In a tribute to the late Sinead O’Connor, Lennox ends her performance with an antiwar statement, saying, “Artists for ceasefire,” concerning the war on Gaza.
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Annie Lennox pays tribute to Sinead O’Connor during the 66th annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 4, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP)
In an ode to the late Irish singer-songwriter Sinead O’Connor at the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, Scottish singer Annie Lennox performed “Nothing Compares 2 U,” O’Connor’s cover of the Prince No. 1 hit – which the late singer was famous for, becoming the first artist to call for a ceasefire in Gaza at a major awards show this year.
In the tribute, Lennox ended her performance with an antiwar statement, saying, “Artists for a ceasefire. Peace in the world,” in reference to the war on Gaza.
boygenius wearing “artists for ceasefire” pins at the #GRAMMYS pic.twitter.com/67idehFKIm
— boygenius source (@boygeniussource) February 4, 2024
Fans celebrated the singer for making the bold statement and honoring O’Connor in the “most meaningful and honest way.”
Several other artists joined on the calls for peace in Gaza on the Grammys red carpet. The members of Boygenius members Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker wore pins with the logo for Artists Call for Ceasefire Now,
The logo represents the name of a petition sent to Joe Biden and signed by numerous musicians and actors.
On her part, Esperanza Spalding showed her support for Palestine as well by wearing a Koufiyyeh.
Esperanza Spalding at the grammys 2024 🤎 pic.twitter.com/rFFe2rwT8Y
— Punam Khosla (@punamji) February 5, 2024
Sean O’Connor: Pro-Palestine legacy
O’Connor was also notable for voicing her support for Palestine and canceled a performance in “Israel” back in 2014, stating her “support for the Palestinian plight.”
Sinéad O’Connor has died. We will always remember her for her courage, her tenacity, morality, for speaking truth to power – and for her angelic voice. RIP #SineadOConnor pic.twitter.com/F749i2ba2l
— Ramzy Baroud (@RamzyBaroud) July 26, 2023
Back in July of last year before her passing, she penned a letter to Israeli Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir after he threatened to kill her and her band following her support for Palestine.
“God does not reward those who bring terror to the children of the world. SO YOU HAVE SUCCEEDED IN NOTHING BUT YOUR SOUL’S FAILURE”, she stated.
O’Connor, who was distinguishable by her signature shaved head, was considered controversial during her life, regularly speaking out against the Catholic Church.
She has stated she was a victim of abuse. O’Connor in 1992 protested the Catholic Church’s controversial allegations of child abuse by tearing up a photograph of Pope John Paul II while performing on the US television show Saturday Night Live.
She was ordained as a priest in 1999 and converted to Islam in 2018, changing her name to Shuhada’ Sadaqat.
