The Cranberries singer Dolores O'Riordan has died suddenly at a hotel aged 46, her publicist has confirmed.
The Irish rock star, who has recently been performing with a band called D.A.R.K, was staying in London while recording.
Her publicist did not comment on how she died, other than it say it was 'sudden' and that her family are 'devastated'.
Met Police told MailOnline that O'Riordan was found in a room of the Hilton London in Park Lane at 9.05am, and that the death was being treated as 'unexplained'.
Ronan Keating was among dozens of celebrities to express their sadness at the news, as he told of his shock at the 'loss of an incredible talent and a lovely soul'.
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This was the rockstar's last tweet, posted on January 4 and stating she was heading to Ireland
The Irish rock star (pictured left in 2012), who has recently been performing with a band called D.A.R.K, was staying in London while recording
The star, pictured with her bandmates in 1999, recently told of trouble times she went through
O'Riordan and her daughter Molly in 2008. She has two other children; a son named Taylor and another daughter called Dakota, as well as a step-son named Donnie
Met Police told MailOnline that O'Riordan was found in a room of the Hilton London in Park Lane (pictured) at 9.05am, and that the death was being treated as 'unexplained'
A statement from her publicist said: 'Irish and international singer Dolores O'Riordan has died suddenly in London today. She was 46 years old.
'The lead singer with the Irish band The Cranberries was in London for a short recording session. No further details are available at this time.
'Family members are devastated to hear the breaking news and have requested privacy at this very difficult time.'
O'Riordan, who was born in Limerick, last posted a picture of herself with her cat on Twitter on January 4 with the caption: 'Bye bye Gio. We're off to Ireland.'
A Met Police spokesperson said: 'Police in Westminster are dealing with a sudden death.
'Officers were called at 9.05am on Monday to a Hotel in Park Lane. A woman in her mid 40s was pronounced dead at the scene.
'At this early stage the death is being treated as unexplained. Enquiries continue.'
Her band had recently played in South America, and she tweeted pictures of fans in Lima, Peru in December.
'She seemed happy and well': Stars pay tribute to singer Dolores O'Riordan after she dies 'unexpectedly' James Corden and Duran Duran are among the stars to pay tribute to The Cranberries singer Dolores O'Riordan. Comedian and TV star Corden said he met the singer when he was 15. She was kind and lovely,' he wrote on Twitter. 'I got her autograph on my train ticket and it made my day. She had the most amazing voice and presence. So sorry to hear that she's passed away today x.' Duran Duran said they were 'crushed to hear the news. Our thoughts go out to her family at this terrible time,' they added. Dave Davies of The Kinks shared a picture of himself with O'Riordan. He said: 'I'm really shocked that #DoloresORiordan has passed so suddenly - I was talking to her a couple weeks before Christmas she seemed happy and well - we even spoke about maybe writing some songs together - unbelievable God bless her.' US singer Josh Groban tweeted: 'Nooooo!! Have always adored her songs and voice.' Stars including Beverley Knight, Ronan Keating and Brian McFadden expressed their sadness at the sudden death
Dolores O'Riordan poses with her European Border Breakers Award in 2008, following the release of her solo album Are You Listening?
The parish priest from her home town has confirmed her funeral will take place in Ireland, where she will be buried.
Father James Walton, parish priest at Ballybricken & Bohermore Parish, said: 'I only found out this afternoon. Her family is very devastated and upset.
'The suddenness of her death has been a shock. I met Dolores two or three times when she was home visiting family. She was a lovely lady.
'Her family are still waiting for more details to come from London about her death.
'The plan is for her to be buried here at home. When that will be will depend on when her body is released.'
A spokeswoman for London Hilton, on Park Lane, said: 'It is with deep regret that we can confirm a guest sadly passed away at the hotel on Monday 15th January.
'We offer our sincere condolences to their family at this difficult time.
'Team members acted swiftly to alert the Metropolitan Police and we are cooperating fully with their investigation. All further enquiries should be directed to the police.'
Last year she revealed that she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2015, having battled with depression during much of her career.
She told Metro: 'There are two ends of the spectrum — you can get extremely depressed and dark and lose interest in the things you love to do, then you can get super manic.
Dolores O'Riordan from the The Cranberries joining Italian singer Zucchero onstage during a benefit show in 2004
'I was at the hypomanic side of the spectrum on and off for a long period but generally you can only last at that end for around three months before you hit rock bottom and go down into depression.
'When you're manic you don't sleep and get very paranoid. So I'm dealing with it with medication.'
The Cranberries last released an album in early 2017, but a US and European tour was cancelled in July due to health reasons concerning O'Riordan.
In a statement, the band explained that she was suffering from an 'ongoing back problem' and that doctors had advised her to pull out of all her upcoming gigs.
On December 20 O'Riordan tweeted from the band's official account, writing: 'Hi All, Dolores here. Feeling good!
O'Riordan's publicist did not comment on how she died, other than it say it was 'sudden' and that her family are 'devastated'
Formed in Limerick, Ireland, The Cranberries (pictured in 1999) became international stars in the 1990s with hits including Zombie and Linger
O'Riodan is seen on stage with The Cranberries in Paris in 2010 (left). Shown right, she is seen on her wedding day in 1994 with husband Don Burton (right)
'I did my first bit of gigging in months at the weekend, performed a few songs at the Billboard annual staff holiday party in New York with the house band.
'Really enjoyed it! Happy Christmas to all our fans!! Xo'
O'Riordan split from her husband of 20 years, the former tour manager of Duran Duran, Don Burton, in 2014.
In February 2016 O'Riordan said she would use 'music, dancing and performing to improve her mental health' after avoiding a criminal conviction for assault at an airport.
She was ordered to pay €6,000 to charity for headbutting, kicking, hitting and spitting on police officers following an alleged air rage incident.
The singer had previously admitted three assaults and obstructing a police officer after being taken off an Aer Lingus flight from New York's JFK to Ireland on November 10, 2014.
The singer, pictured in 2000, had continued to perform with other bands since the Cranberries
Medical reports produced for the trial at Ennis District Court revealed she had been suffering from mania, mental illness and severely impaired judgment at the time of the incident, and that she remembered nothing about it.
O'Riordan was mother to son Taylor and daughters Molly and Dakota.
President of Ireland Michael D Higgins led tributes to the singer, saying: 'It is with great sadness that I have learned of the death of Dolores O'Riordan, musician, singer and songwriter.
'Dolores O'Riordan and The Cranberries had an immense influence on rock and pop music in Ireland and internationally.
'I recall with fondness the late Limerick TD Jim Kemmy's introduction of her and The Cranberries to me, and the pride he and so many others took in their successes.
'To all those who follow and support Irish music, Irish musicians and the performing arts her death will be a big loss.'
Members of The Cranberries hold O'Riordan and pose for a group photo at the 13th Annual MTV Video Music Awards in September 1996
Dolores O'Riordan performs onstage in San Francisco, California, USA in December 1993
Irish band Kodaline also offered condolences, writing on Twitter: 'Absolutely shocked to hear about the passing of Dolores O'Riordan!
'@The-Cranberries gave us our first big support when we toured with them around France years ago! Thoughts are with her family and friends.'
Formed in Limerick, Ireland, The Cranberries became international stars in the 1990s with hits including Zombie and Linger.
The band split up in 2003 but reunited several years later, last releasing the acoustic album Something Else in 2017.
'At home I'm a house-keeper and a mum. The kids are, like, "What's for dinner? Where are my clothes?". On tour it's, like: "room-service",' she said of the comeback.
O'Riordan, from Friarstown, Kilmallock, Co Limerick, was renowned for her distinctive singing voice.
She became a multi award-winning musician after becoming lead singer of the band when she was just 18 and went on to sell tens of millions of records.
Duran Duran wrote on Twitter: 'We are crushed to hear the news about the passing of Dolores O'Riordan. Our thoughts go out to her family at this terrible time.'
The singer rose to fame in the 1990s with the indie band, most famous for their song Zombie
Troubled life of singer who was sexually assaulted as 'a kid', suffered mid-air meltdown and admitted she was 'an accident waiting to happen'
Born and raised in County Limerick, Dolores O'Riordan was still in her teens when she answered an advert for a female singer for a rock band called The Cranberry Saw Us.
Having written her own songs since she was 12, she tried out for the group by showing off both her lilting vocals and her ability to pen melodies and words for their demos.
Existing members Mike and Noel Hogan and Fergal Lawler snapped her up and together they became The Cranberries, increasingly becoming known for O'Riordan's distinctive wailing voice.
One of the demos she had worked on for her audition was Linger, which gave The Cranberries a number three hit in Ireland in 1993 and proved to be their breakthrough track. More success followed with songs such as Salvation and Zombie, which scooped a coveted Ivor Novello Award.
They unveiled their debut studio album - entitled Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We? - in 1993 and it topped the charts.
Successful follow ups No Need To Argue and To the Faithful Departed came in 1994 and 1996, cementing the band's status as a mainstream international rock band. To date the group has sold over 40 million records.
But by 2003 it was time for a change and the band announced they were taking some time off to pursue other opportunities.
O'Riordan seized the opportunity to pursue a solo career and released the albums Are You Listening? (2007) and No Baggage (2009).
But while her musical ventures thrived, the singer was battling depression and mental health troubles in her personal life.
In an interview in 2013 she said she had been abused as a child which she said later led to an eating disorder and a breakdown.
'I had anorexia, then depression, a breakdown,' she said. 'I knew why I hated myself. I knew why I loathed myself. I knew why I wanted to make myself disappear.'
O'Riordan married Don Burton, the former tour manager of Duran Duran, in 1994 and they had three children.
Her family, she said, were her 'salvation'.
But there was more heartbreak ahead, with the singer losing her beloved father in 2011 and her marriage coming to an end in 2014.
Two years later O'Riordan was ordered to pay 6,000 euro to charity for headbutting, kicking, hitting and spitting on police officers following an alleged air rage incident.
The singer had previously admitted three assaults and obstructing a garda after being taken off an Aer Lingus flight from New York's JFK to Ireland in November 2014.
Medical reports produced for the trial at Ennis District Court revealed she had been suffering from mania, mental illness and severely impaired judgement at the time of the incident, and that she remembered nothing about it.
Last year she revealed she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2015.
She told Metro: 'There are two ends of the spectrum - you can get extremely depressed and dark and lose interest in the things you love to do, then you can get super manic.
'I was at the hypomanic side of the spectrum on and off for a long period but generally you can only last at that end for around three months before you hit rock bottom and go down into depression. When you're manic you don't sleep and get very paranoid.'
The star said she was dealing with it with medication.
In another revealing interview O'Riordan told the Irish News that depression 'whatever the cause, is one of the worst things to go through', but that her family had given her happiness.
'I've also had a lot of joy in my life, especially with my children," she said. 'You get ups as well as downs. Sure isn't that what life's all about?'
Music Dolores O'Riordan, lead singer of the Cranberries, dies aged 46 Death of Irish singer, whose band sold more than 40m records, is being treated as ‘unexplained’, police say Dolores O’Riordan, who has died aged 46. Photograph: David Fisher / Rex Features
Dolores O’Riordan, the lead singer with the multi-platinum band the Cranberries, has died aged 46.
The news was confirmed by her publicist in a statement, but no cause of death has yet been announced. O’Riordan, who had to cancel a tour with a reunited Cranberries in 2017 due to a back problem, had been in London for a recording session.
The statement described the death as “sudden”, and added: “Family members are devastated to hear the breaking news and have requested privacy at this very difficult time.”
A Metropolitan police statement also confirmed the news, and that O’Riordan’s body was found at a Park Lane hotel. “At this early stage the death is being treated as unexplained,” the statement read.
A spokeswoman for the London Hilton on Park Lane said: “It is with deep regret that we can confirm a guest sadly passed away at the hotel on Monday 15 January. We offer our sincere condolences to their family at this difficult time.”
Irish president Michael D Higgins said he learned of the news with “great sadness”, adding: “To all those who follow and support Irish music, Irish musicians and the performing arts, her death will be a big loss.”
Musicians have started to pay tribute, including Irish songwriter Hozier, who said he was “shocked and saddened”, and that O’Riordan’s voice “threw into question what a voice could sound like in that context of rock. I’d never heard somebody use their instrument in that way.”
Hozier (@Hozier) My first time hearing Dolores O'Riordan's voice was unforgettable. It threw into question what a voice could sound like in that context of Rock. I'd never heard somebody use their instrument in that way. Shocked and saddened to hear of her passing, thoughts are with her family.
Irish rockers Kodaline said they were “absolutely shocked” by the news, and pop singer Maggie Rogers said: “Dolores O’Riordan’s voice helped me understand my place in the world.” Jim Corr of Irish pop group the Corrs passed his “deepest sympathies” to O’Riordan’s family.
Duran Duran, whose tour manager Don Burton was married to O’Riordan for more than 20 years before their divorce in 2014, said they were “crushed” by the news. O’Riordan and Burton had three children together: Taylor Baxter, Molly Leigh and Dakota Rain.
The Cranberries: how we made Linger Read more
O’Riordan, born in Limerick in 1971, joined the Cranberries – then called the Cranberry Saw Us – in 1990, and performed with them until 2003 when they took a hiatus. Driven by O’Riordan’s heartfelt vocals and her unmistakeable west Irish accent, they became hugely successful on both sides of the Atlantic.
Their hits began with the lilting, keeningly romantic Linger, which reached the Top 10 in the US and Ireland, and No 14 in the UK. It was described by O’Riordan in the Guardian last year as being inspired by “being dumped, publicly, at the disco. Everything’s so dramatic when you’re 17, so I poured it into the song.”
They built on its success, and that of their album Everybody Else is Doing It, So Why Can’t We?, with their next album, 1994’s No Need to Argue. The lead single Zombie showed a new side to the band and to O’Riordan’s voice – a heavy, tortured, anthemic song filled with the violence of the Troubles, it was written in the wake of a 1993 IRA bombing in Warrington that killed three-year-old Jonathan Ball and 12-year-old Tim Parry.
No Need to Argue sold 17m copies, including 7m in the US, and cemented them as one of the biggest alternative acts of the 1990s – their overall album sales topped 40m. The Cranberries released three more albums before taking a break in 2003, allowing O’Riordan to record two solo albums. The band reformed in 2009, initially just to perform live, but new material was eventually released on two subsequent albums, including 2017’s Something Else.
The band’s 2017 European tour was curtailed due to O’Riordan suffering from a back problem; their US dates were then also cancelled on the advice of O’Riordan’s doctors. In a statement after the cancellations the band said they were “very disappointed” and added: “The outpouring of support The Cranberries have received from fans and followers during the past several months is greatly appreciated.”
The Cranberries The Cranberries: five of Dolores O’Riordan's best performances From earnest teenage dreams to political angst and later motherhood, the Limerick-born singer was one of the 1990s’ most distinctive voices News: Cranberries singer Dolores O’Riordan dies aged 46 O’Riordan pictured in New York, June 1995 Photograph: Bob Berg/Getty Images
Dreams
“I want more, impossible to ignore”: call it a self-fulfilling prophecy. When the Cranberries released Dreams in September 1992, hardly anyone paid attention. This came after three years of trying to get the band off the ground, marred by disagreeable managers and working with ill-matched producers. Still, the Irish group kept the faith, eventually recording their debut album Everyone Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We? with Stephen Street, and supporting Suede on the 1993 tour of America. An MTV producer caught a show and was smitten, so the network started playing their videos, including Dreams. Their lucky break made them one of the biggest Irish bands to penetrate America, and they cemented their pull on the pop culture by popping up on a wildly varied array of film and TV soundtracks: Dolores O’Riordan’s weightless, hopeful yearning floated through everything from grungy teen drama My So-Called Life to Wong Kar-wai’s Chungking Express and the first Mission: Impossible.
Linger
In an interview with the Guardian last year, O’Riordan admitted that their first proper hit single – reaching Number 14 in the UK, and 8 in the US – was about her first kiss. The lyrics on the page tell a story of teenage naivety (“Oh, I thought the world of you, I thought nothing could go wrong”) as the optimism of Dreams gives way to a stark newfound awareness of how casually cruel lovers can be. “Everything’s so dramatic at 17, so I poured it into the song,” she said. But Linger has endured because O’Riordan gave it so much more weight than most tales of teen innocence get. Her disappointment is palpable, but stronger – bolder – still is the tone of admonishment she directs at the cad who kissed her only to walk off with her friend a day later.
Zombie
Anyone who had the Cranberries down as dreamy purveyors of teenage longing had a shock coming to them when they heard Zombie, the lead single from their second album, 1994’s No Need to Argue. They brought the angsty, grungy undercurrent of their sound to the fore for a chilling song that paid tribute to two boys, aged 12 and just three, who were killed in an IRA bombing in Warrington in 1993. O’Riordan took advantage of the band’s new global status to deliver a stark message about the pointless bloodshed, hardening her dreamy call to a guttural cry. “It’s a tough thing to sing about, but when you’re young you don’t think twice about things, you just grab it and do it,” she told Team Rock last year.
Salvation
The band’s third album, 1996’s To the Faithful Departed, continued their political streak with lead single Salvation, which set an anti-drugs message against brisk grunge pop. It’s noticeably less subtle – and therefore less striking – than Zombie: “To all the people doing lines, don’t do it, don’t do it,” O’Riordan implored. But the preachy message concealed starker truths about the position the band found themselves in in 1996, exhausted and beleaguered by the press. “It’s not so much like an anti-drug song,” O’Riordan told MTV’s Kurt Loder. “It’s kind of anti the idea of becoming totally controlled by anything, any substance at all, because I know what’s it’s like. And it wasn’t a nice experience and it didn’t get me anywhere. It just confused me more.”
Cranberries singer Dolores O'Riordan dies aged 46 Read more
Animal Instinct
O’Riordan once described 1996, and the tour for To the Faithful Departed, as “the worst time of my life.” She admitted that she was “underweight, drinking too much and very depressed”, owing to work-induced stress and media hostility. So the band went on hiatus, eventually returning in 1999 with Bury the Hatchet. It was another volte-face, rejecting the heaviness that had accrued over their previous two records for a return to the guileless AOR of their debut. On second single Animal Instinct, O’Riordan sang with awe and fear of how her new baby had helped her find herself again after a period in the wilderness. Although they were out of step with pop, the video, in which O’Riordan wears a daisy crown and peasant dress, was in keeping with the earth mother look popularised by Madonna at the turn of the millennium. O’Riordan went on to pursue a solo career in 2004, though later two new albums: 2012’s Roses and last year’s Something Else, featuring largely acoustic reprises of their earlier material. It was a sophisticated collection, though it couldn’t hold a candle to their endearingly earnest early years.
Four of the group’s albums reached the Top 20 on the Billboard 200 chart: “Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We?,” “No Need to Argue,” “To the Faithful Departed” and “Bury the Hatchet.”
Photo
Female rock singers like Sinead O’Connor and Harriet Wheeler of the Sundays had recently preceded the Cranberries on the pop charts, and the band also drew deeply on the musical example of the Smiths, the 1980s band that propelled warm, rounded guitars and confessional lyrics with post-punk drumming. The Cranberries’s 1993 debut album, “Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We,” which included the career-making hits “Linger” and “Dreams,” and the 1994 album “No Need to Argue,” with “Zombie,” were both produced by the Smiths’s producer, Stephen Street.
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After “Zombie,” the Cranberries’ late-1990s albums grew harsher and more concerned with sociopolitical messages than with love songs, losing much of their pop audience. The Cranberries disbanded in 2003; Ms. O’Riordan’s 2007 solo debut album was called “Are You Listening?”
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In an interview published in The Guardian last year, Ms. O’Riordan described how the band wrote “Linger,” its first song together. “I wrote about being rejected,” she said. “I never imagined that that it would become a big song.”
In 1996, Neil Strauss, a pop music critic for The New York Times, described Ms. O’Riordan as a performer who can “sing almost anything and make it seem musical.”
Ms. O’Riordan’s death was also announced on the group’s Twitter account, where fans shared messages of mourning and of the impact that the group’s music had on their lives.
“She was part of my DNA, the soundtrack to my life,” wrote one, Michael Traboulsi.
Ms. O’Riordan grew up in the Ballybricken area of County Limerick, Ireland. In 1994, she married Don Burton, a former tour manager for Duran Duran; the couple divorced in 2014. She is survived by her three children Taylor, Molly and Dakota, and her mother, Eileen O’Riordan.
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Six years after the Cranberries’ split, the group reunited and began touring again. But last year, the band canceled dates on its European and North America tours due to Ms. O’Riordan’s ongoing back problems.
“There have been some comments suggesting that Dolores could perform if she sat while singing. Unfortunately it is not as simple as that,” a statement on the group’s Facebook page said then.
The Cranberries released the acoustic album “Something Else” in 2017 and had plans to perform shows in Europe and North America. But the tours were cut short or canceled because the band said that singing put pressure on the parts of her spine that were giving her so much pain.
