Marina Satti, just weeks before she will represent Greece for this year's Eurovision contest, has lost her father to a serious health problem at the age of 68. Therefore, according to the "Breakfast@Star" show, rehearsals for the music competition are temporarily suspended due to mourning.
The singer has cancelled all her TV appearances, and her record company is standing by her side, supporting her in this difficult time. Marina Satti will be in Malmö, Sweden when the 40-day memorial service for her father's death takes place.
Born in Sudan on January 1, 1956, Ali Osman Satti, an anesthesiologist, arrived in Greece in 1972 and studied medicine. He was an Associate Professor at the National Kapodistrian University from 1983 to 1989 and a professor of anesthesiology at the National Medical School of Athens from 1989 to 1995.
In an earlier interview, the singer who will represent Greece at the 68th Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö, Sweden, in 2024 with the song "Zari," spoke about her beloved father.
Speaking on the "Studio 4" show, the singer said: "My mum grew up in Crete, my dad grew up in Sudan, he came to Athens as a student, and that's how they met. There are differences, as you understand, and they still exist. I think they managed to find a balance because of love, and then we, the children, came along. I admire my mum for that, for her unruly character. Growing up, I realised I said, 'Wow, magical.' My dad was the first black person my grandmother saw."
Marina Satti added, "Growing up and looking at photos recently, I saw some images that justify many things for the rest of my life. Like the images from Sudan, with the family and aunts, a very intense mix. I used to go to Sudan in the summers. The family there received me even more warmly than they received him in Greece. Sudanese culture was my normality. Let's say we come from a country where we are ahead in some things."
READ MORE: Nightclub Fire Leaves 29 Dead in Istanbul.
