Award-winning gospel artist Deborah Fraser has passed on.

The passing of the talented singer was announced by her family in a statement.

According to the statement released by her family, the KwaZulu-Natal born songbird died on Sunday, 15 May in the presence of her family at home.

“As Deborah Fraser’s family we would like to be given space to process this very tragic situation and the public will further be updated with developments,” the statement reads.

Deborah, whose career in the entertainment industry spans over decades, was suffering from diabetes which led her to be wheelchair bound.

Recently, a video of hers performing while in a wheelchair went viral on social media and many people thought that she is acting.

However, she later opened up about her situation and revealed that she’s been unwell for a while and was hospitalised for almost two months earlier this year.

Deborah was a multifaceted singer and began her career in 1985 as a backing singer, and then later moved to record her own album in 2000, titled Abanye Banomoya which sold over 1 million copies.

In her career she’s released over ten studio albums and her last album was titled Uhambo.