Casablanca: Legendary Moroccan singer and composer Abdelwahab Doukkali passed away on Friday in Casablanca at the age of 85, according to his family.

According to Agence Marocaine De Presse, several artists have mourned the loss of this towering figure of Moroccan music, who had a long and rich artistic career. Born in 1941, Abdelwahab Doukkali, one of the founding pillars of Moroccan and Arab classical music, began his artistic career in 1957, before recording his first album in 1959.

During his lifetime, he received numerous awards and accolades, including a gold record for his song ‘Mana Illa Bachar,’ the Grand Prize at the Mohammedia Moroccan Song Festival in 1985 for his song ‘Kan ya makan,’ as well as the Grand Prize at the Marrakech Moroccan Song Festival in 1993 for the song ‘Agharo Alayki.’

Honored by the Vatican on two occasions, the late Doukkali also earned the Grand Prize at the Cairo Festival in 1997 for his song ‘Souk El Bacharia.’ He was voted the most prominent figure in the Arab world for the year 1991 in a poll conducted by the magazine ‘Al Majalla,’ published by the Saudi Research Society.