Marina Mamousai, a former contestant on the Greek edition of The Voice, paid tribute to singer Giorgos Mazonakis after he died on Wednesday, September 9, at the age of 54. Mazonakis had proposed months earlier to become the godfather of her daughter.
Mamousai had competed on Mazonakis's team on the singing competition, and in December he asked her to make him godfather of her baby girl. After news broke of his death, she posted a tribute video on TikTok featuring photographs she and her daughter had taken with him.
Giorgos Mazonakis's career
Mazonakis was a well-known Greek singer associated with the laiko music genre and served as a coach on The Voice of Greece, mentoring contestants including Mamousai during the show's most recent season.
It has not been clarified whether the baptism ever took place. In her post, Mamousai called Mazonakis their godfather and their family, and said the two of them had spoken and laughed together only two days before he died.
She wrote that there were no words to describe their sorrow or how much they would miss him, calling it unjust and tragic and saying he did not deserve what happened. She recalled the pain and sorrow they had shared and everything they had told each other, and said they had started out as strangers and become a family. She said her daughter, Leandra, would grow up surrounded by their photographs and memories, and that she would tell her about his achievements and the kind of person he was. She asked him to rest in peace, said he would be greatly missed, and signed the message with her daughter's nickname, Leandraki, and the names Marina and Stefanos, adding that they would meet again one day.
The Voice episode
The episode in question aired on December 13, when Mamousai, competing on Mazonakis's team, failed to advance to the semifinal. After her performance, Mazonakis asked to hold her baby, noting that the child was wearing a top that read "Team Mazw."
Turning to Mamousai, he told her he would baptize the child. When she responded with surprise, asking him to repeat himself, he told her to call him so he could baptize the baby. When she asked if he meant it, he confirmed that he did and said they would talk about it.
How Giorgos Mazonakis died
Mazonakis died of cardiac arrest he suffered while at a clinic in the Kolonaki district of Athens. The incident took place on the afternoon of Wednesday, September 9, when the singer went to the Stem Cell clinic at 11 Karneadou Street. According to information available so far, he had a scheduled treatment appointment ahead of a number of professional commitments in the coming period.
While an intravenous catheter was being inserted, Mazonakis reportedly felt intense chest pain and then suffered cardiac arrest. The clinic called Greece's national emergency ambulance service, EKAB, at 16:21, and paramedics were told the singer had suffered a heart attack.
Seven minutes later, at 16:28, an EKAB paramedic arrived at the clinic by motorcycle and immediately began cardiopulmonary resuscitation. An EKAB ambulance arrived shortly afterward and took the singer to the nearest hospital on emergency duty, Elpis, arriving at 16:45. Resuscitation efforts continued in the emergency department but were unsuccessful, and his death was formally confirmed at 17:40.
Elpis Hospital said in an official statement that Mazonakis, born in 1972, was brought in by EKAB ambulance at 16:45 that afternoon with no spontaneous breathing and no pulse, and that cardiopulmonary resuscitation was carried out according to protocol without a successful outcome. The hospital said the official time of death was recorded as 17:40, and that its management and staff extended their sincere condolences to the singer's family and loved ones.
