Fiona Apple uploaded a heartfelt video message supporting Sinead O’Connor to her YouTube channel Thursday.
Apple, 39, recorded the clip in response to a video O’Connor posted on her Facebook last week. In the 12-minute video, O’Connor, 50, tearfully explained she was living in a Travelodge motel in New Jersey. She spoke about her struggle with mental illness and thoughts of suicide.
“My entire life is revolving around not dying, and that’s not living,” O’Connor said.
The Irish singer-songwriter, who Rolling Stone reported was briefly “missing suicidal” in 2016, said her psychiatrist was “the only thing keeping me alive.”
“I just saw the video of you, and I don’t want you to feel like that,” Apple said in her video response. “You’ve given so much, and I wish I could be there. I wish I could be of some use to you. I’m your friend, that’s all I want to say, and you’re my hero.”
See the full clip below.
Apple also posted to her channel a video of O’Connor’s performance at the 1989 Grammy Awards.
A note posted to O’Connor’s Facebook page four days later assured fans she is “she is safe, and she is not suicidal.”
On Thursday O’Connor posted a detailed explanation of her improving condition. She then blasted her former manager, who she recently fired. O’Connor’s new manager, Anna M. Sala, issued the following statement:
Sinead is a brave and courageous woman. She says her truth without fear or shame. And just as she fought against child abuse in the church, she will fight with the same strength against the stigma of mental illness, even while putting her own neck on the line.
She is like no one else. Her courage is endless. Despite her own heartbreak, she is always concerned about the suffering of others and how she can use her voice to help them.
She is receiving the best medical care. She is lovingly supported by a musician advocacy organization with a team of people who are working with her on the road to healing. She is improving day by day. Sinead herself said: “If not for Jazz Foundation I wouldn’t have made it. I would not be alive today if not for the unconditional love & kindness of these people.
We are asking people to send their prayers and loving support. At this time, we are all focused on her health and wellness. But without a doubt, her fighting spirit is intact.