Cara shot to fame in 1980 when she bagged the role of Coco Hernandez in Fame and also sang the film's title track, her performance earning her a Best Actress nomination at the 1981 Golden Globe Awards.

American singer and actress Irene Cara, who is best known for singing the title songs to the films Fame and Flashdance, has died at the age of 63.

Cara, who appeared as the main character Coco Hernandez in the 1980 film Fame, also co-wrote and sang the smash hit Flashdance... What a Feeling for Flashdance, for which she won an Oscar and a Grammy award.

Both songs were top 10 hits in the UK and US. Flashdance … What a Feeling, which was reused in TV, film, and advertising, was later re-recorded for its appearance in the 1997 film The Full Monty.

The singer later starred in films opposite Clint Eastwood and Tatum O'Neal.

Cara’s publicist Judith Moose, who announced news of her death in a statement released on the singer’s official Twitter account on Saturday, said she died at her home in Florida, but the cause is “currently unknown” and will be released when it has been confirmed.

Moose said: “This is the absolute worst part of being a publicist. I can’t believe I’ve had to write this, let alone release the news.

“She was a beautifully gifted soul whose legacy will live forever through her music and films.”

Born in 1959 in the Bronx, New York City, Cara was the youngest of five children and started her career on Spanish-language TV. Her father was Puerto Rican while her mother was Cuban-American.

The actress, who started her career as a child actor and singer, appearing on the Johnny Carson show in the 1970s, and in a tribute concert to Jazz icon Duke Ellington, won gongs from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), including for her part in 1982 film Sister Sister.

Moose also stated: “Irene was a gifted woman whose body of work is loved by millions of people the world over. She became an icon for music lovers of the 1980s, and inspired many of today’s most influential singers, such as Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston.”

She also said Cara had been working on forthcoming projects when she died, which she and the singer's manager now plan to finish, adding that her client would want that.

“We are all mourning her death but will celebrate her legacy as a bright spot in our lives,” Moose said.