(CNN) Johnny Clegg, the South African singer known for Zulu rhythms and sounds with Western styles, has died, his manager Roddy Quin said in a statement.

The 66-year-old died on Tuesday at his family home in Johannesburg, South Africa.

He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2015 but continued to tour around the world.

Clegg's music has been described as groundbreaking during the apartheid era. He co-founded two interracial bands, including Juluka with Sipho Mchunu and Savuka with Dudu Zulu.

"He showed us what it was to assimilate to and embrace other cultures without losing your identity," Quin said. "An anthropologist that used his music to speak to every person. With his unique style of music he traversed cultural barriers like few others. In many of us he awakened awareness."

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