Published: 09:31 EST, 6 September 2018 | Updated: 09:34 EST, 6 September 2018

How Dolores O'Riordan turned into a global star after answering an ad

Dolores O'Riordan was born on September 6, 1971 in Ballybricken, Ireland. 

In 1990, she answered an ad from a local band in nearby Limerick city - then called The Cranberry Saw Us - that was looking for a lead singer.

A name change and a confluence of factors turned The Cranberries into international stars. Their guitar-based sound had an alternative-rock edge at a time when grunge was storming the music scene.

Dolores O'Riordan (pictured at Dublin Castle in 2000) was a charismatic lead singer

The band's songs - on which O'Riordan was chief lyricist and co-songwriter - had a Celtic-infused tunefulness. 

And in O'Riordan the group had a charismatic lead singer with a distinctively powerful voice.

Heavy play on MTV for their debut single 'Dream' and the singles that followed helped bring the group to the attention of a mass audience.

The Cranberries' 1993 debut album, 'Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We?', sold millions of copies and produced the hit single 'Linger.'

The follow-up, 'No Need to Argue,' sold in even greater numbers and contained 'Zombie,' a visceral howl against Northern Ireland's violent Troubles that topped singles charts in several countries.

O'Riordan (pictured in Tirana in 2007) was one of Ireland's richest women

The band released three more studio albums before splitting up in 2003. 

O'Riordan released a solo album, 'Are You Listening,' in 2007, and another, 'No Baggage,' in 2009.

The Cranberries also reunited that year, resulting in the album 'Roses' in 2012.

For a time, O'Riordan was one of Ireland's richest women, but she struggled with both physical and mental health problems.

The Cranberries released the acoustic album 'Something Else' in 2017 and had been due to tour Europe and North America. The tour was cut short because O'Riordan was suffering from back problems.

In 2014, O'Riordan was accused of assaulting three police officers and a flight attendant during a flight from New York to Ireland. She pleaded guilty and was fined €6,000 (£5,400)

O'Riordan (pictured in Paris in May 2017) struggled with both physical and mental health problems

Medical records given to the court indicated she was mentally ill at the time of the altercation. After her court hearing O'Riordan urged other people suffering mental illness to seek help.

She told Metro newspaper last year that she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and she spoke to the Irish News about her battles with depression.

O'Riordan said depression 'is one of the worst things to go through,' but that 'I've also had a lot of joy in my life, especially with my children.'

'You get ups as well as downs. Sure, isn't that what life's all about?' she said.

O'Riordan is survived by her ex-husband, the former Duran Duran tour manager Don Burton, and their three children.

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