Morrissey has lashed out at tributes to the late Sinéad O’Connor, and has claimed people are only praising her now “because it’s too late”.
It seems the former frontman of iconic Manchester band The Smiths is living up to his recent controversial label and proving to be his outspoken self once again, as this time, he’s decided to take aim at the tributes paid to Sinéad O’Connor by celebrities and the media, accusing them of “not having the guts” to support her when she was “alive and looking for you”.
Legendary Irish singer Sinéad O’Connor sadly passed away at the of 56 yesterday, her “devastated” family confirmed in a statement.
O’Connor was most well-known for her famous 1990 cover of Prince’s ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’, as well as for releasing 10 critically-acclaimed solo albums throughout her revered career.
Sinéad O’Connor passed away at the of 56 / Credit: Sinéad O’Connor (via Facebook)
She was also known for being a vocal advocate for women in the music industry, for campaigning for women’s reproductive rights, and for publicly speaking out against the Catholic church, but was also known to have Bipolar Disorder and had been candid about her struggles with mental health over the years.
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The singer’s death came 18 months after the death of her 17-year-old son Shane, who had been on suicide watch before his passing.
Her cause of death has not yet been disclosed, but is “not being treated as suspicious” by police.
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In the hours since O’Connor’s death, many fans, famous names, and musicians and industry figures have publicly paid their tributes – but Morrissey has hit out at this response, and has taken to his personal website to have his say in an open letter.
Morrissey hits out at Sinéad O’Connor tributes claiming it’s ‘too late’ / Credit: Morrissey (via Facebook)
Titled ‘You Know I Couldn’t Last’, Morrissey wrote that “the cruel playpen of fame gushes with praise for Sinead… [but] you praise her now ONLY because it is too late”, adding that many didn’t “have the guts to support her when she was alive and she was looking for you”.
He continued: “She was dropped by her label after selling seven million albums for them. She became crazed, yes, but uninteresting, never.
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“She had done nothing wrong. She had proud vulnerability… and there is a certain music industry hatred for singers who don’t ‘fit in’ (this I know only too well), and they are never praised until death – when, finally, they can’t answer back.
“Music CEOs who had put on their most charming smile as they refused her for their roster are queuing-up to call her a “feminist icon”. And 15 minute celebrities and goblins from hell and record labels of artificially aroused diversity are squeezing onto Twitter to twitter their jibber-jabber… when it was YOU who talked Sinead into giving up…
“You didn’t have the guts to support her when she was alive”/ Credit: Wikimedia Commons
“Because she refused to be labelled, and she was degraded, as those few who move the world are always degraded.”
The 64-year-old former frontman turned solo artist – who has always been outspoken throughout his career, but has more recently become a widely divisive and heavily critiqued figure due to publicly voicing his views on a number of contentious topics spanning the genres of politics, race, culture, religion, and more – closed out his letter by calling O’Conner “a challenge” but one that “couldn’t be boxed-up”.
There’s a big 90s rave happening in Manchester this summer
Thomas Melia
A music-oriented event is taking place in Manchester later this year dedicated to everything about the unforgettable 90s rave scene.
Relive the ‘Madchester‘ glory days all over again as you and your mates can now get tickets to the 90’s rave of the summer happening right here in Manchester.
This event is going big or going home with a runtime of 10 hours and with the amount of acts that have been announced, you’ll wish you had 24 hours.
Presented by the same team that put together ‘Sanctuary Forever’, ravers are at the heart of everything they do, and with a turnout of 8,500 attendees, you certainly won’t be dancing alone.
There are four different ‘arenas’ at this rave all catering to different soundscapes of the 90s rave scene, from hardcore to classic DnB, no music genre has been forgotten.
We all know Manchester was the cultural epicentre for electronic music and with the help of iconic music venues including The Hacienda.
Now, the capital of the North is back in its prime with this event featuring much-adored DJs such as Fabio and Grooverider, Ratpack, Danny Rampling and more.
Acts like Scott Brown, Hype and Slipmatt who were instrumental in shaping rave culture in the 90’s will also be playing sets on this very night.
Rave culture is nothing but praised for around these quarters with The Prodigy playing two very special gigs in the current club highlight, The Warehouse Project back in December.
Taking place at Bowlers Exhibition Centre, this 84,000 square foot space is deeply rooted in the rave scene too, with shows like Helter Skelter, Life, Asylum and Fantasia happening here once upon a time.
You can see the lineup in full HERE get a quick rundown of the setup down below:
With a lineup this stellar, while making sure to look back on Manchester’s musical history and 90s rave culture, in particular, there’s a reason why this event is titled ‘Manchester Forever’.
‘Manchester Forever’ is coming to Bowlers Exhibition Centre in Manchester on 3 May 2025 and tickets are already on sale.
Boney M and more join star-studded concert lineup at Arley Hall
Thomas Melia
Disco legends Boney M are just one of the many famous acts joining an impressive lineup of gigs at well-known site Arley Hall.
This historic building and its grounds are situated in Cheshire and have been the filming spot for some mega TV and on-demand streaming shows including Fool Me Once and Peaky Blinders.
Now, Arley Hall is transforming into a gig hotspot this summer welcoming impressive acts like Odyssey and The Real Thing keeping disco frontiers Boney M in good company.
Known for hits like ‘Rivers of Babylon’, ‘Rasputin’, ‘Daddy Cool’ and everyone’s guilty pleasure Christmas song ‘Mary’s Boy Child’, the Boney M gang sure knew how to write a hit or two. Still do, in fact.
Music you can’t help but dance to.
The same can be said for Odyssey, who have some catchy numbers like ‘Native New Yorker’, ‘Inside Out’, while The Real Thing have their number one single ‘You To Me Are Everything’ among many others.
And it’s not just disco that’s getting a spotlight, superstar vocalist Russell Watson is bringing a Proms spectacular to this live music weekend event too.
Watson will be partying just as much as the crowd, celebrating a landmark 25 years since the release of his debut album, it’s guaranteed to be a show-stopping and absolutely wonderful night for all.
You can dance the night away for another reason as ‘Live at Arley’ isn’t only for good times, it’s for good causes too, they’re supporting The GEM Appeal which funds genetic research for Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital.
Guests are invited to bring their own picnics to the event but there will be a handful of food vendors with goodies throughout the venue.
Arley Hall is also offering a Premium Experience, which is available for those concertgoers who want to live the high life, these tickets include ‘Premium Toilets’. Yes, please!
Don’t worry about the kids either as they can come with you as children and under 4’s go free to the event, just make sure you don’t tell the grandparents that!
‘Live at Arley’ featuring all of these phenomenal acts is taking place across two nights Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 May 2025 with all ticket packages available HERE.
Emily Sergeant -
27th July 2023 
