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Miley Cyrus took the stage during the Saturday Night Live 50th anniversary concert for a powerful tribute to Sinéad O'Connor, but not all viewers were thrilled with the performance for a very specific reason.
Cyrus, joined by Alabama Shakes lead singer and guitarist Brittany Howard, sang a moving rendition of O'Connor's version of Prince's song "Nothing Compares 2 U" during the SNL50: The Anniversary Special on Sunday (February 16). However, some fans thought the choice to perform one of the late Irish musician's songs on SNL was odd given the O'Connor and the show's complicated past.
O'Connor was banned from SNL after appearing as a musical guest in 1992 where she sang a version of Bob Marley's "War," declaring, "Fight the real enemy," before up a photo of Pope John Paul II as a protest to the Catholic Church's alleged cover-up of sexual abuse of children, per People. Another aspect some fans took issue with is how O'Connor and Prince were later embroiled in a feud.
Despite the "controversy," the "Flowers" singer remains unbothered by the criticism. A source told the Daily Mail that Cyrus knew some people would "get offended" by the performance but that she chose to go through with it anyway.
"It was absolutely Miley's idea to sing 'Nothing Compares 2 U and she believes she killed it," the insider said, adding, "She is aware of the backlash and she knew going into this that it would cause some people to get offended ... It is actually quite comical to her."
The source doubled down on Cyrus' response, explaining that she has nothing to apologize for.
"Miley will never apologize for something that she owes no apology for. So, as usual, Miley is going to let this chatter bounce off her," they said, adding, "She believes that she delivered a beautiful performance of a Prince song. She really has no time to dwell on a performance that is over."
Cyrus and Howard also took the stage on Friday (February 14) for the special honoring the long-running sketch comedy show to perform "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" by Queen.