Greek singer, pop star of the 1970s-1980s Artomios (Demis) Ventouris Roussos(Demis Roussos) was born on June 15, 1946 in the Egyptian city of Alexandria, where his father worked as a contract architect. Demis's family was musical, his mother was a singer and his father played the classical guitar.
In the 1950s, during the Suez crisis, the wealthy Roussos family, leaving their property, returned to Greece.
Demis Roussos was educated at the Athens College of Music, where he learned to play the trumpet, double bass and organ.
To help his parents, Demis began to play in local cabarets and restaurants. He continued his education at the University of Athens at the Faculty of Philosophy, successfully mastering several languages.
In the mid-1960s, he played with various bands in Athens on ships and in hotels, entertaining tourists and visitors. In these groups, Demis Roussos performed both as a trumpeter and bassist. But only in the We Five group did he manage to demonstrate his singing abilities to the public.
While playing at big hotels in Athens such as the Hilton, Demis met many musicians, including Vangelis Papathanassiou, the leader of the band Formix, whom he became very close friends with. Together with Agyrilos Koulouris and Loukas Sideras, they founded the band Aphrodite's Child. In 1968, the group moved to Paris, where they won worldwide recognition. In 1971, Demis Roussos left the group, deciding to pursue a solo career.
In the late 1970s, the singer was actively involved in solo projects. Demis' first solo album, On The Greek Side Of My Mind, was released in November 1971. In March 1972, his second solo single "No Way Out" was released, but it failed. However, his third single called "My Reason" became a worldwide hit in the summer of 1972.
A second solo album was accordingly recorded and released in April 1973. It was in 1973 that Demis was at the pinnacle of success in Europe, Latin America and Canada and performed with concerts around the world.
In 1974, during his first concert at the Ahoy Hall in Rotterdam, Holland, he performed his new single "Someday Somewhere" for the first time.
In 1975 Demis' three albums "Forever And Ever", "My Only Fascination" and "Souvenirs" topped the top ten albums in England.
In 1977, Roussos recorded the French Album. The song of the same name as the album title "Ainsi Soit-il" became a hit. Demis and Vangelis teamed up again, and Vangelis produced Demis' album "Magic" in 1977. The song "Because" from this album became a mega hit in many countries, including France.
In the 1970s, Roussos' popularity was so great that the singer's name entered the Guinness Book of Records for the number of records sold.
In 1978, Demis traveled to the United States. Despite the fact that both the single "That Once A Lifetime" and the album "Demis Roussos" were successful in the US, the tour did not live up to high expectations.
In the 1980s, Roussos gave 150 music programs a year. In 1982, the album "Attitudes" was released.
On July 14, 1985, the singer flew by plane to Rome and was taken hostage by terrorists along with other passengers. Demis was held hostage in Beirut for five days.
In 1987, Roussos recorded the Christmas album, in 1988 - "Time", in 1989 - "Voice and Vision". Very successful were the music albums released in 1992 - "The Story of ..." and "X-Mas Album".
In 1993, almost all of Europe celebrated the 25th anniversary of the "Greek nightingale" Demis Roussos, he released a new album "Insight", the singer gave a huge number of solo concerts.
The artist continues to actively tour around the world, his concerts gather the public in many countries. He also writes music for films, in particular Indian films, produces the musical career of his daughter Emily and does not stop working on new compositions.
Roussos was married three times and has two children from different marriages - daughter Emily and son Cyril.
Demis Roussos (real name Artemios Venturis Roussos) was born on June 15, 1946 in the second largest city of Egypt, Alexandria. His parents were of Italian and Greek descent. mother was famous singer and a dancer who performed under the pseudonym Nelly Mazlum. His father worked as an engineer, but also had a passion for music. In 1956, after the Suez crisis, they lost most of their property, so they decided to move to Greece.
Demis grew up as a smart and talented boy. He sang well, so his parents assigned him to the choir of the Greek Byzantine Church. Five years spent in the church were not in vain: Demis studied musical theory, learned to play the guitar, double bass, trumpet and organ. Having matured, he began to think about creating his own group.
In 1963, Roussos met Lucas Sideras and Vangelis, talented musicians who, like him, wanted to make a successful career. Soon the decision was made to form the group "Aphrodite" s Child ". Demis became the vocalist, Vangelis took over the keyboards and writing music, and Lucas limited himself to the role of drummer.
The compositions "The Other People" and "Plastics Nevermore" brought the band its first fame. The guys performed a mixture of art rock and progressive rock with a splash of electronic music. In addition to musical experiments, the listeners were struck by the surprisingly strong, pleasant voice of Roussos. After some time, "Aphrodite" s Child "became one of the most popular rock bands in Greece.
worldwide fame
In 1968, a military coup took place in Greece, and Roussos and his rock band left for Paris. There he deployed an active creative activity, and soon the whole of France learned about "Aphrodite" s Child. The single "Rain & Tears" was a great success, rising to the first lines of the charts. It was followed by the albums "End of the World" (1968) and "It" s Five O "Clock" (1969). Despite the growing popularity, Demis decided to leave the group and pursue a solo career. The last album "Aphrodite" s Child "-" 666 "(1972) - was finalized and released after the breakup of the group.
Thanks to his extraordinary charisma and amazing tenor, Demis Roussos was able to achieve even greater popularity than "Aphrodite's Child". In 1971, his first solo disc "Fire and Ice" (1971) was released. Two years later, a new work by the performer appeared on store shelves " Forever and Ever" (1973). This album brought Roussos worldwide fame and is considered his best work to date.
Despite the fact that not all of Demis Roussos' albums were successful with listeners, his popularity never fell. The fact is that the recordings of the artist have always been stated with concert performances. On stage, Roussos created a real show and could turn on the audience even before he began to sing. And when he began to sing, his gentle lyrical voice won the heart once and for all.
Thanks to his great diligence, Demis managed to record several albums every year, as a result of which his discography today includes 26 studio works and many singles. During his career, he gave 380 concerts, visited 120 television programs, was a participant in many festivals and performances. Such compositions as "Happy To Be On An Island In The Sun", "The Demis Roussos Phenomenon", "When Forever Has Gone" became world hits and firmly entered the golden fund of romantic music.
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Other activities
Demis Roussos gained fame not only as a romantic singer, but also as a man with iron willpower. For most of his life, he struggled with excess weight and, in the end, was able to get rid of the disease, losing 55 kilograms. He described his experience of dealing with extra pounds in the book "How I lost weight", which became a world bestseller.
According to Demis, losing weight is very easy. To do this, you need to reduce the consumption of salt, fatty foods, bread. Eat more vegetables and fruits, and do a fasting day once a week. And of course, engage in physical activity that will keep the body in good shape. According to Roussos, diet is not a punishment, because it builds morale and allows you to get to know yourself better.
Demis Roussos has left his mark on cinema as well. In 1981, together with Vangelis, he took part in the recording of soundtracks for the cult films "Chariots of Fire" and "Blade Runner". Their music has been recognized as innovative and has won several prestigious awards.
In 1985, Roussos experienced a real nightmare. On June 14, the plane carrying him and his future wife Pamela was hijacked by two Hezbollah terrorists. Demis spent several days in captivity until he and eight other hostages were exchanged for a third terrorist accomplice. According to the singer, the terrorists treated him normally, because he was very popular in the Arab countries. The only thing that exhausted Roussos was that they demanded that he constantly sing for them. After this incident, the artist began to look at life differently, although he did not like to remember him.
Biography and episodes of life Demis Roussos. When born and died Demis Roussos, memorable places and dates important events his life. singer quotes, Photo and video.
Demis Roussos years of life:
born June 15, 1946, died January 25, 2015
Epitaph
"Farewell, my love,
See you and goodbye!
As long as you remember me, the far edge will be close.
Goodbye my love
Let faith soften sadness:
You keep me in my dreams
And I'll be back."
From the Demis Roussos song "Goodbye my love, Goodbye"
Biography
One of the most famous Greek pop stars in the world, Demis Roussos entered the Guinness Book of Records for the number of albums sold. At the peak of his popularity, which came in 1970-1980, Roussos gave 150 programs a year. He performed all over the world, in the USA and Canada, Latin America and Europe, and his characteristic voice, rich in iridescence, for which Demis received the nickname "Greek nightingale", fell in love with generations of listeners.
Roussos was born in Egypt. When the boy was about 10 years old, the family moved to Greece, to the homeland of his father Roussos. The boy studied at a music college in Athens, mastered several instruments, then began to play in different groups as an instrumentalist, receiving his first fees. The first group in which Demis Roussos managed to show himself as a vocalist was The Five. But the real work began for him with the formation of Aphrodite's Child. Almost immediately after its founding, a military coup took over Greece, and the members moved to Paris, where the group became famous thanks to the single "Rain & Tears".
Roussos switched to a solo career, but not everything went so smoothly in it. His first album did not become popular. Only two years later, Roussos released an album that lifted him to the pinnacle of fame. In the future, the singer constantly worked on the preparation of albums, while simultaneously doing concert activities, and this brought him well-deserved dividends: a number of singles from the albums of the 1970s. became world hits.
At the end of the 80s. Roussos's popularity subsided a little, but the singer regained his lost ground with the release of two extremely successful albums in 1992. In total, during his creative activity, Demis Roussos released almost 30 albums. In Russia, Roussos was glorified by such hits as "Souvenirs", "We shall dance" and "Goodbye my Love, Goodbye"; the singer repeatedly came to perform in our country, each time gathering full houses. In the harsh Soviet times, when the stars that made their way from behind the "Iron Curtain" in the USSR were mediocre at best, Roussos, with his soulful voice and exotic outfits, became a real idol of Soviet women.
Demis Roussos has died at the age of 68. This event became public only a day later: it was on this day that extremely important parliamentary elections were held in Greece, and the singer's family decided not to overshadow the joy with the news of the death of the people's favorite.
life line
June 15, 1946 Date of birth of Artemios (Demis) Venturis Roussos.
1963 Creation of the "Aphrodite's Child" group.
1968 Moving group to Paris after the military coup in Greece. The release of the band's first studio album "End of the World".
1971 The beginning of a solo career. The release of the first solo album "Fire and Ice".
1974 Release of the album "Forever & Ever".
1975 Three of Roussos' solo albums have reached the top ten in the UK.
1978 US tour.
1985 The capture by terrorists of the aircraft of the company "Trans world airlines" along with the passengers on board.
1986 First tour in Russia.
2009 The release of the latest album "Demis".
January 25, 2015 Date of death of Demis Roussos.
January 30, 2015 Funeral of Demis Roussos in Athens.
Memorable places
1. Alexandria, where Demis Roussos was born.
2. University of Athens (30 Panepistimiou Street), where Roussos studied.
3. Paris, where Roussos worked with Aphrodite's Child.
4. St. Petersburg (formerly Leningrad), where Roussos made his first tour in the USSR in 1986
5. Neuilly-sur-Seine (France), where Demis Roussos lived.
6. Clinic "Ygeia" in Athens, where Demis Roussos died.
7. First National Cemetery in Athens, where Demis Roussos is buried.
Episodes of life
In 1985, Demis Roussos, along with his future wife, were on board a plane hijacked by Hezbollah terrorists. Due to Roussos' popularity in the Arab countries, he was treated well; nevertheless, the singer spent a week hostage.
Roussos was married four times, his last wife was the Parisian Marie. From different marriages, Roussos had two children, and his son Cyril, being a DJ, actively "promoted" his father's work.
Demis Roussos has written several books, including A Matter of Weight, which became a bestseller. The singer really "lost" 50 kg in six months in the 1980s.
Testaments
"I love good life. For me, it is important to have a high quality of life in all manifestations. I like to get new sensations from life, to penetrate into unknown relationships.
Demis Roussos performs his song "Souvenir"
condolences
“I constantly cited him as an example to the soloists of the Choir. We have several people in the team who sing with an extremely high voice. Here he tirelessly told them: learn to extract a high sound the way Roussos does it. He has a fantastic voice! I think that the death of Demis is an incredible loss. For me, he will forever remain a miracle worker of vocals and a romantic. We deeply mourn…”
Mikhail Turetsky, founder of the Turetsky Choir
“... it was the voice of Demis Roussos that was for our generation a ray of light and something very kind and pure at that time! Thank you very much, dear Demis, for all these amazing minutes and hours of your music, which will forever remain in our memory and our hearts!”
Philip Kirkorov, singer
Throughout his musical career, Demis Roussos has sold over one hundred million copies of his albums. These numbers are simply incredible! So how did Demis build such a dizzying career? About this and others interesting facts from his biography, read in detail in our article!
Demis Roussos: biography
During his creative activity, this Greek artist wrote about forty-two albums, selling one hundred million copies. Today, Demis is no longer alive, but despite this, fans of his work still remember and love the singer, and thousands of covers are still being recorded on his songs to this day.
Childhood and youth
Demis was born on June 15, 1946 in Alexandria, Egypt. He was the firstborn, and also to his parents, Nelly and Yorgos, after some time a second son was born - Kotas, who became the younger brother of Demis.
During a serious crisis, the family of the future singer was forced to change their place of residence - they moved to the homeland of their ancestors, to Greece. Demis's parents were creative people, so the fact that the boy chose a musical career for himself is not surprising. Demis' mother, Nelly Mazlum, worked as a professional dancer, and his father, despite the fact that he earned a living as an engineer, was excellent at playing the guitar.
The future world-famous performer in childhood was a smart and talented boy. From an early age, he sang well, so his parents decided to send him to the choir of the Greek Byzantine church. Demis spent 5 years there, which were not in vain: he studied musical theory, mastered the skill of playing the double bass, trumpet, and organ.
Personal life
The singer did not particularly like to touch on the topic of his personal life. His first wife was a girl named Monique. The lovers got married at the very beginning creative career Demis. After several years of marriage, the couple had a daughter, Emily, but Monique did not agree to share her husband with numerous fans, and therefore the family broke up. Demis's wife realized that Roussos is not a supporter of a calm and measured family life and prefers fame and popularity to her, and literally two months after Emily's birth, she filed for divorce. With a baby in her arms, the woman moved to relatives in Florence.
Less than a year after the divorce, Demis married a second time. The new wife of singer Demis Roussos was called Dominica. The girl gave birth to a Greek singer son, whom the couple named Cyril.
Dominique was so in love with Demis that she closed her eyes and did not believe the news that was all over the newspapers that Roussos was having an affair with another fan. The girl sincerely believed that during her tour the performer remained faithful to her, until Demis himself told her about the sexual relationship between him and his fan that happened at one of the concerts. Dominique could not forgive the betrayal of her husband.
Unlike Monique, the second wife of Demis did not take the joint child. She considered it expedient to give her son to the performer's mother in Greece.
For the third time, Roussos married an American model, Pamela. The performer met her in a bookstore, and even before tying the knot, the couple was on the verge of death.
In the summer of 1985, the lovers became hostages on a plane from Athens to Rome. Then, for a whole week, passengers were held at gunpoint, even one of them was shot right in front of adults and children.
The Greek performer was well known in the Arab countries, and when the terrorists recognized the passenger Demis Roussos, he had to perform songs for them.
When the lovers recovered a little from shock and shock, they legalized their relationship and officially became husband and wife. After some time, this marriage broke up.
The longest relationship in the biography of Demis Roussos was with his last lover, Maria Theresa. The girl was originally from France and worked as a yoga instructor. The first meeting of the future spouses took place in 1994. Maria, closing her eyes to everything and leaving her family and friends, went to Greece for her lover. Demis spent the rest of his life with Maria, for some reason without making an offer to the girl - the performer preferred ordinary cohabitation to marriage.
Carier start
In 1963, a fateful event occurred in the biography of Demis Roussos - he met talented musicians who, like Demis himself, dreamed of a successful career in this field. Some time after they met, the group Aphrodite's Child appeared, Demis was the vocalist in it. Then the songs The other people and Plastics nevermore brought the group its first popularity. In 1968, there was a military coup in Greece, in connection with which the group was forced to move to the capital of France is Paris.
Music
In Paris, the musicians had already begun an active creative activity, and soon it was known throughout the country. Their legendary song Rain and tears literally in a few days rose to the top of the charts throughout Europe. Some time after that, the albums End of the world and It "s five o" clock were released.
The popularity of the group grew by leaps and bounds, but despite this, the Greek artist made the difficult decision to leave her and try to achieve success in his solo career. The last album of Aphrodite's Child - "666" - was finalized and released by the group after its breakup.
Nationality
Many fans argued about what nationality Demis Roussos is, but the answer to this question is unequivocal. Demis has Greek roots, and the performer himself is Greek by nationality, which his compatriots are very proud of. What language did Demis Roussos write his songs in?
Demis was not limited to one language. His discography included English, French and Greek songs. Demis released one of his albums in four languages!
Solo career
Demis' first solo disc called Fire and Ice appeared to the world in 1971. A couple of years after this event, the second work of the Greek singer, Forever and ever, was released, which includes a huge number of world hits.
Already by 1973, Demis gave concerts and went on tour around the globe. In 1975, three albums by the Greek artist topped the top ten albums in England.
Demis' album, Universum, released in 1974 in four languages, was a huge success in France and Italy. Most likely, the record owes its popularity to such singles as Loin des yeux and Loin du coeur, which were released about a month before its release.
In 1982, Demis Roussos released the album Attitudes, which did not have much commercial success. To rise again in the eyes of his devoted fans, the Greek performer released his new job, where he covered tracks from the 50s and 60s. After that, Demis went to Greece and recorded the singles Island of love and Summerwine there, and then released another album called "Greater love".
In 1987, Demis Roussos returned to hometown, where he worked diligently on an album with digital recordings of versions of his most popular and grandiose hits. A year later, the release of the next record of the artist called Time took place.
In 1993, a modern version of Morning has broken was released from the artist's record called Insight. Later, in nine years (from 2000 to 2009), Demis Roussos released only three albums: Auf meinen wegen, Live in Brazil and Demis.
Below is Demis Roussos' video for the legendary song Goodbye, My Love, Goodbye.
Death
Unfortunately, relatively recently - on January 25, 2015 - the talented Greek singer passed away. His family and friends did not want the shocking news of Roussos' death to have any effect on the parliamentary elections scheduled for the same day, so the press and the singer's fans found out about it only a day later - on January 26.
Fans of the performer suspected something was wrong, drawing attention to the excessive secrecy of relatives. The family of Demis Roussos did not want to talk about the cause of the singer's death, for a long time they could not set the exact date and place of the funeral ceremony.
Often, fans, from whom they hide something, begin to give out their versions of what happened. So it was this time. According to one of the many theories, Demis died of obesity amid an exacerbation chronic illness, according to another - he died of a serious illness that he did not want to advertise.
After some time, the artist's daughter, Emilia, clarified the situation. The girl said that her father had been fighting pancreatic cancer for two years, unfortunately, without success.
The funeral ceremony took place on January 30, 2015. The grave of the eminent artist is located in the First Cemetery of Athens - according to tradition, only noble and famous Greeks are buried there.
In the photo, Demis Roussos is already in old age.
Outcome
The biography of Demis Roussos is full of various bright events, his story will be interesting to read not only by a fan of his work, but also by people who are simply fond of music. The artist's discography contains a huge number of wonderful compositions, which at one time caused a storm of emotions among fans around the world. And despite the fact that the singer is no longer alive, his songs continue to be listened to and re-sung. One thing is for sure - thousands more covers will be recorded on Demis's songs, and more than one generation of young music lovers will listen to his legendary albums.
Artemios Venturis was born in 1946 in the Egyptian coastal city of Alexandria. From childhood, he was attached to music, because his father from his youthful years played on different musical instruments and her mother was a singer.
The boy began to sing from early childhood, when his mother took him to the local church. There he repeatedly performed and sang in the choir. When Artemios was 11 years old, his entire family had to move from Egypt to the capital of Greece, where he spent his entire life. later life. The move was founded by the reigning home country singer by a crisis that prevented his wealthy family from continuing to earn. In Greece, he began to receive a musical education, learned to play the guitar, organ, trumpet and some other musical instruments.
Real musical career youth began in 1963, when he founded his own group with two friends. The guys performed at many Greek venues and became quite recognizable personalities within their country. But the period of a military coup in Greece began, and it was very difficult for young men to promote their work. They decided to move to the capital of France - Paris. There they released their first world-famous composition - "Rain & Tears".
Solo music career
Having believed in his musical strength and convinced that the group only limits the creative space, Artemios leaves the band, takes the pseudonym "Demis Roussos" and begins a solo career.
Many years of his work were very controversial. Some songs, such as "Happy to be on an Island in the Sun", climbed to the top of the world's music charts, and some did not sell even a hundred copies. To keep the interest and attention of the public, the performer arranged real costume shows at his concerts. In 1986, as part of a world tour, Demis Roussos visited the USSR.
Personal life
The artist was married three times. From the first two wives he had two children - a daughter and a son, in the third marriage there were no children. In 1985, the musician, along with his third wife, was taken hostage by terrorists on a plane flying to Rome. The couple, along with other people, were kept in Beirut, the Lebanese capital, for a whole week. But the operation to free the hostages was successful, and the couple returned to normal life.
For a long time, Demis Roussos suffered from obesity. In the late 70s, he weighed about 150 kilograms. After the incident in Beirut, he began to rapidly lose weight and lost a third of his weight. In 1982, he published the book How I Lost Weight.
The musician died in 2015 in the capital of Greece, Athens, where he was buried. The cause of death was pancreatic cancer.
