ATHENS, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- Greek singer Demis Roussos died from cancer. He was 69.
The artist, whose albums sold over 60 million copies worldwide, was hospitalized for some time and died on Sunday, according to the Athens hospital which treated the singer before he passed away.
Born on June 15, 1946, in Alexandria, Egypt, to a Greek father and an Egyptian singer of Italian origin, Roussos started studying music at the age of 8.
His parents returned to Greece in the 1950s.
He began his music career when he was 17. He rose to fame in the 1960s and 70s.
Among his hits are "Forever And Ever" and "Goodbye".
In September 2013, he received the French Legion of Honor, Grade of Chevalier, France's most important medal of valor.
Artists and fans began to mourn the singer soon after his death.
Greek Oscar-winning composer Vangelis Papathanassiou, who had co-founded with Roussos the rock group Aphrodite's Child in the 60s, said "Nature gave you this magic voice of yours which made millions of people around the world very happy."
"As for me, I keep those special memories that we share together, those early days and I wish you to be happy wherever you are," he said.