French Rock Star Johnny Hallyday Dies At 74 Of Lung Cancer

Veteran French rock star Johnny Hallyday is no more!!!

Singer Hallyday- real name Jean-Philippe Smet- had been battling his lung cancer, has died at 74 on December 5, Tuesday, his family confirmed.

Laeticia Smet, Hallyday's wife, confirmed his death in a statement to The Guardian which reads:

Johnny Hallyday has left us. I write these words without believing them. But yet, it's true. My man is no longer with us. He left us tonight as he lived his whole life, with courage and dignity.

Several singers and musicians have tributed the late rock star on social media, including the French-Canadian singer Celine Dion who tweeted,

Sex and the City actor Gilles Marini also expressed his sympathy and condolences on Twitter where he wrote: "Heartbroken to learn that our French national hero @jhallyday has pa s sed away:

Johnny was survived by his daughters, Jade and Joy, whom he adopted from Vietnam, and two other children, Dave, a singer fathered with Vartan and Laura Smet, whom he had with French actress Nathalie Baye