Singer Anna Vissi has issued a lengthy and strongly worded response to recent statements by Nikos Karvelas, accusing her longtime collaborator of hypocrisy, financial demands and personal threats in the days leading up to her major concert at OAKA.
Vissi described Karvelas' press release as a text “full of hypocrisy and populism”, arguing that until just days before the concert, the composer appeared to fully support both the artistic vision and the production of the event.
According to Vissi, Karvelas was aware of the content and scale of the OAKA production and had never raised objections either to the way his work would be presented or to ticket prices.
‘He suddenly demanded €1.5 million’
Vissi's most serious allegation concerns a financial demand she says was made shortly before the concert.
According to her statement, three days before the event she was informed that Karvelas was suddenly demanding €1.5 million, warning that otherwise he would use every means available to prevent the concert from taking place.
Vissi claims that once it became clear the event could not be cancelled, his stance turned against her personally.
Allegations of threats
The singer also alleges that threats against her were communicated through her sister and in the presence of witnesses.
According to Vissi, Karvelas threatened to “humiliate” her in the media and to destroy her both personally and artistically.
Vissi further claimed that she had financially supported her longtime collaborator in recent months, saying he had received more than €500,000, part of which, according to her statement, was provided by businessman Yiannis Koustas.
‘There was no attempt to silence him’
Responding to claims that she had attempted to silence Karvelas, Vissi said she had never sought to restrict his freedom of expression.
She maintained that her only objective was to protect herself from potential defamation through a mutual commitment under which neither side would make public attacks against the other.
She also categorically rejected the allegations made against her, arguing that her former collaborator's version of events contains falsehoods and contradictions.
‘Perhaps I never really knew him’
Vissi said the most painful part of the dispute was not the disagreement itself, but the realisation that the person she had regarded for decades as a friend, collaborator and family may not have been the person she believed him to be.
She concluded by saying this would be her final personal public statement on the dispute.
Vissi ended with the words:
“We'll go against the tide and see where it takes us...”
