106 Facts About Celine Dion

1.

Celine Marie Claudette Dion is a Canadian singer.

2.

Celine Dion's recordings have been mainly in English and French, although she has sung in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese, and Chinese.

3.

Celine Dion gained international recognition by winning the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, where she represented Switzerland with "Ne partez pas sans moi".

4.

Celine Dion continued her success throughout the 1990s with several of the bestselling English-language albums in history, such as Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love, which were certified diamond in the US with more than 30 million sales worldwide each.

5.

Celine Dion continued releasing French albums between each English record; D'eux became the best-selling French-language album of all time, while S'il suffisait d'aimer, Sans attendre, and Encore un soir, were all certified diamond in France.

6.

Celine Dion has been regarded by several magazines as one of the greatest singers in music.

7.

Celine Dion has won five Grammy Awards, achieved two Honorary Doctorates in Music degree from Berklee College of Music and Universite Laval.

8.

Celine Dion is the sixth all-time best-performing female soloist in Billboard 200 history.

9.

Celine Dion was raised a Roman Catholic in a poor but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne.

10.

Celine Dion continued to perform with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar called Le Vieux Baril, "The Old Barrel".

11.

Celine Dion suffered a number of accidents as a young child, including an incident at five years old when she was struck by a car as her father and brother Clement looked on.

12.

At age 18, after seeing a Michael Jackson performance, Celine Dion told Angelil she wanted to be a star like Jackson.

13.

Celine Dion receded from the spotlight for a number of months, during which she underwent dental surgery to improve her appearance, and was sent to the Ecole Berlitz in 1989 to improve her English.

14.

Celine Dion consulted the otorhinolaryngologist William Gould, who gave her an ultimatum: have immediate surgery on her vocal cords or do not utilize them at all for three weeks.

15.

Celine Dion chose the latter and underwent vocal training with William Riley.

16.

Two years after she learned English, Celine Dion made her debut into the Anglophone market with Unison, the lead single having originally been recorded by English singer Junior in 1983 and later Laura Branigan.

17.

Celine Dion incorporated the help of producers including Vito Luprano and David Foster.

18.

In 1991, Celine Dion was a featured soloist on "Voices That Care", a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm.

19.

Also during this time, Celine Dion released the Francophone album Celine Dion chante Plamondon.

20.

Celine Dion had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame.

21.

In 1993, Celine Dion announced her feelings for her manager by declaring him "the colour of [her] love" in the dedication section of her third English-language album The Colour of My Love.

22.

Celine Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record.

23.

Celine Dion released A l'Olympia, a live album recorded during one of her concerts at the Paris Olympia in 1994.

24.

Celine Dion recorded a bilingual version of "Petit Papa Noel" with Alvin and the Chipmunks for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk.

25.

Celine Dion collaborated with writers and producers such as Jim Steinman and David Foster, who helped her to develop a signature sound.

26.

Celine Dion was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream" at the opening ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.

27.

Celine Dion followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love, which was publicized as its sequel.

28.

Horner and Jennings won the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song, while Celine Dion herself garnered two Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and the most coveted, Record of the Year,.

29.

Celine Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums: the Christmas album These Are Special Times, the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer, and the compilation album All the Way.

30.

Celine Dion ended her three-year sabbatical from the music industry with the aptly titled album A New Day Has Come, released in March 2002.

31.

The advertising deal was met with criticism, with some stating Celine Dion was trying to cater to her sponsors.

32.

Celine Dion recruited Jean-Jacques Goldman, Gildas Arzel, Eric Benzi, and Jacques Veneruso, with whom she had previously worked on two of her best-selling French albums S'il suffisait d'aimer and D'eux.

33.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote Celine Dion's vocals were "back at top of their game" and she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while".

34.

In early 2002, Celine Dion announced a three-year, 600-show contract to appear five nights a week in an entertainment extravaganza, A New Day.

35.

Celine Dion conceived the show after seeing O by Franco Dragone during her break from recording, and it premiered on 25 March 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena specifically designed for her show and modelled after the Roman Colosseum.

36.

Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Celine Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find her among the excessive stage ornamentation and dancers.

37.

On 21 May 2007, Celine Dion released the French-language album D'elles, which debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week.

38.

Celine Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, adding to her 53 previous nominations.

39.

Celine Dion's nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year, Francophone Album of the Year and Album of the Year.

40.

On 22 August 2008, Celine Dion presented a free outdoor concert, mostly in French, on the Plains of Abraham, for the 400th anniversary of Quebec City.

41.

On 17 February 2010, Dion released into theatres a documentary film about her Taking Chances Tour, titled, Celine: Through the Eyes of the World.

42.

At the 52nd Grammy Awards in February 2010, Celine Dion joined Carrie Underwood, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, and Smokey Robinson to perform the song "Earth Song" during the 3-D Michael Jackson tribute.

43.

Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, Celine Dion was named the most popular musician in the United States, ahead of U2, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles while factoring in gender, political affiliations, geographic region of residence, and income.

44.

Celine Dion stated the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films.

45.

In 2018, Billboard stated her residency Celine Dion is the second most successful residency of all time.

46.

Celine Dion began recording songs for her next English and French albums during April and May 2012.

47.

Celine Dion embarked on the Sans attendre Tour in November 2013 and performed in Belgium and France.

48.

On 13 August 2014, Celine Dion announced the indefinite postponement of all her show business activities, including her concert residency at Caesars Palace, and the cancellation of her Asia Tour, because of the worsening of her husband's health after he underwent the removal of a cancerous tumor in December 2013.

49.

In October 2015, Celine Dion announced on social media she had begun working on a new French album, posting a photo by the side of Algerian singer Zaho.

50.

Celine Dion performed "The Show Must Go On" at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards on 22 May, and received the Billboard Icon Award in recognition of her career spanning over three decades.

51.

In 2016 and 2017, Celine Dion toured Europe and Canada with two sold-out concert tours.

52.

Celine Dion recorded "How Does a Moment Last Forever" for the Beauty and the Beast: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, released in March 2017.

53.

Celine Dion announced a new English-language album of the same name, released in November 2019.

54.

On 26 February 2020, Celine Dion released two songs as exclusive Spotify singles: an acoustic version of Imperfections, and a cover of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game".

55.

On 10 June 2020, Celine Dion announced her Courage World Tour will kick off again in 2021, after the tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

56.

Celine Dion contributed vocals to the song "Superwoman" on Diane Warren's 2021 album Diane Warren: The Cave Sessions Vol.

57.

On 8 December 2022, Celine Dion announced she had been diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome, a rare neurological disease, and that it was the cause of her spasms.

58.

Celine Dion debuted on the big screen in the film Love Again, for which she recorded five new songs.

59.

Celine Dion cites idols as varied as Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Charles Aznavour, Carole King, Anne Murray, Barbra Streisand, and the Bee Gees, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with.

60.

Celine Dion has faced considerable criticism from critics, who state that her music often retreats behind pop and soul conventions, and is marked by excessive sentimentality.

61.

Occasionally, Celine Dion has contributed to the writing of a handful of her English and French songs, as well as writing a few songs for other artists such as Marc Dupre.

62.

Celine Dion is often the subject of media ridicule and parody and is frequently impersonated on shows such as MADtv, Saturday Night Live, South Park, Royal Canadian Air Farce, and This Hour Has 22 Minutes for her strong accent and onstage gesticulations.

63.

Celine Dion even invited Ana Gasteyer, who parodied her on SNL, to appear onstage during one of her performances in New York City.

64.

Celine Dion is often compared to Houston and Carey for her vocal style, and to her idol Barbra Streisand for her voice.

65.

Celine Dion can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch.

66.

Celine Dion is regarded as one of pop music's most influential vocalists.

67.

Celine Dion has been referred to as the "Priestess of Pop".

68.

Many artists have praised Celine Dion's voice, singing ability or expressed an interest in working with her including Met Opera conductor and musical director Yannick Nezet-Seguin, Beyonce, Carlos Santana, Elton John, OneRepublic, Coldplay, Sharon Osbourne, Nicole Scherzinger, Ne-Yo, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, Luciano Pavarotti, Bee Gees, Sir George Martin, Justin Bieber, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Drake and Cher.

69.

Celine Dion holds the Guinness World Record for the most Juno Awards won for Album Of The Year.

70.

Celine Dion won 3 out of the 13 nominations she received in the category throughout her career.

71.

Celine Dion is the 3rd most decorated artist in Juno Awards history, winning 20 out of the 75 total nominations ever, becoming the most nominated artist in the awards history as well.

72.

Sarkozy praised Celine Dion and stated: "France thanks you because your talent and success have contributed to the influence of the French language outside our borders".

73.

Celine Dion is credited for both revitalizing and revolutionizing the entertainment scene in Las Vegas with the gargantuan successes of her residencies there.

74.

Celine Dion signed a $100 million contract for a residency in Vegas and is considered one of the most lucrative and risky in the touring industry.

75.

Stars likes her would never have considered it if Celine Dion hadn't paved the way.

76.

Celine Dion has received various acclaims from fashion critics for reinventing her fashion style over the years.

77.

Harper's Bazaar praised Celine Dion for being an ultimate fashion risk-taker and called her a "Fashion Chameleon".

78.

Celine Dion further cemented her name in the fashion world by wearing the reverse tuxedo at 1999 Academy Awards, which became one of the most talked ensembles of that time.

79.

In 2012, Celine Dion visited Jamaica for the very first time which broke attendance records and caused traffic congestion around the concert venue.

80.

Vice discussed how Celine Dion's music has been constant in dancehall clubs for decades, as many Jamaican dancehall artists cover her songs and remixing her ballads into anthems of dance hall.

81.

In 1999, Celine Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame and was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame.

82.

Celine Dion received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in January 2004, one which she dedicated to her father, who had died the month prior.

83.

Celine Dion's album Falling into You is included on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list.

84.

In October 2010, Celine Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador, a program created by the UN in 1999, sharing this accolade with Oscar-winner Susan Sarandon.

85.

Celine Dion is notably the national celebrity patron for Cystic Fibrosis Canada and honorary patron of the CHU Sainte-Justine.

86.

Celine Dion was featured on the 7th episode of the animated series Total Drama Island.

87.

In 2022, Celine Dion was referenced in the animated fantasy film Turning Red.

88.

Celine Dion was cast as a villain in Angloman, a 1995 satirical comic by Mark Shainblum and Gabriel Morrissette.

89.

Celine Dion is recognized as the world's top-selling artist of the 90s decade.

90.

In 2017, Celine Dion broke records across the UK as the highest grossing artist at each UK venue where she performed including dates at London's O2 Arena, Leeds' First Direct Arena, Birmingham's Barclaycard Arena and Glasgow's SSE Hydro.

91.

Celine Dion became an entrepreneur with the establishment of her franchise restaurant Nickels in 1990.

92.

Celine Dion has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997.

93.

Celine Dion has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993.

94.

Celine Dion has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine died from the disease at the age of sixteen, in Dion's arms.

95.

Celine Dion is a member of Canadian charity Artists Against Racism.

96.

In 2009, Celine Dion joined an effort along with Leonardo DiCaprio, James Cameron and Kate Winslet, to donate money to support the nursing home fees of the then-last living survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, Millvina Dean.

97.

Celine Dion was bullied at school and called "Vampire", owing to her teeth and skinny frame.

98.

Celine Dion often spoke of running home from school to play music in the basement with her brothers and sisters.

99.

The romance was known to only family and friends for five years, though Celine Dion nearly revealed all in a tearful 1992 interview with journalist Lise Payette.

100.

In May 2000, Celine Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in vitro fertilization because of years of failed attempts to conceive.

101.

Celine Dion's funeral was held on 22 January 2016, in Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, where he and Dion wed 21 years earlier.

102.

Celine Dion took up ballet under the guidance of her former dancer, Naomi Stikeman, who previously performed for The National Ballet of Canada and La La La Human Steps, and former Cirque du Soleil dancer-turned-fashion-illustrator, Pepe Munoz, who is part of her styling team.

103.

Celine Dion is a skier and a regular at her son Rene-Charles' hockey games.

104.

Celine Dion previously owned homes in Montreal, Quebec, and Jupiter Island, Florida.

105.

Celine Dion released the 5-track EP CasiNo 5 in December 2020 using the artistic name RC Angelil.

106.

In December 2022, Celine Dion disclosed that she had been diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome, a neurological disorder affecting her muscles.