Karras was born on 12 November 1953 in Kokkinohori, Kavala, Greece, to Pontian parents. At the age of 10, his family moved to Thessaloniki, where his brother and sister were born.

Despina Malea, known as Despina Vandi, is a Greek singer. Born in Tübingen near Stuttgart, Germany, Vandi's family returned to Kavala, Greece when she was six years old.