activist Sinéad O’Connor. She was notably remembered for her appearance at the Saturday Night Live show where she ripped apart a photo of Pope John Paul II in 1992.
Two years earlier, she made a successful and definitive cover of Prince’s Nothing Compares 2 U, which immediately propelled her to stardom.
The shocking act she did at her performance was criticized by people who weren’t aware of her reasons for doing so. O’Connor was protesting the child abuse committed by the Catholic Church in Ireland, many cases were allegedly covered up and swept under the rug.
The photo that she tore apart was owned by her mother whom she claimed was very abusive towards her. She took the image from her childhood home when her mother passed away and waited for the right time to destroy it in front of the public as an act of protest.
While attending a Bob Dylan tribute concert at Madison Square Garden, the singer was booed by the large crowd, but Kris Kristofferson supported and comforted her. He revealed in his interview with RTE One that he believed she was misunderstood by the people. Moreover, he revealed: “I went out and I said, ‘Don’t let the bastards get you down.’”
The late musician confessed feeling that what the people did to O’Connor was wrong. He praised her for the courage she showed that night and for standing up for what she believed was right.
In her memoir Rememberings, she reflected on what she did at SNL. When everybody thought she ruined her career by ripping the photo apart, she felt otherwise: “I feel that having a No. 1 record derailed my career and my tearing the photo put me back on the right track.”
Kris Kristofferson’s Music Continues to Live Forever
Kris Kristofferson was only one of the few who supported O’Connor when the scandal broke out. They developed a lifelong friendship after he defended her onstage, an event that fans commemorated after his sudden passing at age 88.
A representative of the musician confirmed that he died peacefully in his home in Hawaii this Saturday. Even though the country singer is no longer with us, his legacy and music remain alive in the hearts of fans and his fellow artists in the industry.
