USA TODAY
September 26, 1990, Wednesday, FINAL EDITION

Tough image takes toll


    Articulate, opinionated and unflinchingly true to her instincts and values,
Sinead O'Connor seems unfazed by adversity. That's a common misconception.

   ''People constantly think I'm tough,'' she says.  ''Even in good reviews,
they say my songs are based on aggression and confrontation, just because I say
what I think and say it loudly. That does hurt. I'm very strong, but I'm not
aggressive.''

   Another misjudgment: that she's humorless. Asked if she took offense when
Andrew Dice Clay called her ''a bald chick,'' O'Connor cracks, ''I am a bald
chick.'' And to the idea that her baldness lends to her stony image, she shrugs
and deadpans, ''People are hairists.''

   Though she sported a quarter-inch stubble earlier this year, she's taken to
shaving her head clean again. ''You can't get a decent haircut in this
country,'' she complains.