Greek singer Vassilis Lekkas publicly defended fellow performer Giannis Parios on Tuesday, September 2, following online criticism directed at Parios after a recent concert in Larnaca, Cyprus.
Writing on his personal Facebook account, Lekkas stated that the world diminishes significantly when people choose devaluation. He emphasized that Parios deserves love and respect, criticizing those who posted disparaging remarks about the veteran artist.
Lekkas also shared a personal memory from the start of his musical career, recalling his first audition before composer Manos Hatzidakis. For that pivotal performance, Lekkas chose to sing a track previously recorded by Parios titled San ta poulia skorpisame, composed by Stavros Kougioumtzis with lyrics by Giannis Logothetis.
Lekkas is a prominent Greek vocalist who rose to prominence through his early artistic partnership with Hatzidakis, one of Greece's most celebrated 20th-century composers. Kougioumtzis and Logothetis are respected figures in Greek popular music, known for creating classic songs during the mid-20th century peak of the country's discography.
Larnaca concert sparks online criticism
The controversy began after Parios performed a concert on Friday, August 28, at the Pattichio Amphitheatre in Larnaca, a major coastal city on the southern coast of Cyprus. Videos of the event subsequently circulated on social media platforms.
Following the distribution of the footage, several online commentators criticized Parios's stage presence, vocal performance, and age. The negative comments prompted widespread discussion among social media users and members of the Greek entertainment industry.
Parios, known across Greece and Cyprus for a career spanning more than five decades, is widely regarded as one of the defining voices of romantic Greek song and traditional island music.
Colleagues and long-time allies rally behind singer
In addition to Lekkas, other prominent figures from the Greek arts community publicly rallied behind Parios. Veteran actor Giorgos Konstantinou spoke out in defense of the singer during an interview on Tuesday, September 2, on the television broadcast Studio stis 3.
Konstantinou expressed deep sadness over the online comments, characterizing them as thoughtless attacks on an artist's voice and performance. He stressed that critics failed to recognize that Parios has devoted his entire life to his craft and lives through the adoration of his audience. Konstantinou added that he would continue listening to Parios until his final moments, noting that many people recognized the fairness of standing by the singer.
Konstantinou is an iconic figure in Greek cinema, theatre, and television, with a career stretching back to the golden era of Greek film. Studio stis 3 is an afternoon news and culture programme on Greek public television.
Parios's collaborator of 33 years, Kyriakos Tsolakis, also condemned the online backlash in a social media statement published on Sunday, August 30. Tsolakis questioned the right of anonymous critics to decide when a major artist should retire, asking what those commentators had achieved in their own lives to dismiss a multi-decade career so casually. Tsolakis concluded that history would remember Parios, while his online detractors would be forgotten.
