Redeem now - Bob Geldof received messages "laden with desperation and despair and sorrow" from Sinéad O'Connor before her death.
- The "Nothing Compares 2 U" singer died last week aged 56.
- "Many, many times Sinéad was full of a terrible loneliness and a terrible despair," said Geldof.
Bob Geldof has said he received text messages "laden with desperation and despair" from Sinéad O'Connor in the weeks leading up to her death.
This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now. Have an account? Log in.O'Connor, best known for her 1990 rendition of "Nothing Compares 2 U," was pronounced dead on Wednesday after police responded to reports of an unresponsive woman at an address in south London. She was 56.
During an appearance at the Cavan Calling festival in Ireland on Saturday, Geldof, a childhood neighbor and close friend of O'Connor's, took a moment to remember the Irish singer.
"Many, many times Sinéad was full of a terrible loneliness and a terrible despair," the Boomtown Rats frontman told the crowd. "She was a very good friend of mine."
"We were talking right up to a couple of weeks ago," he added. "Some of her texts were laden with desperation and despair and some were ecstatically happy. She was like that."
In an interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2007, O'Connor spoke about living with bipolar disorder, and revealed that she struggled with suicidal thoughts.
In 2017, O'Connor also shared a video on social media in which she said she was living in a "motel" and that she was "not staying alive for me."
Geldof described the late star as a "great artist" and "a radical and an activist at the same time," per the Irish Examiner.
He also urged the crowd in Cavan to "keep on."
"There's no other option, as all of you know, than to just keep on," he said, before performing a rendition of the Boomtown Rats' 1977 song "Mary of the 4th Form" in O'Connor's memory.
"It was her favorite Rats song, and she loved this band," said Geldof. "She came to many, many, many, gigs as a girl."
If you or someone you know is experiencing depression or has had thoughts of harming themself or taking their own life, get help. In the US, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, which provides 24/7, free, confidential support for people in distress, as well as best practices for professionals and resources to aid in prevention and crisis situations. Help is also available through the Crisis Text Line — just text "HOME" to 741741. The International Association for Suicide Prevention offers resources for those outside the US.
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