Fixture of Alegria's popular Rai style of dance music who became a martyr after his 1994 murder.
His explicit lyrics caused a sensation among teenagers and earned him death threats from Islamic fundamentalists.
His murder turned Rai music into the Soundtrack for the protests that swept over the country and ignited a civil war.
He was born one of seven children to a working-class family in Gambetta, near Oran, Algeria.
He was called by some the Julio Iglesias of Rai music.
