Dolores O’Riordan, the Irish musician who fronted ’90s superstars The Cranberries, has died in London at age 46. Time
Dolores O'Riordan, known for her raw voice on alt-rock songs by The Cranberries, including Zombie and Linger, has died unexpectedly at age 46. The lead singer of the Irish band died Monday in London, where she had gone for a short recording session, publicist Lindsey Holmes told USA TODAY. Holmes said the singer's family is "devastated" by the news.
Her cause of death wasn't immediately available.
Famous friends and fans paid tribute to the unapologetic musician on Twitter.
"She was kind and lovely, I got her autograph on my train ticket and it made my day," TV host James Corden said about meeting O'Riordan when he was 15. "She had the most amazing voice and presence."
Singer Josh Groban said that he "always adored her songs and voice."
Musician Matt Nathanson tweeted, "What a voice!" after hearing the "sad news" about O'Riordan.
Singer/songwriter Melissa Etheridge said she didn't know O'Riordan personally, but shared a record label and "a love for music" with The Cranberries singer, who was "gone way too soon."
TV personality Carson Daly, who supported The Cranberries when he worked on rock station KROQ, tweeted that he had great memories of O'Riordan and "that incredible Celtic sound ... She will be greatly missed."
"Devastated for fans and her family," singer Liz Phair posted. "(She) had such an exquisite voice, so distinctive and defining of an era. She would have continued to be a rare musical treasure late into a long life,"
O'Riordan's band, The Cranberries, formed in Limerick, Ireland, and became international stars in the 1990s with edgy rock hits. The band broke up up in 2003, but reunited several years later. In 2014, O'Riordan was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Earlier that year, O'Riordan was accused of assaulting three police officers and a flight attendant on a plane from New York to Ireland. She pleaded guilty and was fined 6,000 Euros ($6,600).
In 2016, O'Riordan collaborated with The Smiths' Andy Rourke to release album Science Agrees in the supergroup D.A.R.K. The next year, The Cranberries released acoustic album Something Else. A scheduled tour to Europe and North America was cut short because O'Riordan was suffering from back problems.
In O'Riordan's final tweet, she shared a photo of herself with a cat, saying, "Bye-bye." Fans have replied to that post with their condolences.
Contributing: The Associated Press
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