Dolores O'Riordan, the lead singer of popular Irish rock band The Cranberries, died Monday in London, her publicist said. She was 46.
"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," her representative said in a statement to multiple media outlets, adding that no further details were available.
O'Riordan rose to fame as the gentle voice behind some of The Cranberries' biggest hits, including "Zombie" and "Linger," the latter of which, a lilting love song, served as the band's breakthrough hit in 1993. The tune, with its distinctive string section, peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100.
It also featured prominently in the 2006 Adam Sandler movie "Click," prompting a brief cameo by O'Riordan to sing the song in a wedding scene.
The native of County Limerick, Ireland, briefly embarked on a solo career after The Cranberries went on hiatus in 2003, but the band regrouped in 2009 and were slated for a European tour this past summer.
That tour, as well as its North American leg, were canceled in July as O'Riordan recovered from an "ongoing back problem," according to The Cranberries' website.
"Unfortunately Dolores O'Riordan's recovery from her ongoing back problem which forced the cancellation of most of the band's European tour this Summer has not been going as well as expected to such extent that her Doctors have now instructed her to cancel her upcoming almost sold out tour of North America with the band," a statement on the website read.
The band's final album with O'Riordan at the microphone, an acoustic compilation record called "Something Else," was released in April.
