Celine Dion
Encyclopedia
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , (selin djɔ̃; born March 30, 1968), is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne
, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil
mortgaged his home to finance her first record. In 1990, she released the English-language album Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world.
Dion had first gained international recognition in the 1980s by winning both the 1982 Yamaha
World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest. Following a series of French albums in the early 1980s, she signed on to CBS Records Canada in 1986. During the 1990s, with the help of Angélil, she achieved worldwide fame after signing with Epic Records
and releasing several English albums along with additional French albums, becoming one of the most successful artists in pop music history. However, in 1999 at the height of her success, Dion announced a hiatus from entertainment in order to start a family and spend time with her husband, who had been diagnosed with cancer. She returned to the top of pop music in 2002 and signed a three-year (later extended to almost five years) contract to perform nightly in a five-star theatrical show at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace
, Las Vegas
.
Dion's music has been influenced by genres ranging from rock and R&B
to gospel
and classical. While her releases have often received mixed critical reception, she is renowned for her technically skilled and powerful vocals. Dion is the best-selling Canadian artist of all time, is the second best-selling female artist in the US during the Nielsen SoundScan
era, and is the only female artist to have two singles sell more than a million copies in the UK. In addition, her 1995 album D'eux
, is the best-selling French-language album of all time. In 2004, after surpassing 175 million in album sales worldwide, she was presented with the Chopard Diamond Award
at the World Music Awards
for becoming the best-selling female artist of all time. According to Sony Music Entertainment
, Dion has sold over 200 million albums worldwide.
, both of French-Canadian descent, Celine Dion was raised a Roman Catholic in a poverty-stricken, but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne, Quebec, Canada. Music had always been a part of the family (Dion was named after the song Céline, recorded by French singer Hugues Aufray
two years before her birth), as she grew up singing with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar
called Le Vieux Baril. From an early age Dion had dreamed of being a performer. In a 1994 interview with People
magazine, she recalled, "I missed my family and my home, but I don't regret having lost my adolescence. I had one dream: I wanted to be a singer."
At age 12, Dion collaborated with her mother and her brother Jacques to compose her first song, "Ce n'était qu'un rêve
" ("It Was Only a Dream"). Her brother Michel Dondalinger Dion sent the recording to music manager René Angélil, whose name he discovered on the back of a Ginette Reno
album. Angélil was moved to tears by Dion's voice, and decided to make her a star. In 1981, he mortgaged his home to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu
("The Voice of the Good God"), which later became a local number-one hit and made Dion an instant star in Quebec. Her popularity spread to other parts of the world when she competed in the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, and won the musician's award for "Top Performer" as well as the gold medal for "Best Song" with "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi
" ("I Have So Much Love for You").
By 1983, in addition to becoming the first Canadian artist to receive a gold record in France for the single "D'amour ou d'amitié
" ("Of Love or of Friendship"), Dion had also won several Félix Award
s, including "Best Female performer" and "Discovery of the Year". Further success in Europe, Asia, and Australia came when Dion represented Switzerland
in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with the song Ne partez pas sans moi
(Don't Go Without Me) and won the contest by a close margin in Dublin, Ireland. However, American success was yet to come, partly because she was exclusively a Francophone artist. At eighteen, after seeing a Michael Jackson
performance, Dion told Angélil that she wanted to be a star like Jackson. Though confident in her talent, Angélil realized that her image needed to be changed in order for her to be marketed worldwide. 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 École Berlitz in 1989 to polish her English.
In 1989, during a concert on Incognito Tour, Dion injured her voice. She consulted the otorhinolaryngologist
William Gould. He gave her an ultimatum: have surgery on her vocal cords, or not utilize them at all for three weeks. Dion chose the latter and underwent a vocal formation with William Riley, because, according to Gould and Riley, she "doesn't know singing, she made a bad use of her vocal cords".
. She incorporated the help of many established musicians, including Vito Luprano and Canadian producer David Foster
. The album was largely influenced by 1980s soft rock
music that quickly found a niche within the adult contemporary radio format. Unison also hit the right notes with critics: Jim Faber of Entertainment Weekly
wrote that Dion's vocals were "tastefully unadorned", and that she never attempted to "bring off styles that are beyond her". Stephen Erlewine of Allmusic declared it as, "a fine, sophisticated American debut." Singles from the album included "(If There Was) Any Other Way
", "The Last to Know
", "Unison", and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now
", a mid-tempo soft-rock ballad which made prominent use of the electric guitar. The latter became her first single to reach the top-ten on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
, peaking at number-four. The album established Dion as a rising singer in the United States, and across Continental Europe
and Asia.
In 1991, Dion was also a soloist in Voices That Care
, a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm. Dion's real international breakthrough came when she duetted with Peabo Bryson
on the title track to Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast
(1991). The song captured a musical style that Dion would utilize in the future: sweeping, classically influenced ballads with soft instrumentation. Both a critical and commercial hit, the song became her second U.S. top-ten single, and won the Academy Award for Best Song, and the Grammy Award
for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
"Beauty and the Beast" was featured on Dion's 1992 self-titled album
, which, like her debut, had a strong rock influence combined with elements of soul and classical music. Owing to the success of the lead-off single and her collaboration with Foster and Diane Warren
, the album was as well received as Unison. Other singles that achieved moderate success included "If You Asked Me To" (a cover
of Patti LaBelle
's song from the 1989 movie Licence to Kill
) which peaked at number-four on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
, the gospel-tinged "Love Can Move Mountains
", and "Nothing Broken But My Heart
".
As with Dion's earlier releases, the album had an overtone of love. Also during this time, Dion released the Francophone album Dion chante Plamondon
in 1991. The album consisted mostly of covers, but included 4 new songs, which included "Des mots qui sonnent", "Je danse dans ma tête
", "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime
" and "L'amour existe encore
". It was originally released in Canada and France during the 1991–1992 period, but then got an international release in 1994, the first French Celine Dion album to do so. "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)
" became a smash hit in France, reaching number-two and being certified gold. In Quebec, the album was certified Gold the day it was released.
By 1992 Unison, Céline Dion, and media appearances had propelled Dion to superstardom in North America. She had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame. However, while she was experiencing rising success in the U.S., her French fans in Canada criticized her for neglecting them. She would later regain her fan base at the Félix Award
show, where, after winning "English Artist of the Year", she openly refused to accept the award. She asserted that she was—and would always be—a French, not an English, artist. Apart from her commercial success, there were also changes in Dion's personal life, as Angélil, who was twenty-six years her senior, transitioned from manager to lover. However, the relationship was kept a secret as they both feared that the public would find their relations inappropriate.
. However, instead of criticizing their relationship as Dion had feared, fans embraced the couple. Eventually, Angélil and Dion married in an extravagant wedding ceremony in December 1994, which was broadcast live on Canadian television.
As it was dedicated to her manager, the album's motif focused on love and romance. It became her most successful record up to that point, selling more than six million copies in the U.S., two million in Canada, and peaking at number-one in many countries. The album also spawned Dion's first U.S., Canadian, and Australian number-one single "The Power of Love" (a remake of Jennifer Rush
's 1985 hit), which would become her signature hit
until she reached new career heights in the late 1990s. The single "When I Fall in Love", a duet with Clive Griffin
, achieved moderate success on the U.S. and Canadian charts, and was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one. The Colour of My Love also became Dion's first major hit in Europe, and in particular the United Kingdom. Both the album and the single "Think Twice" simultaneously occupied the top of the British charts for five consecutive weeks. "Think Twice", which remained at number-one for seven weeks, eventually became the fourth single by a female artist to sell in excess of one million copies in the UK, while the album was eventually certified five-times platinum for two-million copies sold.
Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record. Generally, they achieved more credibility than her English-language works. She released À l'Olympia
, a live album that was recorded during one of Dion's concerts at the Paris Olympia
in 1994. It had one promotional single, a live version of "Calling You", which peaked at seventy-five on the French Singles Chart. She also recorded a bilingual version of Petit Papa Noël
with Alvin and the Chipmunks
for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk
. D'eux
(also known as The French Album in the United States), was released in 1995, and it would go on to become the best-selling French-language album of all time. The album was mostly written and produced by Jean-Jacques Goldman
, and amassed huge success with the singles "Pour que tu m'aimes encore
" and "Je sais pas
". "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" reached number 1 in France and stayed at the top position for twelve weeks. It was later certified Platinum in France. The single also reached the top ten in the UK and Ireland, a rare accomplishment for a French song. The second single off the album, "Je sais pas", reached number-one on the French Singles Chart as well and was certified Silver in France. These songs would later become "If That's What It Takes" and "I Don't Know" on Dion's next English album, Falling into You
.
During the mid-1990s, Dion's albums continued to be constructed on the basis of melodramatic ballads, but also with up-tempo pop and adult contemporary themed music. She collaborated with talented craftsman such as Jim Steinman and David Foster who helped her devise more adult contemporary songs. While critical reviews fluctuated, Dion's releases performed increasingly well on the international charts, and in 1996 she won the World Music Award for "World’s Best-selling Canadian Female Recording Artist of the Year" for the third time. By the mid-1990s, she had established herself as one of the best-selling artists in the world.
(1996), Dion's fourth English-language album, presented the singer at the height of her popularity, and showed a further progression of her music. In an attempt to reach a wider audience, the album combined many elements, such as complex orchestral sounds, African chanting and elaborate musical effects. Additionally, instruments like the violin, Spanish guitar, trombone
, the cavaquinho
and saxophone created a new sound. The singles encompassed a variety of musical styles. The title track "Falling into You" and "River Deep, Mountain High
" (a Tina Turner
cover) made prominent use of percussion instruments; "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (a remake of Jim Steinman
's song) and a remake of Eric Carmen
's "All by Myself" kept their soft-rock atmosphere, but were combined with the classical sound of the piano; and the number-one single "Because You Loved Me
", which was written by Diane Warren, was a ballad that served as the theme to the 1996 film Up Close & Personal
.
Falling into You garnered career-best reviews for Dion. While Dan Leroy wrote that it was not very different from her previous work, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times
and Natalie Nichols of the Los Angeles Times
wrote that the album was formulaic, other critics, such as Chuck Eddy of Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AMG and Daniel Durchholz, lavished the album as "compelling", "passionate", "stylish", "elegant" and "remarkably well-crafted". Falling Into You became Dion's most critically and commercially successful album: it topped the charts in many countries and became one of the best-selling albums of all time. In the United States, the album reached number-one, and was later certified 11x Platinum for over 11 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album was certified diamond for over one million copies shipped. The IFPI
certified Falling into You 9x Platinum, an accolade that has been given to only two other albums in history, with one of the two being Dion's own album, Let's Talk About Love
. The album also won Grammy Award
s for Best Pop Album, and the academy's highest honor Album of the Year
. Dion's status on the world stage was further solidified when she was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream
" at the opening ceremonies of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In March 1996, Dion launched the Falling into You Tour
in support of her new album, giving concerts around the world for over a year.
Dion followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love
(1997), which was publicized as its sequel. The recording process took place in London, New York City, and Los Angeles, and featured a host of special guests, such as Barbra Streisand
on "Tell Him
"; the Bee Gees
on "Immortality
"; and world-renowned tenor
Luciano Pavarotti
on "I Hate You Then I Love You
". Other musicians included Carole King
, Sir George Martin
, Bryan Adams
and Jamaica
n singer Diana King
, who added a reggae
tinge to "Treat Her Like a Lady". As with Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love was a major success for Dion, reaching number-one all over the world, attaining platinum status in twenty-four sales territories, and becoming Dion's fastest selling album of her career. In the United States, the album topped the chart in its seventh week of release, and was later certified 10x Platinum in the U.S. for over 10 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album sold 230,212 copies in its first week of release, which became, and still is, a record. It was eventually certified diamond in Canada for over 1 million copies shipped. The most successful single from the album became the classically
influenced ballad "My Heart Will Go On
", which was written and composed by James Horner
and Will Jennings
, and produced by Horner and Walter Afanasieff
. Serving as the love theme for the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic
, the song topped the charts across the world, and became Dion's signature song
; as well as winning the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song
. The song also gave Dion two Grammy Awards for "Best Female Pop Vocal Performance" and the most coveted "Record of the Year
", (the song itself won four awards, but two were presented to the songwriters). "My Heart Will Go On" and "Think Twice" made her the only female artist in the UK to have two singles to sell more than a million copies. In support of her album, Dion embarked on the Let's Talk About Love Tour
between 1998 and 1999.
Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums—the Christmas album
These Are Special Times
(1998), the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer
, and the compilation album All the Way... A Decade of Song
(1999). On These Are Special Times, Dion became more involved in the writing process. She co-wrote the song, "Don't Save It All For Christmas Day" along with Ric Wake
and Peter Zizzo. The album was her most classically influenced yet, with orchestral arrangements found on virtually every track. "I'm Your Angel
", a duet with R. Kelly
, became Dion's fourth U.S. number one single, and another hit single across the world. All the Way... A Decade of Song drew together her most successful hits coupled with seven new songs, including the lead off single "That's the Way It Is", a cover of Roberta Flack
's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
", and "All the Way", a duet with Frank Sinatra
. The album itself was also extremely successful worldwide, reaching number-one in the United States for three weeks. The album was later certified 7x Platinum in the U.S. for 7 million copies shipped. All the Way... A Decade of Song also topped the charts in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Her last French-language studio album of the 1990s, S'il suffisait d'aimer, was very successful as well, topping the charts in every major French-speaking country, including France, Switzerland, Belgium Wallonia, and Canada. In France, the album was certified diamond, selling 1.5 million copies. By the end of the 1990s, Celine Dion had sold more than 100 million albums worldwide, and had won a slew of industry awards. Her status as one of the music industry's biggest pop divas was further solidified when she was asked to perform on VH1
's Divas Live special in 1998, with superstars Aretha Franklin
, Gloria Estefan
, Shania Twain
and Mariah Carey
. That year she also received two of the highest honours from her home country: "Officer of the Order of Canada
for Outstanding Contribution to the World of Contemporary Music" and "Officer of the National Order of Quebec
". A year later she was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame
, and was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame
.
During this time, the pop-rock genre that was more noticeable in her earlier releases, was replaced by a more adult contemporary feel. However, the theme of "love" remained in most of her releases, which led to some critics dismissing her music as banal. Other critics, like Elysa Gardner and Jose F. Promis, praised her vocals during this period, describing it as a "technical marvel". However, others, like Steve Dollar, who reviewed These Are Special Times, stated that Dion is a "vocal Olympian for whom there ain't no mountain—or scale—high enough."
, that she needed to take a step back from the spotlight and enjoy life. Angélil's diagnosis with throat cancer
also prompted her to hiatus. While on break, Dion was unable to escape the spotlight. In 2000, the National Enquirer published a false story about the singer. Brandishing a picture of Dion and her husband, the magazine misquoted Dion, printing the headline, "Celine — 'I'm Pregnant With Twins!'" Dion later sued the magazine for more than twenty million dollars. The editors of the Enquirer printed an apology and a full retraction to Dion in the next issue, and donated money to the American Cancer Society
in honor of Dion and her husband. A year after the incident, after undergoing fertility treatments, Dion gave birth to a son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, on January 25, 2001, in Florida. Following the September 11 attacks, Dion returned to the music scene, and in a televised performance sang "God Bless America" at the benefit concert America: A Tribute to Heroes
. Chuck Taylor of Billboard wrote, "the performance... brings to mind what has made her one of the celebrated vocalists of our time: the ability to render emotion that shakes the soul. Affecting, meaningful, and filled with grace, this is a musical reflection to share with all of us still searching for ways to cope." In December 2001, Dion published her autobiography, My Story, My Dream which chronicled her rags to riches story.
, released in March 2002, ended her three-year break from the music industry. The album was Dion's most personal yet, and established a more mature side of Dion with the songs "A New Day Has Come
", "I'm Alive
", and "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)
", a change that resulted from her new-found maternal responsibilities, because, in her own words, "becoming a mother makes you a grown-up." She stated, "A New Day Has Come, for Rene, for me, is the baby. It has everything to do with the baby...That song "A New Day Has Come" represents very well the mood I'm feeling right now. It represents the whole album." A New Day Has Come debuted at number one in over 17 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, with first week sales of 527,000 copies; marking her first number one debut on the chart. It was eventually certified 3x Platinum in the United States, and 6x Platinum in Canada.
While the album was commercially successful, critical reviews suggested that it was "forgettable" and the lyrics were "lifeless". Both Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone
magazine, and Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly, stated that Dion's music had not matured during her break, and classed her music as trite and mediocre. Sal Cinquemani of Slant
magazine called the album "a lengthy collection of drippy, gooey pop fluffer-nutter." The first single off the album, A New Day Has Come
peaked at No.22 on the Billboard Hot 100
charts, being an airplay-only release. On the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
, however the song spent 21 consecutive weeks at number 1, breaking the record for the longest span at the top. The previous record holders were Phil Collins
' You'll Be in My Heart
and Dion's own Because You Loved Me
, both of which lasted nineteen weeks at number 1. During 2002, she performed for many benefit concerts, the famous VH1 Divas Live, a concert to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation, alongside Cher
, Anastacia
, Dixie Chicks
, Mary J. Blige
, Whitney Houston
, Cyndi Lauper
, Shakira
and Stevie Nicks
.
Drawing inspiration from personal experiences, Dion released One Heart
(2003), an album that represented her appreciation for life. The album largely consisted of dance music—a deviation from the soaring, melodramatic ballads, for which she had once been given mixed reception. Although the album achieved moderate success, One Heart was met with mixed criticism, and words such as "predictable" and "banal" appeared even in the most lenient reviews. A cover of the 1989 Cyndi Lauper hit "I Drove All Night", released to launch her new advertising campaign with Chrysler
, incorporated dance-pop and rock and roll. The advertising deal itself, however was met with mixed criticism, with some stating that Dion was trying to please her sponsors. However, people like Bonita Stewart, who was the director of Chrysler Group Marketing Communications stated that "Chrysler was taken by how her appeal crossed ethnic lines." She also added, "She brings sophistication, refinement, romance and passion to the brand."
After One Heart, Dion released her next English Language studio album, Miracle
(2004). Miracle was a multimedia project conceived by Dion and photographer Anne Geddes
, and had a theme centering on babies and motherhood. The album was filled with lullabies and other songs of maternal love and inspiration, the two most popular being covers of Louis Armstrong
's "What a Wonderful World
" and John Lennon
's "Beautiful Boy". The reviews for Miracle were mixed. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic.com gave the album three of out five stars, stating, "The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience. Chuck Taylor
of Billboard magazine wrote that the single "Beautiful Boy" was "an unexpected gem" and called Dion "a timeless, enormously versatile artist", Chuck Arnold of People Magazine, however, labeled the album as excessively sentimental, while Nancy Miller of Entertainment Weekly
opined that "the whole earth-mama act is just opportunism, reborn". Miracle debuted at number four on the Billboard 200
chart and number one in Canada , and was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA.
The Francophone album 1 fille & 4 types
(1 Girl & 4 Guys), released in October 2003, fared better than her first two releases, and showed Dion trying to distance herself from the "diva" image. She 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
. Labeled "the album of pleasure" by Dion herself, the album cover showed Dion in a simple and relaxed manner, contrary to the choreographed poses usually found on her album covers. The album achieved widespread commercial success in France, Canada, and Belgium where it reached number one. In France, the album debuted at number one and was later certified 2x platinum after selling over 700,000 copies. Critic, Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Dion's vocals "are back at top of their game" and that she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while."
Though her albums were commercially successful, they did not achieve the sales or the reception of her previous works. Albums like The Collector's Series, Volume One (2000), and One Heart
(2003) did not perform as well critically. Her songs received less airplay as radio became less embracing of balladeers like Dion, Carey, and Houston, and was focused on more up-tempo, Urban
/Hip-hop
songs. However, by 2004, Dion had accumulated sales of more than 175 million albums worldwide, and received the Chopard Diamond Award from the World Music Awards for her achievements. According to the official World Music Awards website, the award is rare; it's not even "presented every year" and an artist can only be presented with the award for selling "over 100 million albums during their career."
, at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. This move was seen as "one of the smartest business decisions in years by any major recording artist". She conceived the idea for the show after seeing O
by Franco Dragone
early in her break from recording, and began on March 25, 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena designed for her show. Many stars attended opening night including Dick Clark, Alan Thicke
, Kathy Griffin
, and Justin Timberlake
, who hosted the television special. The show, put together by Dragone, was a combination of dance, music, and visual effects. It included Dion performing her biggest hits against an array of dancers and special effects. Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find the singer among the excessive stage ornamentations and dancers. However, he noted that the show had become more enjoyable, due to Dion's improved stage-presence and simpler costumes.
The show was also well-received by audiences, despite the complaints of expensive tickets; the show routinely sold out until its end in late 2007. Ticket prices averaged $135.33. The show was choreographed by Mia Michaels
, who is a world renowned choreographer. According to Pollstar
, Dion sold 322,000 tickets and grossed US$43.9 million in the first half of 2005, and by July 2005, she had sold out 315 out of 384 shows.
By the end of 2005, Dion grossed more than US$76 million, placing sixth on Billboard's Money Makers list for 2005. A New Day... was the 6th biggest selling tour in America in 2006. Because of the show's success, Dion's contract was extended into 2007 for an undisclosed sum. On January 5, 2007 it was announced that the show would end on December 15, 2007, with tickets for the period after October 2007 having gone on sale from March 1. During its entire run, the show accumulated a total gross of $400 million, while being seen by nearly 3 million fans. The Live in Las Vegas - A New Day...
DVD was released on December 10, 2007 in Europe and the following day in North America.
(About Them), released on May 21, 2007, debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week. It marked her tenth number-one album in the SoundScan era, and her eighth to debut at the top position. In Canada, the album has been certified 2× platinum, and within the first week had already shipped half a million units worldwide. D'Elles also reached No. 1 in France and Belgium. The first single "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)
" (meaning "And If There Was Only One Woman Left (I Would Be That One)") debuted at the top of the French singles chart a month earlier. She released her latest English album Taking Chances
on November 12 in Europe, and on the November 13 in North America. Her first English studio album since 2003's One Heart, it features pop, R&B, and rock inspired music. Dion has collaborated with John Shanks
and ex-Evanescence
guitarist Ben Moody
, as well as Kristian Lundin
, Peer Astrom
, Linda Perry
, Japanese singer Yuna Ito
, and R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo
. Dion stated, "I think this album represents a positive evolution in my career ... I'm feeling strong, maybe a little gutsier than in the past, and just as passionate about music and life as I ever was." She launched her year-long worldwide Taking Chances Tour
on February 14, 2008 in South Africa, performing 132 dates in stadiums and arenas across five continents.
The Taking Chances Tour was a great success in the United States, reaching the Number 1 spot on the Billboard Boxscore and it sold out every concert in the U.S. and Canada. In addition, she appeared on Idol Gives Back
for a second year in a row. Céline Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, leading the group of Canadians to receive this honour,and adding to her 53 previous nominations. Her nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year (for Taking Chances), Francophone Album of the Year (for D'elles) and Album of the Year (for both Taking Chances and D'elles). The following year, Dion was nominated for 3 Juno Awards including the Fan Choice Award, Song of the Year (for Taking Chances), and Music DVD of the Year (for Live in Las Vegas — A New Day...)
On August 22, 2008, Celine Dion presented a free show, exclusively francophone, outside on the Plains of Abraham
, in Quebec City
, Canada, for the 400th anniversary of Quebec City. The celebration gathered approximately 490,000 people (total with TV broadcast). The concert, called Céline sur les Plaines
, was released on DVD on November 11, 2008 in Quebec and was released on May 20, 2009 in France. The end of October saw the worldwide release of her first ever comprehensive English greatest hits album called My Love: Essential Collection
, available in two different album formats.
In May 2009, Celine Dion was named the 20th best-selling artist of the decade in the United States and the second-best-selling female artist of the decade in the United States, selling an estimated 17.57 million albums. In June 2009, Forbes reported that Dion earned $100 million during 2008. In December 2009, Pollstar announced that Dion was the best-selling solo touring act of the decade and the second-best-selling touring act of the decade, only to the Dave Matthews Band
. Dion grossed $522.2 million during the decade, a large sum of that coming from her five-year residence at Caesars Palace
.
. The documentary shows behind-the-scenes footage of Dion both onstage and offstage, along with footage of Dion with her family as they traveled with her. The distributor is the Sony Pictures subsidiary, Hot Ticket
. The film was later released on Blu-ray and DVD on May 4, 2010, along with the CD/DVD, Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert
, which chronicled her world tour of the same name. At the 52nd Grammy Awards
in February 2010, Dion joined Carrie Underwood
, Usher
, Jennifer Hudson
and Smokey Robinson
to perform the song "Earth Song
" during the 3-D Michael Jackson
tribute.
In January 2010, The Los Angeles Times presented its annual list of the top ten largest earners of the year, revealing that Dion took the top spot for the entire decade, with $US747.9 million in total revenue from 2000–2009. The largest haul came from ticket sales, totaling $522.2 million. Additionally, Dion was named "Artist of the Decade" in her native Canadian province of Quebec, announced by the Montreal
-based newspaper, Le Journal de Quebec in 2009 December. A public online survey asked responders to vote for who they believe deserved the above-mentioned accolade.
Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, 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. Specifically, Dion was the most popular musician in the female demographic, as well as among all Democrats, those who live in the eastern United States and southern United States, and those who have incomes between US$35k and US$74.9k.
In September 2010, she released the single "Voler
", a duet with French singer Michel Sardou
. The song was later included on Sardou's album. In addition, it was announced in October 2010 that Dion wrote and composed a new song for Canadian singer, Marc Dupré
entitled "Entre deux mondes".
magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she will be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning March 15, 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. Dion has also announced that she is working on two new studio albums, in French and English.
In preparation for her return to Las Vegas, Dion, on February 21 made an appearance on the "Oprah Winfrey Show" during the show's final season, for a record twenty-seventh time and spoke about her upcoming Caesars Palace shows, as well as her family. Additionally, for a record sixth time, Dion performed at the 83rd Academy Awards
, where she sang the song "Smile," as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On September 4, Dion appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and showed a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms
" from her new Las Vegas show. On October 1, 2011, OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, from months before her pregnancy with twins, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll, asking 780 participants, which celebrity they would like to sit next to the most on an airplane. Dion was the top favorite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, Dion released her 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums
Collection, called "Signature".
On September 15, Dion made an appearance at the free concert of world famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli
, in Central Park in New York.
in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after she and her mother sent him a demo tape of a song they had written. They began a relationship in 1987, and became engaged in 1991. They married on December 17, 1994, at the Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec. On January 5, 2000, Dion and Angelil renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas.
In May 2000, Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in-vitro fertilisation after years of failed attempts to conceive. Their first child, Rene-Charles Angelil, was born on January 25, 2001. In May 2010, Angelil announced that Dion was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in-vitro fertilisation. On Saturday, October 23, 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, at St. Mary's Medical Center
in West Palm Beach, Florida, Dion, by Caesarean section
, gave birth to two healthy fraternal twins weighing 5 pounds 10 ounces and 5 pounds 4 ounces. The twins were named Eddy, after Dion's favorite Algeria
n songwriter Eddy Marnay
, and Nelson, after former South African President Nelson Mandela
. Dion appeared with her newborn sons on the cover of the December 9, 2010 issue of the Canadian edition of Hello!
magazine.
On October 15, 2010, Céline Dion was nominated Goodwill Ambassador
of the Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations (FAO).
, Michael Jackson
, Carole King
, Anne Murray
, Barbra Streisand
, and the Bee Gees
, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with. Dion has also stated she grew up listening to artists such as Janis Joplin
, the Doobie Brothers, and Creedence Clearwater Revival
, but never got the chance to sing their genre of music. She also was inspired by fellow vocalist Whitney Houston
, whom Dion has often been compared to. Her music has been influenced by numerous genres, including pop, rock, gospel
, R&B and soul
, and her lyrics focus on themes of poverty, world hunger, and spirituality, with an emphasis on love and romance. After the birth of her child, her work also began to emphasize maternal bond and brotherly love.
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. According to Keith Harris of Rolling Stone
magazine, "[Dion's] sentimentality is bombastic and defiant rather than demure and retiring....[she] stands at the end of the chain of drastic devolution that goes Aretha-Whitney-Mariah. Far from being an aberration, Dion actually stands as a symbol of a certain kind of pop sensibility—bigger is better, too much is never enough, and the riper the emotion the more true." Dion's francophone releases, by contrast, tend to be deeper and more varied than her English releases, and consequently have achieved more credibility.
Critics have stated that Dion's involvement in the production aspect of her music is fundamentally lacking, which results in her work being overproduced and impersonal. However, coming from a family in which all of her siblings were musicians, she learned to play instruments like piano and guitar, and practiced with a Fender Stratocaster
during the recording sessions of her album, Falling into You.
Also, she helped to compose many of her earlier French songs, and had always tried to involve herself with the production and recording of her albums. On her first English album, which she recorded before she had a firm command of the English language, she expressed disapproval of the record, which could have been avoided if she had assumed more creative input. By the time she released her second English album Celine Dion
, she had assumed more control of the production and recording process, hoping to dispel earlier criticisms. She stated, "On the second album I said, 'Well, I have the choice to be afraid one more time and not be 100% happy, or not be afraid and be part of this album.' This is my album." She would continue to involve herself in the production of subsequent releases, helping to write a few of her songs on Let's Talk About Love
(1997) and These Are Special Times
(1998).
Dion is often the subject of media ridicule and parody, and is frequently impersonated on shows like MADtv
, Saturday Night Live
, South Park
, Royal Canadian Air Farce
and This Hour Has 22 Minutes
for her strong accent and on-stage movements. However, Dion has stated that she is unaffected by the comments, and is flattered that people take the time to impersonate her. She even invited Ana Gasteyer
, who parodied her on SNL, to appear on stage during one of her performances. While she is rarely politically outspoken, in 2005 following the Hurricane Katrina
disaster, Dion appeared on Larry King Live
and tearfully criticized the U.S. government
's slow response in aiding the victims of the hurricane: "There's people still there waiting to be rescued. To me that is not acceptable...How can it be so easy to send planes in another country to kill everybody in a second and destroy lives. We need to serve our country." After her interview, she stated, "When I do interviews with Larry King
or the big TV shows like that, they put you on the spot, which is very difficult. I do have an opinion, but I'm a singer. I'm not a politician."
and Mariah Carey
. In a countdown of the "22 Greatest Voices in Music" by Blender Magazine
and MTV, she placed ninth (sixth for a female), and she was also placed fourth in Cove magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists." Dion is often compared to Mariah Carey
for her vocal style and to her idol, Barbra Streisand
, for her voice.
According to various sources, Dion possesses a five-octave vocal range
. Regarding the power of Dion's voice, Regine Crespin states, "The volume as such is thin, but thanks to her perfect mastery of the nasal backing, her voice acquires an incisive and penetrating timbre, with a great harmonic richness." Dion states she is a mezzo-soprano
, while Regine Crespin and André Tubeuf state she is probably a lyric soprano
. However, attempts to adopt classical voice types to other forms of singing has been met with controversy. Without making a classification, maestro Kent Nagano
remarked, "All you just sang was soprano
," after Dion auditioned with two solos of Carmen
, wanting to know if she could sing opera. Her timbre has been described as "fresh," as well as "thin, slightly nasal, nearly vibrato
less," with a "raspy" lower register and "bell glass-like high notes." According to French soprano
, Regine Crespin
, Dion's voice is "comparable to oboe
, because of its nasal and fruity timbre and it is mordant in high notes." Crespin is also circumspect about Dion's highest notes, stating, "She doesn't have a head voice
," further remarking, "she uses falsetto
," which is "disconnected to the normal voice body."
Dion is often praised for her technical virtuosity. Stephen Holden of The New York Times
, writes, "Ms. Dion [...] is a belter with a high, thin, slightly nasal, nearly vibratoless soprano and a good-sized arsenal of technical skills. She can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch. And as her duets [...] have shown, she is a reliable harmony voice." In an interview with Libération
, Jean-Jacques Goldman states that she has "no problem of accuracy or tempo
." According to Kent Nagano
, maestro
of the Munich Symphony Orchestra
, Dion is "a musician who has a good ear, a refinement, and a degree of perfection that is envious." Mezzo-soprano
, Cecilia Bartoli
and soprano
, Joan Sutherland
have expressed that Dion has a very good legato
, while Charles Alexander of TIME states, "[Her] voice glides effortlessly from deep whispers to dead-on high notes, a sweet siren that combines force with grace."
In her French repertoire, Dion adorns her vocals with more nuances and modulations, with the emotional intensity being "more tender and intimate." Additionally, Luc Plamondon, a French singer-songwriter who has written several works for Dion states that there are three chanteuse that Dion uses: the Québécois, the French, and the American.
restaurant, Nickels
in 1990. She has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997. In 2003, Dion signed a deal with Coty, Inc.
to release Celine Dion Parfums
. Her latest fragrance, Signature, was released in September 2011. Since its inception, Celine Dion Parfums has grossed over $850 million in retail sales. In October 2004, Air Canada
hired Dion as part of their promotional campaign to unveil new service products and an updated livery
. "You and I", the theme song sung by Dion, was written by advertising executives working for Air Canada.
Dion has actively supported many charity organizations, worldwide. She has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993. She has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine succumbed to the disease at the age of sixteen. In 2003, Dion joined a number of other celebrities, athletes, and politicians, including Josh Groban
and Yolanda Adams
to support "World Children's Day", a global fundraising effort sponsored by McDonald's
. The effort raised money from more than 100 nations and benefited orphanages and children's health organizations. In addition, Dion has been a major supporter of the T.J. Martell Foundation
, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, and many health and educational campaigns. During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Dion donated $1 million to the victims of the storm, and held a fund-raising event for the victims of the 2004 Asian Tsunami, which subsequently raised more than $1 million. After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake
, Dion donated $100,000 to China Children & Teenagers' Fund and sent a letter showing her consolation and support.
In 1999, Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame
and also a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
in January 2004. She dedicated her star to her father, who died the month prior. In 2007, Celine Dion was ranked by Forbes
as the 5th richest woman in entertainment with an estimated net worth of US$250 million. She also received France's highest award, the Légion d'honneur
, in May 2008. In August 2008, she received an honorary doctorate in music from the Université Laval
in Quebec City. In October 2010, Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador
, a program created by the UN in 1999. She shared this accolade with Oscar-winner, Susan Sarandon
.
Charlemagne, Quebec
Charlemagne is an off-island suburb of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located on the north shore of the Rivière des Prairies, northeast of Montreal's downtown core. As of 2006, the population was 5,594....
, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil
René Angélil
René Angélil, OQ is a Canadian singer and manager. He is the husband and manager of singer Celine Dion.-Early life:Angélil was born in Montreal, Québec, Canada of a father of Syrian descent and a Canadian mother of Lebanese origin...
mortgaged his home to finance her first record. In 1990, she released the English-language album Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world.
Dion had first gained international recognition in the 1980s by winning both the 1982 Yamaha
Yamaha (manufacturer)
is a multinational corporation and conglomerate based in Japan with a wide range of products and services, predominantly musical instruments, electronics, motorcycles and power sports equipment.-History:...
World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest. Following a series of French albums in the early 1980s, she signed on to CBS Records Canada in 1986. During the 1990s, with the help of Angélil, she achieved worldwide fame after signing with Epic Records
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
and releasing several English albums along with additional French albums, becoming one of the most successful artists in pop music history. However, in 1999 at the height of her success, Dion announced a hiatus from entertainment in order to start a family and spend time with her husband, who had been diagnosed with cancer. She returned to the top of pop music in 2002 and signed a three-year (later extended to almost five years) contract to perform nightly in a five-star theatrical show at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace
Caesars Palace
Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, an unincorporated township in Clark County, Nevada, United States in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. Caesars Palace is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment Corp....
, Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
.
Dion's music has been influenced by genres ranging from rock and R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
to gospel
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
and classical. While her releases have often received mixed critical reception, she is renowned for her technically skilled and powerful vocals. Dion is the best-selling Canadian artist of all time, is the second best-selling female artist in the US during the Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan is an information and sales tracking system created by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett. Soundscan is the official method of tracking sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada...
era, and is the only female artist to have two singles sell more than a million copies in the UK. In addition, her 1995 album D'eux
D'eux
D'eux is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 27, 1995. It was re-named The French Album in the United States. It is Dion's 17th French-language album and 20th in total...
, is the best-selling French-language album of all time. In 2004, after surpassing 175 million in album sales worldwide, she was presented with the Chopard Diamond Award
Chopard Diamond award
The Chopard Diamond award, or simply the Diamond award, is a special award of merit given by the World Music Awards to recording artists who have sold over 100 million albums throughout their career. The World Music Awards were established in 1989...
at the World Music Awards
World Music Awards
The World Music Awards is an international awards show founded in 1989 that annually honors recording artists based on worldwide sales figures provided by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry . John Martinotti is an executive producer and co-founder of the show...
for becoming the best-selling female artist of all time. According to Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....
, Dion has sold over 200 million albums worldwide.
Childhood and early beginnings
The youngest of 14 children born to Adhémar Dion and Thérèse TanguayThérèse Dion
Thérèse Tanguay Dion , popularly known as Maman Dion, is a Québécois television personality, and the mother of pop singer Céline Dion....
, both of French-Canadian descent, Celine Dion was raised a Roman Catholic in a poverty-stricken, but, by her own account, happy home in Charlemagne, Quebec, Canada. Music had always been a part of the family (Dion was named after the song Céline, recorded by French singer Hugues Aufray
Hugues Aufray
Hugues Aufray is a French singer. He began his career singing in Spanish....
two years before her birth), as she grew up singing with her siblings in her parents' small piano bar
Piano bar
A piano bar consists of a piano or electronic keyboard played by a professional musician, located in a cocktail lounge, bar, hotel lobby, office building lobby, restaurant, or on a cruise ship. Usually the pianist receives a small salary plus tips in a jar or basket on or near the piano,...
called Le Vieux Baril. From an early age Dion had dreamed of being a performer. In a 1994 interview with People
People (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
magazine, she recalled, "I missed my family and my home, but I don't regret having lost my adolescence. I had one dream: I wanted to be a singer."
At age 12, Dion collaborated with her mother and her brother Jacques to compose her first song, "Ce n'était qu'un rêve
Ce N'etait Qu'un Reve
"Ce n'était qu'un rêve" is a debut single by Quebecer singer Céline Dion, released on June 19, 1981 in Quebec, Canada. It was included on her first album La voix du bon Dieu....
" ("It Was Only a Dream"). Her brother Michel Dondalinger Dion sent the recording to music manager René Angélil, whose name he discovered on the back of a Ginette Reno
Ginette Reno
Ginette Reno, OC, CQ is a French-Canadian author, composer, singer, and actress. She is known by the nickname .Born as Ginette Reynault in Montreal, Quebec, she played the role of Maria Barberini in the independent film Mambo Italiano and played the mother in Léolo.She has recorded in both...
album. Angélil was moved to tears by Dion's voice, and decided to make her a star. In 1981, he mortgaged his home to fund her first record, La voix du bon Dieu
La Voix Du Bon Dieu
La voix du bon Dieu is a French debut studio album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released in Quebec, Canada on November 9, 1981.-Album information:...
("The Voice of the Good God"), which later became a local number-one hit and made Dion an instant star in Quebec. Her popularity spread to other parts of the world when she competed in the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo, Japan, and won the musician's award for "Top Performer" as well as the gold medal for "Best Song" with "Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi
Tellement J'ai D'amour Pour Toi
"Tellement j'ai d'amour pour toi" is the first single from Céline Dion's album Tellement j'ai d'amour.... It was released in December 1982 in Quebec, Canada....
" ("I Have So Much Love for You").
By 1983, in addition to becoming the first Canadian artist to receive a gold record in France for the single "D'amour ou d'amitié
D'amour Ou D'amitie
"D'amour ou d'amitié" is the second single from Céline Dion's album Tellement j'ai d'amour.... It was released in April 1983 in Quebec, Canada...
" ("Of Love or of Friendship"), Dion had also won several Félix Award
Félix Award
The Félix Award is a music award, given on an annual basis to artists in the Canadian province of Quebec.The first Félix awards were presented on September 23, 1979, by the Association du disque, de l'industrie du spectacle québécois...
s, including "Best Female performer" and "Discovery of the Year". Further success in Europe, Asia, and Australia came when Dion represented Switzerland
Switzerland in the Eurovision Song Contest
Switzerland has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest every year since it began, except 1995, 1999, 2001, and 2003. Switzerland hosted the first contest in 1956, and won it themselves. Switzerland has won the contest twice, in 1956 and 1988. A third victory in 1963 could have been possibly...
in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest with the song Ne partez pas sans moi
Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi
"Ne partez pas sans moi" is the Swiss winning entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1988, performed by Céline Dion. It was released as a single in Europe on May 6, 1988...
(Don't Go Without Me) and won the contest by a close margin in Dublin, Ireland. However, American success was yet to come, partly because she was exclusively a Francophone artist. At eighteen, after seeing a Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
performance, Dion told Angélil that she wanted to be a star like Jackson. Though confident in her talent, Angélil realized that her image needed to be changed in order for her to be marketed worldwide. 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 École Berlitz in 1989 to polish her English.
In 1989, during a concert on Incognito Tour, Dion injured her voice. She consulted the otorhinolaryngologist
Otolaryngology
Otolaryngology or ENT is the branch of medicine and surgery that specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of ear, nose, throat, and head and neck disorders....
William Gould. He gave her an ultimatum: have surgery on her vocal cords, or not utilize them at all for three weeks. Dion chose the latter and underwent a vocal formation with William Riley, because, according to Gould and Riley, she "doesn't know singing, she made a bad use of her vocal cords".
Career breakthrough: 1990–1992
Two years after she had learned English, Dion made her debut into the Anglophone market with Unison (1990), the lead single having originally been recorded by Laura BraniganLaura Branigan
Laura Ann Branigan was an American singer-songwriter and actress of Italian and Irish ancestry. She is best known in the United States for her 1982 Platinum-certified hit "Gloria" and in Europe for the number-one single "Self Control"...
. She incorporated the help of many established musicians, including Vito Luprano and Canadian producer David Foster
David Foster
David Walter Foster, OC, OBC , is a Canadian musician, record producer, composer, singer, songwriter, and arranger, noted for discovering singers such as Michael Bublé, Josh Groban, and Charice Pempengco; and for producing some of the most successful artists in the world, such as Céline Dion, Toni...
. The album was largely influenced by 1980s soft rock
Soft rock
Soft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock music to compose a softer, more toned-down sound. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships. The genre tends to make heavy use of acoustic guitars, pianos, synthesizers and sometimes...
music that quickly found a niche within the adult contemporary radio format. Unison also hit the right notes with critics: Jim Faber of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
wrote that Dion's vocals were "tastefully unadorned", and that she never attempted to "bring off styles that are beyond her". Stephen Erlewine of Allmusic declared it as, "a fine, sophisticated American debut." Singles from the album included "(If There Was) Any Other Way
(If There Was) Any Other Way
" Any Other Way" is a song from Céline Dion's English debut album Unison. It was released as the first single in Canada and second in the United States and the rest of the world...
", "The Last to Know
The Last To Know
"The Last to Know" is a song from the album Unison by Céline Dion. It was released as the fourth single in Canada and the third in the United States and the rest of the world ....
", "Unison", and "Where Does My Heart Beat Now
Where Does My Heart Beat Now
"Where Does My Heart Beat Now" is a hit song from Céline Dion's English debut album called Unison. It was released as the first single in Canada on October 6, 1990 and United States on November 19, 1990, and in other parts of the world in 1991....
", a mid-tempo soft-rock ballad which made prominent use of the electric guitar. The latter became her first single to reach the top-ten on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, peaking at number-four. The album established Dion as a rising singer in the United States, and across Continental Europe
Continental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
and Asia.
In 1991, Dion was also a soloist in Voices That Care
Voices That Care
"Voices That Care" is a 1991 song written by David Foster, Linda Thompson and Peter Cetera and recorded by a supergroup of popular musicians, entertainers and athletes. The single and supporting documentary music video were intended to help boost the morale of U.S...
, a tribute to American troops fighting in Operation Desert Storm. Dion's real international breakthrough came when she duetted with Peabo Bryson
Peabo Bryson
Peabo Bryson is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, born in Greenville, South Carolina...
on the title track to Disney's animated film Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)
Beauty and the Beast is a 1991 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirtieth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and the third film of the Disney Renaissance period...
(1991). The song captured a musical style that Dion would utilize in the future: sweeping, classically influenced ballads with soft instrumentation. Both a critical and commercial hit, the song became her second U.S. top-ten single, and won the Academy Award for Best Song, and the Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
"Beauty and the Beast" was featured on Dion's 1992 self-titled album
Celine Dion (album)
Celine Dion is an eponymous album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 31, 1992. It is her second English album and 17th in total...
, which, like her debut, had a strong rock influence combined with elements of soul and classical music. Owing to the success of the lead-off single and her collaboration with Foster and Diane Warren
Diane Warren
Diane Eve Warren , is a US songwriter. Her songs have received six Academy Award nominations, five Golden Globe nominations, including one win and seven Grammy Award nominations, including one win. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001...
, the album was as well received as Unison. Other singles that achieved moderate success included "If You Asked Me To" (a cover
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of Patti LaBelle
Patti LaBelle
Patricia Louise Holte-Edwards , better known under the stage name, Patti LaBelle, is a Grammy Award winning American singer, author and actress who has spent over 50 years in the music industry...
's song from the 1989 movie Licence to Kill
Licence to Kill
Licence to Kill, released in 1989, is the sixteenth entry in the Eon Productions James Bond series and the first one not to use the title of an Ian Fleming novel. It marks Timothy Dalton's second and final performance in his brief tenure in the lead role of James Bond...
) which peaked at number-four on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, the gospel-tinged "Love Can Move Mountains
Love Can Move Mountains
"Love Can Move Mountains" is a song from Céline Dion's 1992 album, called simply Celine Dion. It was released on November 2, 1992 worldwide. "Love Can Move Mountains" was the fourth single in the United States, Canada and Japan, and third in the rest of the world.The song was written by Diane...
", and "Nothing Broken But My Heart
Nothing Broken But My Heart
"Nothing Broken But My Heart" is a song from Céline Dion's eponymous album. It was released as the third single in the United States , Canada and Japan, and fourth in Australia ....
".
As with Dion's earlier releases, the album had an overtone of love. Also during this time, Dion released the Francophone album Dion chante Plamondon
Dion chante Plamondon
Dion chante Plamondon is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 4, 1991. It is her 15th French-language album and 16th in total...
in 1991. The album consisted mostly of covers, but included 4 new songs, which included "Des mots qui sonnent", "Je danse dans ma tête
Je Danse Dans Ma Tete
"Je danse dans ma tête" is a song from the Dion chante Plamondon album by Céline Dion. It was released as the third single in Canada and first commercial single in France ....
", "Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime
Quelqu'un Que J'aime, Quelqu'un Qui M'aime
"Quelqu'un que j'aime, quelqu'un qui m'aime" is the fourth radio single from Céline Dion's album, called Dion chante Plamondon. It was released in Canada in August 1992....
" and "L'amour existe encore
L'amour Existe Encore
"L'amour existe encore" is a song from Céline Dion's album Dion chante Plamondon. It was released as the second single in Canada and third commercial single in France ....
". It was originally released in Canada and France during the 1991–1992 period, but then got an international release in 1994, the first French Celine Dion album to do so. "Un garçon pas comme les autres (Ziggy)
Un Garçon Pas Comme Les Autres (Ziggy)
"Un garçon pas comme les autres " is a hit song from the Dion chante Plamondon album by Céline Dion...
" became a smash hit in France, reaching number-two and being certified gold. In Quebec, the album was certified Gold the day it was released.
By 1992 Unison, Céline Dion, and media appearances had propelled Dion to superstardom in North America. She had achieved one of her main objectives: wedging her way into the Anglophone market and achieving fame. However, while she was experiencing rising success in the U.S., her French fans in Canada criticized her for neglecting them. She would later regain her fan base at the Félix Award
Félix Award
The Félix Award is a music award, given on an annual basis to artists in the Canadian province of Quebec.The first Félix awards were presented on September 23, 1979, by the Association du disque, de l'industrie du spectacle québécois...
show, where, after winning "English Artist of the Year", she openly refused to accept the award. She asserted that she was—and would always be—a French, not an English, artist. Apart from her commercial success, there were also changes in Dion's personal life, as Angélil, who was twenty-six years her senior, transitioned from manager to lover. However, the relationship was kept a secret as they both feared that the public would find their relations inappropriate.
Popularity established: 1993–1995
In 1993, 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 LoveThe Colour of My Love
The Colour of My Love is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 9, 1993. It is her third English-language album and 18th overall...
. However, instead of criticizing their relationship as Dion had feared, fans embraced the couple. Eventually, Angélil and Dion married in an extravagant wedding ceremony in December 1994, which was broadcast live on Canadian television.
As it was dedicated to her manager, the album's motif focused on love and romance. It became her most successful record up to that point, selling more than six million copies in the U.S., two million in Canada, and peaking at number-one in many countries. The album also spawned Dion's first U.S., Canadian, and Australian number-one single "The Power of Love" (a remake of Jennifer Rush
Jennifer Rush
Jennifer Rush is an American/German-based pop/rock singer, best known for the million-selling single "The Power of Love", which she co-wrote and which went on to be covered by Laura Branigan and Celine Dion.-Career:...
's 1985 hit), which would become her signature hit
Signature song
A signature song is the one song that a popular and well-established singer or band is most closely identified with or best known for, even if they have had success with a variety of songs...
until she reached new career heights in the late 1990s. The single "When I Fall in Love", a duet with Clive Griffin
Clive Griffin
Clive Griffin is a British pop vocalist, best known for his hit duet, "When I Fall in Love" with pop singer Celine Dion. His debut album Step By Step sold 10,000 copies in his native UK in the late 1980s, and featured several singles, "Head Above Water", "Don't Make Me Wait", "The Way We Touch"...
, achieved moderate success on the U.S. and Canadian charts, and was nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning one. The Colour of My Love also became Dion's first major hit in Europe, and in particular the United Kingdom. Both the album and the single "Think Twice" simultaneously occupied the top of the British charts for five consecutive weeks. "Think Twice", which remained at number-one for seven weeks, eventually became the fourth single by a female artist to sell in excess of one million copies in the UK, while the album was eventually certified five-times platinum for two-million copies sold.
Dion kept to her French roots and continued to release many Francophone recordings between each English record. Generally, they achieved more credibility than her English-language works. She released À l'Olympia
À l'Olympia
À l'Olympia is a live album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 14, 1994. It's her 2nd live album, 16th French album and 19th in total.-Album information:...
, a live album that was recorded during one of Dion's concerts at the Paris Olympia
Paris Olympia
The Olympia is a music hall in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. Located at No. 28, Boulevard des Capucines, its closest métro/RER stations are Madeleine, Opéra, Havre – Caumartin and Auber....
in 1994. It had one promotional single, a live version of "Calling You", which peaked at seventy-five on the French Singles Chart. She also recorded a bilingual version of Petit Papa Noël
Petit Papa Noël
"Petit Papa Noël" is a 1946 song recorded by French singer Tino Rossi. Written by Raymond Vincy and Henri Martinet, this Christmas song was originally performed by Rossi in Richard Pottier's film Destins. It is currently the best-selling single of all time in France, with over 5,711,000 units sold...
with Alvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks is an American animated music group created by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks: Alvin, the mischievous troublemaker, who quickly became the star of the group; Simon, the tall, bespectacled intellectual;...
for the 1994 holiday album A Very Merry Chipmunk
A Very Merry Chipmunk
A Very Merry Chipmunk is a 1994 music album by Alvin and the Chipmunks, released by Sony Wonder. It is their fourth Christmas album. The album reached #147 on the Billboard 200. It was the first in a series of 25 Christmas compilation albums put forth by Turner Broadcasting company...
. D'eux
D'eux
D'eux is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 27, 1995. It was re-named The French Album in the United States. It is Dion's 17th French-language album and 20th in total...
(also known as The French Album in the United States), was released in 1995, and it would go on to become the best-selling French-language album of all time. The album was mostly written and produced by Jean-Jacques Goldman
Jean-Jacques Goldman
Jean-Jacques Goldman is a Grammy Awards-winning French singer-songwriter. He is hugely popular in the French-speaking world, and since 2003 was the second-highest-grossing French living pop singer, after Johnny Hallyday.- Biography :...
, and amassed huge success with the singles "Pour que tu m'aimes encore
Pour Que Tu M'aimes Encore
"Pour que tu m'aimes encore" is the first hit single from album D'eux by Céline Dion. It was released on March 13, 1995 in Francophone countries and in September 1995 in other European countries. In Canada it was a radio only release. The song was also released in Japan in October 1996...
" and "Je sais pas
Je Sais Pas
"Je sais pas" is the second and last commercial single from album D'eux by Céline Dion. It was released on October 2, 1995 in Francophone countries and in December 1995 in selected European countries...
". "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" reached number 1 in France and stayed at the top position for twelve weeks. It was later certified Platinum in France. The single also reached the top ten in the UK and Ireland, a rare accomplishment for a French song. The second single off the album, "Je sais pas", reached number-one on the French Singles Chart as well and was certified Silver in France. These songs would later become "If That's What It Takes" and "I Don't Know" on Dion's next English album, Falling into You
Falling into You
Falling into You is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 8, 1996. It is her fourth English-language album and twenty-first overall...
.
During the mid-1990s, Dion's albums continued to be constructed on the basis of melodramatic ballads, but also with up-tempo pop and adult contemporary themed music. She collaborated with talented craftsman such as Jim Steinman and David Foster who helped her devise more adult contemporary songs. While critical reviews fluctuated, Dion's releases performed increasingly well on the international charts, and in 1996 she won the World Music Award for "World’s Best-selling Canadian Female Recording Artist of the Year" for the third time. By the mid-1990s, she had established herself as one of the best-selling artists in the world.
Worldwide commercial success: 1996–1999
Falling into YouFalling into You
Falling into You is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 8, 1996. It is her fourth English-language album and twenty-first overall...
(1996), Dion's fourth English-language album, presented the singer at the height of her popularity, and showed a further progression of her music. In an attempt to reach a wider audience, the album combined many elements, such as complex orchestral sounds, African chanting and elaborate musical effects. Additionally, instruments like the violin, Spanish guitar, trombone
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
, the cavaquinho
Cavaquinho
The cavaquinho is a small string instrument of the European guitar family with four wire or gut strings. It is also called machimbo, machim, machete , manchete or marchete, braguinha or braguinho, or cavaco.The most common tuning is D-G-B-D ; other tunings include D-A-B-E...
and saxophone created a new sound. The singles encompassed a variety of musical styles. The title track "Falling into You" and "River Deep, Mountain High
River Deep - Mountain High
"River Deep – Mountain High" is a 1966 single by Ike & Tina Turner. Considered by producer Phil Spector to be his best work, the single was successful in Europe, peaking at #3 in the United Kingdom, though it flopped on its original release in the United States...
" (a Tina Turner
Tina Turner
Tina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...
cover) made prominent use of percussion instruments; "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" (a remake of Jim Steinman
Jim Steinman
James Richard "Jim" Steinman is an American composer, lyricist, and Grammy Award-winning record producer responsible for several hit songs. He has also worked as an arranger, pianist, and singer...
's song) and a remake of Eric Carmen
Eric Carmen
Eric Howard Carmen is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and keyboardist.He scored numerous hit songs across the 1970s and 1980s, first as a member of the Raspberries , and then with his solo career, including hits such as "All By Myself", "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again", "She Did It",...
's "All by Myself" kept their soft-rock atmosphere, but were combined with the classical sound of the piano; and the number-one single "Because You Loved Me
Because You Loved Me
"Because You Loved Me" is a song from Céline Dion's album Falling into You, released as the first single on February 19, 1996 in North America and Japan. In other parts of the world it was released in May 1996 as the second single, after "Falling into You"....
", which was written by Diane Warren, was a ballad that served as the theme to the 1996 film Up Close & Personal
Up Close & Personal
Up Close & Personal is an American romantic drama film directed by Jon Avnet, and starring Robert Redford as a news director and Michelle Pfeiffer as his protegée, with Stockard Channing, Joe Mantegna and Kate Nelligan in supporting roles....
.
Falling into You garnered career-best reviews for Dion. While Dan Leroy wrote that it was not very different from her previous work, and Stephen Holden of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
and Natalie Nichols of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
wrote that the album was formulaic, other critics, such as Chuck Eddy of Entertainment Weekly, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AMG and Daniel Durchholz, lavished the album as "compelling", "passionate", "stylish", "elegant" and "remarkably well-crafted". Falling Into You became Dion's most critically and commercially successful album: it topped the charts in many countries and became one of the best-selling albums of all time. In the United States, the album reached number-one, and was later certified 11x Platinum for over 11 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album was certified diamond for over one million copies shipped. The IFPI
IFPI
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland...
certified Falling into You 9x Platinum, an accolade that has been given to only two other albums in history, with one of the two being Dion's own album, Let's Talk About Love
Let's Talk About Love
Let's Talk About Love is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 18, 1997. It is her fifth English-language album and twenty-third in total. Let's Talk About Love remains one of the best-selling albums in history with over 31 million copies sold worldwide...
. The album also won Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s for Best Pop Album, and the academy's highest honor Album of the Year
Grammy Award for Album of the Year
The Grammy Award for Album of the Year is the most prestigious award category at the Grammys. It has been awarded since 1959 and though it was originally presented to the artist alone, the award is now presented to the artist, the producer, the engineer and/or mixer and the mastering engineer...
. Dion's status on the world stage was further solidified when she was asked to perform "The Power of the Dream
The Power of the Dream
"The Power of the Dream" is a single by Céline Dion, released on August 20, 1996 in Japan."The Power of the Dream" was written and produced by David Foster and Babyface for the opening ceremonies of the 1996 Summer Olympics. Dion performed it in front of more than 100,000 people, in addition to...
" at the opening ceremonies of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. In March 1996, Dion launched the Falling into You Tour
Falling into You Tour
The Falling into You Tour is the seventh world concert tour by Canadian pop singer, Céline Dion...
in support of her new album, giving concerts around the world for over a year.
Dion followed Falling into You with Let's Talk About Love
Let's Talk About Love
Let's Talk About Love is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 18, 1997. It is her fifth English-language album and twenty-third in total. Let's Talk About Love remains one of the best-selling albums in history with over 31 million copies sold worldwide...
(1997), which was publicized as its sequel. The recording process took place in London, New York City, and Los Angeles, and featured a host of special guests, such as Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
on "Tell Him
Tell Him (Barbra Streisand and Celine Dion song)
"Tell Him" is a duet between Barbra Streisand and Céline Dion. It was released on November 3, 1997 as the first single from Dion's Let's Talk About Love and Streisand's Higher Ground albums....
"; the Bee Gees
Bee Gees
The Bee Gees are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a...
on "Immortality
Immortality (Celine Dion song)
"Immortality" is a single from Céline Dion's album Let's Talk About Love. It was released on June 8, 1998 outside the United States. The Bee Gees can be heard on the background vocals....
"; and world-renowned tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
Luciano Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti
right|thumb|Luciano Pavarotti performing at the opening of the Constantine Palace in [[Strelna]], 31 May 2003. The concert was part of the celebrations for the 300th anniversary of [[St...
on "I Hate You Then I Love You
I Hate You Then I Love You
"I Hate You Then I Love You" is song sung as a duet between Céline Dion and Luciano Pavarotti. It was first released as a track on Celine Dion's 1997 album Let's Talk About Love...
". Other musicians included Carole King
Carole King
Carole King is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. King and her former husband Gerry Goffin wrote more than two dozen chart hits for numerous artists during the 1960s, many of which have become standards. As a singer, King had an album, Tapestry, top the U.S...
, Sir George Martin
George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...
, Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, bassist, producer, actor and photographer. Adams has won dozens of awards and nominations, including 20 Juno Awards among 56 nominations. He has also received 15 Grammy Award nominations including a win for Best Song Written...
and Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
n singer Diana King
Diana King
Diana King is a reggae fusion singer-songwriter who specifically performed a mixture and fusion of R&B, reggae, pop and dancehall...
, who added a reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
tinge to "Treat Her Like a Lady". As with Falling into You, Let's Talk About Love was a major success for Dion, reaching number-one all over the world, attaining platinum status in twenty-four sales territories, and becoming Dion's fastest selling album of her career. In the United States, the album topped the chart in its seventh week of release, and was later certified 10x Platinum in the U.S. for over 10 million copies shipped. In Canada, the album sold 230,212 copies in its first week of release, which became, and still is, a record. It was eventually certified diamond in Canada for over 1 million copies shipped. The most successful single from the album became the classically
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
influenced ballad "My Heart Will Go On
My Heart Will Go On
"My Heart Will Go On" is the theme song/love theme of the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic. With music by James Horner, lyrics by Will Jennings, and production by Simon Franglen, James Horner and Walter Afanasieff ,, it was recorded by Céline Dion...
", which was written and composed by James Horner
James Horner
James Roy Horner is an American composer, orchestrator and conductor of orchestral and film music. He is noted for the integration of choral and electronic elements in many of his film scores, and for frequent use of Celtic musical elements...
and Will Jennings
Will Jennings
Wilbur H. "Will" Jennings is an American songwriter who is popularly known for writing the lyrics for "My Heart Will Go On", the theme for the film Titanic .-Life and education:...
, and produced by Horner and Walter Afanasieff
Walter Afanasieff
Walter Afanasieff is a multiple Grammy-award-winning record producer and songwriter. He is best known for his long association with Mariah Carey, for whom he was producer and co-writer for several years, beginning in 1990...
. Serving as the love theme for the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic
Titanic (1997 film)
Titanic is a 1997 American epic romance and disaster film directed, written, co-produced, and co-edited by James Cameron. A fictionalized account of the sinking of the RMS Titanic, it stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson, Kate Winslet as Rose DeWitt Bukater and Billy Zane as Rose's fiancé, Cal...
, the song topped the charts across the world, and became Dion's signature song
Signature song
A signature song is the one song that a popular and well-established singer or band is most closely identified with or best known for, even if they have had success with a variety of songs...
; as well as winning the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Original Song
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . It is presented to the songwriters who have composed the best original song written specifically for a film...
. The song also gave Dion two Grammy Awards for "Best Female Pop Vocal Performance" and the most coveted "Record of the Year
Record Of The Year
Record of the Year may refer to:*Grammy Award for Record of the Year*The Record of the Year, a British award based on public polling...
", (the song itself won four awards, but two were presented to the songwriters). "My Heart Will Go On" and "Think Twice" made her the only female artist in the UK to have two singles to sell more than a million copies. In support of her album, Dion embarked on the Let's Talk About Love Tour
Let's Talk About Love Tour
The Let's Talk About Love World Tour is the eighth concert tour by Canadian recording artist Celine Dion. Visiting North America, Asia and Europe; the trek supported Dion's fifth English studio album Let's Talk About Love and her eleventh French studio album, S'il suffisait d'aimer. Initially...
between 1998 and 1999.
Dion ended the 1990s with three more extremely successful albums—the Christmas album
Christmas music
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music normally performed or heard around the Christmas season, which tends to begin in the months leading up the actual holiday and end in the weeks shortly thereafter.-Early:...
These Are Special Times
These Are Special Times
These Are Special Times is a Christmas album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on October 30, 1998 through Epic subsidiary 550 Music...
(1998), the French-language album, S'il suffisait d'aimer
S'il suffisait d'aimer
S'il suffisait d'aimer is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on September 7, 1998. It's her 19th French album and 24th in total...
, and the compilation album All the Way... A Decade of Song
All the Way... A Decade of Song
All the Way… A Decade of Song is the first English greatest hits album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 12, 1999. It is her 7th English album and 27th in total. All the Way... A Decade of Song was extremely successful, selling over 22 million copies worldwide...
(1999). On These Are Special Times, Dion became more involved in the writing process. She co-wrote the song, "Don't Save It All For Christmas Day" along with Ric Wake
Ric Wake
Ric Wake is a record producer who has won an Academy Award and two Grammy Awards. During his tenure as staff producer with Sony Music Entertainment he has worked with vocalists such as Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, Jennifer Lopez, Jessica Simpson, Barry Manilow, and Marc Anthony...
and Peter Zizzo. The album was her most classically influenced yet, with orchestral arrangements found on virtually every track. "I'm Your Angel
I'm Your Angel
"I'm Your Angel" is a duet by Céline Dion and R. Kelly from Dion's These Are Special Times album and Kelly's R. album. It was released on November 9, 1998. The song was written and produced by R. Kelly. The single was very successful, reaching number 1 in the United States and was certified...
", a duet with R. Kelly
R. Kelly
Robert Sylvester Kelly , better known by his stage name R. Kelly, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. A native of Chicago, Kelly began performing during the late 1980s and debuted in 1992 with the group Public Announcement. In 1993, Kelly went solo with the album 12 Play...
, became Dion's fourth U.S. number one single, and another hit single across the world. All the Way... A Decade of Song drew together her most successful hits coupled with seven new songs, including the lead off single "That's the Way It Is", a cover of Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is notable for jazz, soul, R&B, and folk music...
's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
"The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" is a 1957 folk song written by British political singer/songwriter Ewan MacColl for Peggy Seeger, who was later to become his wife. At the time the couple were lovers, although MacColl was married to someone else. MacColl and Seeger included the song in their...
", and "All the Way", a duet with Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
. The album itself was also extremely successful worldwide, reaching number-one in the United States for three weeks. The album was later certified 7x Platinum in the U.S. for 7 million copies shipped. All the Way... A Decade of Song also topped the charts in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Her last French-language studio album of the 1990s, S'il suffisait d'aimer, was very successful as well, topping the charts in every major French-speaking country, including France, Switzerland, Belgium Wallonia, and Canada. In France, the album was certified diamond, selling 1.5 million copies. By the end of the 1990s, Celine Dion had sold more than 100 million albums worldwide, and had won a slew of industry awards. Her status as one of the music industry's biggest pop divas was further solidified when she was asked to perform on VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
's Divas Live special in 1998, with superstars Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
, Gloria Estefan
Gloria Estefan
Gloria María Milagrosa Fajardo García de Estefan; known professionally as Gloria Estefan is a Cuban-born American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known as the "Queen Of Latin Pop", she is in the top 100 best selling music artists with over 100 million albums sold worldwide, 31.5 million of those...
, Shania Twain
Shania Twain
Shania Twain, OC is a Canadian country pop singer-songwriter. Her album The Woman in Me , brought her fame and her 1997 album Come On Over, became the best-selling album of all time by a female musician in any genre, and the best-selling country album of all time. It has sold over 40 million...
and Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut with the release of her eponymous studio album in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, whom she later married in 1993...
. That year she also received two of the highest honours from her home country: "Officer of the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
for Outstanding Contribution to the World of Contemporary Music" and "Officer of the National Order of Quebec
National Order of Quebec
The National Order of Quebec, termed officially in French as l'Ordre national du Québec, and in English abbreviation as the Order of Quebec, is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Quebec...
". A year later she was inducted into the Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame
Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame
The Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame, started in 1982, recognizes Canadians in broadcasting or entertainment related industries who have "achieved outstanding success in helping raise industry standards from a material or humanitarian standpoint."...
, and was honoured with a star on Canada's Walk of Fame
Canada's Walk of Fame
Canada's Walk of Fame , located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is a walk of fame that acknowledges the achievements and accomplishments of successful Canadians...
.
During this time, the pop-rock genre that was more noticeable in her earlier releases, was replaced by a more adult contemporary feel. However, the theme of "love" remained in most of her releases, which led to some critics dismissing her music as banal. Other critics, like Elysa Gardner and Jose F. Promis, praised her vocals during this period, describing it as a "technical marvel". However, others, like Steve Dollar, who reviewed These Are Special Times, stated that Dion is a "vocal Olympian for whom there ain't no mountain—or scale—high enough."
Career break: 2000–2002
After releasing and promoting thirteen albums during the 1990s, Dion stated that she needed to settle down, and announced on her latest album All the Way... A Decade of SongAll the Way... A Decade of Song
All the Way… A Decade of Song is the first English greatest hits album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 12, 1999. It is her 7th English album and 27th in total. All the Way... A Decade of Song was extremely successful, selling over 22 million copies worldwide...
, that she needed to take a step back from the spotlight and enjoy life. Angélil's diagnosis with throat cancer
Esophageal cancer
Esophageal cancer is malignancy of the esophagus. There are various subtypes, primarily squamous cell cancer and adenocarcinoma . Squamous cell cancer arises from the cells that line the upper part of the esophagus...
also prompted her to hiatus. While on break, Dion was unable to escape the spotlight. In 2000, the National Enquirer published a false story about the singer. Brandishing a picture of Dion and her husband, the magazine misquoted Dion, printing the headline, "Celine — 'I'm Pregnant With Twins!'" Dion later sued the magazine for more than twenty million dollars. The editors of the Enquirer printed an apology and a full retraction to Dion in the next issue, and donated money to the American Cancer Society
American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society is the "nationwide community-based voluntary health organization" dedicated, in their own words, "to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer, through research, education, advocacy, and...
in honor of Dion and her husband. A year after the incident, after undergoing fertility treatments, Dion gave birth to a son, René-Charles Dion Angélil, on January 25, 2001, in Florida. Following the September 11 attacks, Dion returned to the music scene, and in a televised performance sang "God Bless America" at the benefit concert America: A Tribute to Heroes
America: A Tribute to Heroes
America: A Tribute to Heroes was a benefit concert created by the heads of the four broadcast networks. Joel Gallen was selected by them to produce and run the show Joel Gallen. Actor George Clooney wrangled the celebrities to performed and to man the telephone bank . The marketing and public...
. Chuck Taylor of Billboard wrote, "the performance... brings to mind what has made her one of the celebrated vocalists of our time: the ability to render emotion that shakes the soul. Affecting, meaningful, and filled with grace, this is a musical reflection to share with all of us still searching for ways to cope." In December 2001, Dion published her autobiography, My Story, My Dream which chronicled her rags to riches story.
Return to music: 2002–2003
Dion's aptly titled A New Day Has ComeA New Day Has Come
A New Day Has Come is Celine Dion's 18th studio album which marked her return after two-year hiatus to have a child. It was released on March 22, 2002. A New Day Has Come is Dion's 9th English album and 29th in total...
, released in March 2002, ended her three-year break from the music industry. The album was Dion's most personal yet, and established a more mature side of Dion with the songs "A New Day Has Come
A New Day Has Come (song)
"A New Day Has Come" is the lead single from Céline Dion's comeback album A New Day Has Come, released on March 11, 2002.The song was written by Aldo Nova and Stephan Moccio and produced by Walter Afanasieff and Nova as a piano-driven ballad in 6/8 time. However, the midtempo radio remix...
", "I'm Alive
I'm Alive (Celine Dion song)
"I'm Alive" is the second hit single from Céline Dion's album A New Day Has Come, released on August 12, 2002.The song was written and produced by Kristian Lundin and Andreas Carlsson, who already worked with Céline Dion in 1999 on "That's the Way It Is." "I'm Alive" was also featured in the Stuart...
", and "Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)
Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)
"Goodbye's " is the third and last commercial single from Céline Dion's album A New Day Has Come, released on November 18, 2002....
", a change that resulted from her new-found maternal responsibilities, because, in her own words, "becoming a mother makes you a grown-up." She stated, "A New Day Has Come, for Rene, for me, is the baby. It has everything to do with the baby...That song "A New Day Has Come" represents very well the mood I'm feeling right now. It represents the whole album." A New Day Has Come debuted at number one in over 17 countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, the album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, with first week sales of 527,000 copies; marking her first number one debut on the chart. It was eventually certified 3x Platinum in the United States, and 6x Platinum in Canada.
While the album was commercially successful, critical reviews suggested that it was "forgettable" and the lyrics were "lifeless". Both Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine, and Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly, stated that Dion's music had not matured during her break, and classed her music as trite and mediocre. Sal Cinquemani of Slant
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine is an online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York Film Festival.- History :...
magazine called the album "a lengthy collection of drippy, gooey pop fluffer-nutter." The first single off the album, A New Day Has Come
A New Day Has Come (song)
"A New Day Has Come" is the lead single from Céline Dion's comeback album A New Day Has Come, released on March 11, 2002.The song was written by Aldo Nova and Stephan Moccio and produced by Walter Afanasieff and Nova as a piano-driven ballad in 6/8 time. However, the midtempo radio remix...
peaked at No.22 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
charts, being an airplay-only release. On the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
, however the song spent 21 consecutive weeks at number 1, breaking the record for the longest span at the top. The previous record holders were Phil Collins
Phil Collins
Philip David Charles "Phil" Collins, LVO is an English singer-songwriter, drummer, pianist and actor best known as a drummer and vocalist for British progressive rock group Genesis and as a solo artist....
' You'll Be in My Heart
You'll Be in My Heart
"You'll Be in My Heart" is a song by Phil Collins, from the 1999 Disney animated feature Tarzan. It appeared on Tarzan: An Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack as well as various other Disney compilations...
and Dion's own Because You Loved Me
Because You Loved Me
"Because You Loved Me" is a song from Céline Dion's album Falling into You, released as the first single on February 19, 1996 in North America and Japan. In other parts of the world it was released in May 1996 as the second single, after "Falling into You"....
, both of which lasted nineteen weeks at number 1. During 2002, she performed for many benefit concerts, the famous VH1 Divas Live, a concert to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation, alongside Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
, Anastacia
Anastacia
Anastacia is an American singer-songwriter. Anastacia has been highly successful in Europe, Asia, South Africa and South America, but has had only minor success in her native United States...
, Dixie Chicks
Dixie Chicks
The Dixie Chicks are an American country band which has also successfully crossed over into other genres. The band is composed of founding members Martie Erwin Maguire and Emily Erwin Robison, and lead singer Natalie Maines...
, Mary J. Blige
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
, Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
, Cyndi Lauper
Cyndi Lauper
Cynthia Ann Stephanie "Cyndi" Lauper is an American singer, songwriter, actress and LGBT rights activist. She achieved success in the mid-1980s with the release of the album She's So Unusual and became the first female singer to have four top-five singles released from one album...
, Shakira
Shakira
Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll , known professionally as Shakira , is a Colombian singer who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s...
and Stevie Nicks
Stevie Nicks
Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and sold over 140 million albums...
.
Drawing inspiration from personal experiences, Dion released One Heart
One Heart
-Charts:-Certifications:1Most certifications are under old criteria, with higher certifications levels than the current ones.-Awards:-Release history:...
(2003), an album that represented her appreciation for life. The album largely consisted of dance music—a deviation from the soaring, melodramatic ballads, for which she had once been given mixed reception. Although the album achieved moderate success, One Heart was met with mixed criticism, and words such as "predictable" and "banal" appeared even in the most lenient reviews. A cover of the 1989 Cyndi Lauper hit "I Drove All Night", released to launch her new advertising campaign with Chrysler
Chrysler
Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....
, incorporated dance-pop and rock and roll. The advertising deal itself, however was met with mixed criticism, with some stating that Dion was trying to please her sponsors. However, people like Bonita Stewart, who was the director of Chrysler Group Marketing Communications stated that "Chrysler was taken by how her appeal crossed ethnic lines." She also added, "She brings sophistication, refinement, romance and passion to the brand."
After One Heart, Dion released her next English Language studio album, Miracle
Miracle (Celine Dion album)
Miracle is a concept album credited to Canadian singer Céline Dion and Australian photographer Anne Geddes, released on October 11, 2004. It's Dion's 12th English album and 33rd in total...
(2004). Miracle was a multimedia project conceived by Dion and photographer Anne Geddes
Anne Geddes
Anne Geddes, MNZM, is an Australian-born photographer, clothing designer and businesswoman who now lives and works in New Zealand. She is known for her stylized depictions of babies and motherhood. Typical images show babies or young children dressed as fairies and fairytale creatures, flowers, or...
, and had a theme centering on babies and motherhood. The album was filled with lullabies and other songs of maternal love and inspiration, the two most popular being covers of Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong
Louis Armstrong , nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana....
's "What a Wonderful World
What a Wonderful World
"What a Wonderful World" is a song written by Bob Thiele and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong and released as a single in 1968. Thiele and Weiss were both prominent in the music world . Armstrong's recording was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999...
" and John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
's "Beautiful Boy". The reviews for Miracle were mixed. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic.com gave the album three of out five stars, stating, "The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience. Chuck Taylor
Chuck Taylor (Billboard writer and editor)
Chuck Taylor is an American music journalist. He was a writer and senior editor at Billboard magazine from 1995 to 2009...
of Billboard magazine wrote that the single "Beautiful Boy" was "an unexpected gem" and called Dion "a timeless, enormously versatile artist", Chuck Arnold of People Magazine, however, labeled the album as excessively sentimental, while Nancy Miller of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
opined that "the whole earth-mama act is just opportunism, reborn". Miracle debuted at number four on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart and number one in Canada , and was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA.
The Francophone album 1 fille & 4 types
1 Fille & 4 Types
-Charts:-Certifications:-Release history:...
(1 Girl & 4 Guys), released in October 2003, fared better than her first two releases, and showed Dion trying to distance herself from the "diva" image. She recruited Jean-Jacques Goldman
Jean-Jacques Goldman
Jean-Jacques Goldman is a Grammy Awards-winning French singer-songwriter. He is hugely popular in the French-speaking world, and since 2003 was the second-highest-grossing French living pop singer, after Johnny Hallyday.- Biography :...
, 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
S'il suffisait d'aimer
S'il suffisait d'aimer is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on September 7, 1998. It's her 19th French album and 24th in total...
and D'eux
D'eux
D'eux is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 27, 1995. It was re-named The French Album in the United States. It is Dion's 17th French-language album and 20th in total...
. Labeled "the album of pleasure" by Dion herself, the album cover showed Dion in a simple and relaxed manner, contrary to the choreographed poses usually found on her album covers. The album achieved widespread commercial success in France, Canada, and Belgium where it reached number one. In France, the album debuted at number one and was later certified 2x platinum after selling over 700,000 copies. Critic, Stephen Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Dion's vocals "are back at top of their game" and that she was "getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while."
Though her albums were commercially successful, they did not achieve the sales or the reception of her previous works. Albums like The Collector's Series, Volume One (2000), and One Heart
One Heart
-Charts:-Certifications:1Most certifications are under old criteria, with higher certifications levels than the current ones.-Awards:-Release history:...
(2003) did not perform as well critically. Her songs received less airplay as radio became less embracing of balladeers like Dion, Carey, and Houston, and was focused on more up-tempo, Urban
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
/Hip-hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
songs. However, by 2004, Dion had accumulated sales of more than 175 million albums worldwide, and received the Chopard Diamond Award from the World Music Awards for her achievements. According to the official World Music Awards website, the award is rare; it's not even "presented every year" and an artist can only be presented with the award for selling "over 100 million albums during their career."
A New Day... Live in Las Vegas: 2003–2007
In early 2002 Dion had announced a three-year, 600-show contract to appear five nights a week in an entertainment extravaganza, A New Day...A New Day...
A New Day... was a Las Vegas residency show performed by Céline Dion at the 4000-seat Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. It was created and directed by Franco Dragone and premiered on March 25, 2003...
, at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. This move was seen as "one of the smartest business decisions in years by any major recording artist". She conceived the idea for the show after seeing O
O (Cirque du Soleil)
O is a water-themed stage production by Cirque du Soleil, a Canadian circus and entertainment company. The show has been in permanent residence at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, since October 1998...
by Franco Dragone
Franco Dragone
Franco Dragone is a Italian-Belgian theatre director. He is known for his work with Cirque du Soleil.-Early life:Dragone was born in Cairano, Italy, and moved to La Louvière, Belgium at age seven. In the 1970s, he studied theatre at the Belgian Royal Conservatory of Mons...
early in her break from recording, and began on March 25, 2003, in a 4,000-seat arena designed for her show. Many stars attended opening night including Dick Clark, Alan Thicke
Alan Thicke
Alan Thicke is a Canadian actor, songwriter, and game and talk show host. He is best known for his role as Jason Seaver, the patriarch on the ABC television series Growing Pains.- Early life :...
, Kathy Griffin
Kathy Griffin
Kathleen Mary "Kathy" Griffin is an American actress, stand-up comedienne, television personality, New York Times best-selling author and an LGBT rights advocate. Griffin first gained recognition for appearances on two episodes of Seinfeld, and then for her supporting role on the NBC sitcom...
, and Justin Timberlake
Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake is an American pop musician and actor. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez...
, who hosted the television special. The show, put together by Dragone, was a combination of dance, music, and visual effects. It included Dion performing her biggest hits against an array of dancers and special effects. Reviewer Mike Weatherford felt that, at first, Dion was not as relaxed as she should be, and at times, it was hard to find the singer among the excessive stage ornamentations and dancers. However, he noted that the show had become more enjoyable, due to Dion's improved stage-presence and simpler costumes.
The show was also well-received by audiences, despite the complaints of expensive tickets; the show routinely sold out until its end in late 2007. Ticket prices averaged $135.33. The show was choreographed by Mia Michaels
Mia Michaels
Mia Michaels is an American choreographer best known for her judging and contemporary choreography on the TV show So You Think You Can Dance . She has worked with musical artists such as Celine Dion, Madonna, Tom Cruise, Ricky Martin, Gloria Estefan, and Prince...
, who is a world renowned choreographer. According to Pollstar
Pollstar
Pollstar is a concert tour industry's leading trade publication that gets its information primarily from the agents, managers and promoters who are producing concerts. Founded in 1981, it is based in Fresno, California and has an office in London with correspondents in six countries. Pollstar is...
, Dion sold 322,000 tickets and grossed US$43.9 million in the first half of 2005, and by July 2005, she had sold out 315 out of 384 shows.
By the end of 2005, Dion grossed more than US$76 million, placing sixth on Billboard's Money Makers list for 2005. A New Day... was the 6th biggest selling tour in America in 2006. Because of the show's success, Dion's contract was extended into 2007 for an undisclosed sum. On January 5, 2007 it was announced that the show would end on December 15, 2007, with tickets for the period after October 2007 having gone on sale from March 1. During its entire run, the show accumulated a total gross of $400 million, while being seen by nearly 3 million fans. The Live in Las Vegas - A New Day...
Live in Las Vegas - A New Day...
Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... is Céline Dion's eighth home video, released on DVD between December 7–10, 2007 in Europe, on December 11, 2007 in North America, December 15, 2007 in Australia and December 19, 2007 in Japan. It includes the record-breaking show A New Day... at Caesars Palace in Las...
DVD was released on December 10, 2007 in Europe and the following day in North America.
Back to studio and world tour: 2007–2009
Dion's latest French language album, D'ellesD'elles
D'elles is the title of Céline Dion's French-language album, released between May 18 and June 1, 2007 in certain European countries, on May 22, 2007 in Canada, and February 27, 2008 in Japan. It is her 23rd French album and 35th if counting all longplays...
(About Them), released on May 21, 2007, debuted at the top of the Canadian album charts, selling 72,200 copies in its first week. It marked her tenth number-one album in the SoundScan era, and her eighth to debut at the top position. In Canada, the album has been certified 2× platinum, and within the first week had already shipped half a million units worldwide. D'Elles also reached No. 1 in France and Belgium. The first single "Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)
Et s'il n'en restait qu'une (je serais celle-là)
"Et s'il n'en restait qu'une " is the first hit single from Céline Dion's French album D'elles. It premiered on the radio in France, Quebec, Switzerland and Belgium on February 14, 2007 and was released as a music download on the same day...
" (meaning "And If There Was Only One Woman Left (I Would Be That One)") debuted at the top of the French singles chart a month earlier. She released her latest English album Taking Chances
Taking Chances
Taking Chances is an English language studio album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 7, 2007 on CD and CD/DVD. It is her 13th English album and 36th in total. The album was released physically worldwide during the month of November 2007 in CD edition. The album was also released...
on November 12 in Europe, and on the November 13 in North America. Her first English studio album since 2003's One Heart, it features pop, R&B, and rock inspired music. Dion has collaborated with John Shanks
John Shanks
John Matthew Shanks is a modern rock writer and Grammy Award–winning producer.Born in New York City, Shanks moved to Los Angeles when he was 17....
and ex-Evanescence
Evanescence
Evanescence is an American rock band founded in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1995 by singer/pianist Amy Lee and guitarist Ben Moody. After recording private albums, the band released their first full-length album, Fallen, on Wind-up Records in 2003. Fallen sold more than 17 million copies worldwide...
guitarist Ben Moody
Ben Moody
Benjamin Robert Moody is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and actor. He is best known as co-founder, lead guitarist, and songwriter of Grammy Award-winning rock band Evanescence from 1995 to October 2003...
, as well as Kristian Lundin
Kristian Lundin
Kristian Carl Marcus Lundin is a Swedish composer, music producer and songwriter.-Biography:Beginning his career as a member of the Swedish duo Amadin , Kristian's writing and production talents were quickly recognized by music industry icon Denniz PoP, who invited him to join the Cheiron Studios...
, Peer Astrom
Peer Åström
Peer Åström Peer Åström Peer Åström (born in Ljusdal, Sweden is a Swedish composer, lyricist, musician and record producer and partner with Anders Bagge. The two songwriters / producers are known as Bagge & Peer. They have together written and produced songs for Lara Fabian, Celine Dion, Madonna,...
, Linda Perry
Linda Perry
Linda Perry is an American rock musician, songwriter, and record producer. Once best known as the lead singer and primary songwriter of 4 Non Blondes, Perry has founded two record labels and has become a major songwriter and producer...
, Japanese singer Yuna Ito
Yuna Ito
is an American pop singer-songwriter and actress who is active in Japan.She was born in Los Angeles and was raised in Hawaii. Ito made her musical debut in Japan with the single, "Endless Story", which was used as one of the theme songs for the popular 2005 film Nana; she also starred in the film,...
, and R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo
Ne-Yo
Shaffer Chimere Smith, Jr. , better known by his stage name Ne-Yo, is an American pop and R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, dancer and actor. Beginning his career as a songwriter, Ne-Yo penned the hit "Let Me Love You" for singer Mario...
. Dion stated, "I think this album represents a positive evolution in my career ... I'm feeling strong, maybe a little gutsier than in the past, and just as passionate about music and life as I ever was." She launched her year-long worldwide Taking Chances Tour
Taking Chances Tour
Taking Chances World Tour is the ninth concert tour by Canadian singer Céline Dion, in support of her 2007 studio albums, D'elles and Taking Chances. The tour marked the return of Dion after performing her groundbreaking show A New Day... in Las Vegas for five years. The tour visited Africa, Asia,...
on February 14, 2008 in South Africa, performing 132 dates in stadiums and arenas across five continents.
The Taking Chances Tour was a great success in the United States, reaching the Number 1 spot on the Billboard Boxscore and it sold out every concert in the U.S. and Canada. In addition, she appeared on Idol Gives Back
Idol Gives Back
Idol Gives Back is the name of a charitable campaign that spanned two episodes of American Idol during its sixth season. A second Idol Gives Back concert and fundraiser occurred on April 9, 2008, during the seventh season of the show. Idol Gives Back was not held in 2009 due to the ongoing...
for a second year in a row. Céline Dion was nominated for six Juno Awards in 2008, leading the group of Canadians to receive this honour,and adding to her 53 previous nominations. Her nominations included Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year (for Taking Chances), Francophone Album of the Year (for D'elles) and Album of the Year (for both Taking Chances and D'elles). The following year, Dion was nominated for 3 Juno Awards including the Fan Choice Award, Song of the Year (for Taking Chances), and Music DVD of the Year (for Live in Las Vegas — A New Day...)
On August 22, 2008, Celine Dion presented a free show, exclusively francophone, outside on the Plains of Abraham
Plains of Abraham
The Plains of Abraham is a historic area within The Battlefields Park in Quebec City, Quebec, that was originally grazing land, but became famous as the site of the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, which took place on 13 September 1759. Though written into the history books, housing and minor...
, in Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
, Canada, for the 400th anniversary of Quebec City. The celebration gathered approximately 490,000 people (total with TV broadcast). The concert, called Céline sur les Plaines
Céline sur les Plaines
Céline sur les Plaines is the ninth home video by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on DVD in Quebec on November 11, 2008. Titled Live à Quebec, it was also released in France and Belgium on May 20, 2009, in two editions: standard DVD, and collector's edition DVD in digipak with 10 photographs...
, was released on DVD on November 11, 2008 in Quebec and was released on May 20, 2009 in France. The end of October saw the worldwide release of her first ever comprehensive English greatest hits album called My Love: Essential Collection
My Love: Essential Collection
My Love: Essential Collection is a greatest hits album by Canadian recording artist Celine Dion. It was released by Columbia Records on October 24, 2008 as the follow up to her previous English-language compilation, All the Way... A Decade of Song . Before releasing My Love: Essential Collection,...
, available in two different album formats.
In May 2009, Celine Dion was named the 20th best-selling artist of the decade in the United States and the second-best-selling female artist of the decade in the United States, selling an estimated 17.57 million albums. In June 2009, Forbes reported that Dion earned $100 million during 2008. In December 2009, Pollstar announced that Dion was the best-selling solo touring act of the decade and the second-best-selling touring act of the decade, only to the Dave Matthews Band
Dave Matthews Band
Dave Matthews Band, sometimes shortened to DMB, is a U.S. rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia in 1991. The founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer/backing vocalist Carter Beauford and saxophonist LeRoi Moore. Boyd Tinsley was...
. Dion grossed $522.2 million during the decade, a large sum of that coming from her five-year residence at Caesars Palace
Caesars Palace
Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, an unincorporated township in Clark County, Nevada, United States in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. Caesars Palace is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment Corp....
.
Concert film and video release: late 2009–2010
On February 17, 2010 Dion released into theatres a documentary film about her Taking Chances Tour, titled, Celine: Through the Eyes of the WorldCeline: Through the Eyes of the World
Celine: Through the Eyes of the World is the title of the documentary–concert film chronicling the life of Canadian singer, Céline Dion during her Taking Chances Tour. It premiered on February 16, 2010 in Miami Florida. The movie was released in cinemas on February 17, 2010 by The Hot Ticket, a...
. The documentary shows behind-the-scenes footage of Dion both onstage and offstage, along with footage of Dion with her family as they traveled with her. The distributor is the Sony Pictures subsidiary, Hot Ticket
Hot Ticket
Hot Ticket was a syndicated movie review and entertainment television program from 2001 to 2004. The half-hour show was hosted by Leonard Maltin and Todd Newton during its first season, and by Maltin and Joyce Kulhawik in seasons 2 and 3. It was distributed by Paramount Domestic Television. The...
. The film was later released on Blu-ray and DVD on May 4, 2010, along with the CD/DVD, Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert
Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert
Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert is a live album/home video by Canadian recording artist Céline Dion. It was released between April 29 and May 14, 2010 in two versions: English and French, both in CD/DVD format...
, which chronicled her world tour of the same name. At the 52nd Grammy Awards
52nd Grammy Awards
The 52nd Annual Grammy Awards took place on January 31, 2010, at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Neil Young was honored as the 2010 MusiCares Person of the Year on January 29, two days prior to the Grammy telecast. Only ten of the 109 awards were received during the broadcast...
in February 2010, Dion joined Carrie Underwood
Carrie Underwood
Carrie Marie Underwood is an American country singer-songwriter and actress who rose to fame as the winner of the fourth season of American Idol, in 2005...
, Usher
Usher (entertainer)
Usher Terry Raymond IV , who performs under the mononym Usher, is an American singer-songwriter, and actor. He is considered around the world to be the reigning King of R&B. Usher rose to fame in the late 1990s with the release of his second album My Way, which spawned his first Billboard Hot 100...
, Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Kate Hudson is an American recording artist, actress and spokesperson. She came to prominence in 2004 as one of the finalists on the third season of American Idol coming in seventh place...
and Smokey Robinson
Smokey Robinson
William "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson is one of the primary figures associated with Motown, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy...
to perform the song "Earth Song
Earth Song
"Earth Song" is the third single from Michael Jackson's album HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I. It is the fifth song on the second disc of the album. It is a ballad that incorporates elements of blues, gospel and opera. Jackson had a long-standing history of releasing socially conscious...
" during the 3-D Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
tribute.
In January 2010, The Los Angeles Times presented its annual list of the top ten largest earners of the year, revealing that Dion took the top spot for the entire decade, with $US747.9 million in total revenue from 2000–2009. The largest haul came from ticket sales, totaling $522.2 million. Additionally, Dion was named "Artist of the Decade" in her native Canadian province of Quebec, announced by the Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
-based newspaper, Le Journal de Quebec in 2009 December. A public online survey asked responders to vote for who they believe deserved the above-mentioned accolade.
Furthermore, in a May 2010 Harris Poll, Dion was named the most popular musician in the United States, ahead of U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
, Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, and The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, while factoring in gender, political affiliations, geographic region of residence, and income. Specifically, Dion was the most popular musician in the female demographic, as well as among all Democrats, those who live in the eastern United States and southern United States, and those who have incomes between US$35k and US$74.9k.
In September 2010, she released the single "Voler
Voler
"Voler" is the third single from Michel Sardou's album Être une femme 2010. It is a duet with Céline Dion. The song went to radio on September 02, 2010, and is available as a music download from Sardou's album, which was released on August 30, 2010."Voler" was written by Jacques Vénéruso and...
", a duet with French singer Michel Sardou
Michel Sardou
Michel Sardou is a French singer.He was born in Paris, the son of Fernand Sardou and Jackie Rollin . Contrary to claims common towards the beginning of his career, he is not the grandson of the dramatist Victorien Sardou...
. The song was later included on Sardou's album. In addition, it was announced in October 2010 that Dion wrote and composed a new song for Canadian singer, Marc Dupré
Marc Dupré
Marc Dupré is a Canadian French musician. He is a singer, songwriter , and guitarist, who has performed with Céline Dion on tour and on other occasions. She appears in the music video for Marc Dupré's single "Tout près du bonheur", which was filmed "in early May 2006 in the Nevada desert"...
entitled "Entre deux mondes".
New Las Vegas show: 2011–present
In an interview with PeoplePeople (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
magazine published in February 2010, Dion announced that she will be returning to Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for Celine, a three-year residency for seventy shows a year, beginning March 15, 2011. She stated that the show will feature, "all the songs from my repertoire that people want to hear" and will contain a selection of music from classic Hollywood films. Dion has also announced that she is working on two new studio albums, in French and English.
In preparation for her return to Las Vegas, Dion, on February 21 made an appearance on the "Oprah Winfrey Show" during the show's final season, for a record twenty-seventh time and spoke about her upcoming Caesars Palace shows, as well as her family. Additionally, for a record sixth time, Dion performed at the 83rd Academy Awards
83rd Academy Awards
The 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences , honored the best films of 2010 and took place February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. During the ceremony, Academy Awards ...
, where she sang the song "Smile," as part of the ceremony's "In Memoriam" segment. On September 4, Dion appeared on the 2011 MDA Labor Telethon Event and showed a prerecorded performance of "Open Arms
Open Arms (Journey song)
"Open Arms" is a popular song originally recorded by American rock band Journey, and released as a single from their 1981 album, Escape. Co-written by band members Steve Perry and Jonathan Cain, the song is a power ballad whose lyrics are an empowering plea to a lover to forgive past wrongdoings...
" from her new Las Vegas show. On October 1, 2011, OWN Network premiered a documentary on Dion's life, from months before her pregnancy with twins, to the makings of her new Las Vegas Show, called, "Celine: 3 Boys and a New Show". The documentary became the second highest rated show on TV OWN Canada. In October, FlightNetwork.com conducted a poll, asking 780 participants, which celebrity they would like to sit next to the most on an airplane. Dion was the top favorite, with 23.7% of the vote. Also, in September, Dion released her 14th perfume from her Celine Dion Parfums
Celine Dion Parfums
Celine Dion Parfums is a brand line of celebrity-endorsed perfumes by international singing star Celine Dion and Coty, Inc., with global retail sales of more than $850 million by March 2010. As of 2011, there have been 14 perfumes that have been released...
Collection, called "Signature".
On September 15, Dion made an appearance at the free concert of world famous tenor, Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli, is an Italian tenor, multi-instrumentalist and classical crossover artist. Born with poor eyesight, he became blind at the age of twelve following a soccer accident....
, in Central Park in New York.
Personal life
Dion first met her husband and manager, Rene AngelilRené Angélil
René Angélil, OQ is a Canadian singer and manager. He is the husband and manager of singer Celine Dion.-Early life:Angélil was born in Montreal, Québec, Canada of a father of Syrian descent and a Canadian mother of Lebanese origin...
in 1980, when she was 12 and he was 38, after she and her mother sent him a demo tape of a song they had written. They began a relationship in 1987, and became engaged in 1991. They married on December 17, 1994, at the Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal, Quebec. On January 5, 2000, Dion and Angelil renewed their wedding vows in Las Vegas.
In May 2000, Dion had two small operations at a fertility clinic in New York to improve her chances of conceiving, after deciding to use in-vitro fertilisation after years of failed attempts to conceive. Their first child, Rene-Charles Angelil, was born on January 25, 2001. In May 2010, Angelil announced that Dion was 14 weeks pregnant with twins after a sixth treatment of in-vitro fertilisation. On Saturday, October 23, 2010, at 11:11 and 11:12 am respectively, at St. Mary's Medical Center
St. Mary Medical Center (Long Beach)
St. Mary Medical Center is a hospital in Long Beach, California, USA. It is currently operated by Catholic Healthcare West. SMMC has all private acute care rooms for patients.-Services:...
in West Palm Beach, Florida, Dion, by Caesarean section
Caesarean section
A Caesarean section, is a surgical procedure in which one or more incisions are made through a mother's abdomen and uterus to deliver one or more babies, or, rarely, to remove a dead fetus...
, gave birth to two healthy fraternal twins weighing 5 pounds 10 ounces and 5 pounds 4 ounces. The twins were named Eddy, after Dion's favorite Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n songwriter Eddy Marnay
Eddy Marnay
Eddy Marnay was a French songwriter. In his career, he wrote more than 100 songs, including works for Édith Piaf and Céline Dion. He also wrote the title song for Charlie Chaplin's 1957 film A King in New York....
, and Nelson, after former South African President Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
. Dion appeared with her newborn sons on the cover of the December 9, 2010 issue of the Canadian edition of Hello!
Hello!
Hello is a weekly magazine specializing in celebrity news and human-interest stories, published in the United Kingdom since 1988. Hello is sister magazine to ¡Hola!, the Spanish weekly magazine launched in Spain in 1944...
magazine.
On October 15, 2010, Céline Dion was nominated Goodwill Ambassador
FAO Goodwill Ambassador
The FAO Goodwill Ambassadors Programme was initiated in 1999. The main purpose of the programme is to increase public awareness and to disseminate information on issues related to food security, hunger and poverty in the world...
of the Food and Agriculture Organization
Food and Agriculture Organization
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is a specialised agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and...
of the United Nations (FAO).
Artistry and image
Dion grew up listening to the music of Aretha FranklinAretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
, Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
, Carole King
Carole King
Carole King is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. King and her former husband Gerry Goffin wrote more than two dozen chart hits for numerous artists during the 1960s, many of which have become standards. As a singer, King had an album, Tapestry, top the U.S...
, Anne Murray
Anne Murray
Morna Anne Murray CC, ONS is a Canadian singer in pop, country and adult contemporary styles whose albums have sold over 54 million copies....
, Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
, and the Bee Gees
Bee Gees
The Bee Gees are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a...
, all of whom she would eventually collaborate with. Dion has also stated she grew up listening to artists such as Janis Joplin
Janis Joplin
Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer, songwriter, painter, dancer and music arranger. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist with her backing groups, The Kozmic Blues Band and The Full Tilt Boogie Band...
, the Doobie Brothers, and Creedence Clearwater Revival
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Creedence Clearwater Revival was an American rock band that gained popularity in the late 1960s and early 1970s with a number of successful singles drawn from various albums....
, but never got the chance to sing their genre of music. She also was inspired by fellow vocalist Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
, whom Dion has often been compared to. Her music has been influenced by numerous genres, including pop, rock, gospel
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
, R&B and soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, and her lyrics focus on themes of poverty, world hunger, and spirituality, with an emphasis on love and romance. After the birth of her child, her work also began to emphasize maternal bond and brotherly love.
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. According to Keith Harris of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine, "[Dion's] sentimentality is bombastic and defiant rather than demure and retiring....[she] stands at the end of the chain of drastic devolution that goes Aretha-Whitney-Mariah. Far from being an aberration, Dion actually stands as a symbol of a certain kind of pop sensibility—bigger is better, too much is never enough, and the riper the emotion the more true." Dion's francophone releases, by contrast, tend to be deeper and more varied than her English releases, and consequently have achieved more credibility.
Critics have stated that Dion's involvement in the production aspect of her music is fundamentally lacking, which results in her work being overproduced and impersonal. However, coming from a family in which all of her siblings were musicians, she learned to play instruments like piano and guitar, and practiced with a Fender Stratocaster
Fender Stratocaster
The Fender Stratocaster, often referred to as "Strat", is a model of electric guitar designed by Leo Fender, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares in 1954, and manufactured continuously by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation to the present. It is a double-cutaway guitar, with an extended top...
during the recording sessions of her album, Falling into You.
Also, she helped to compose many of her earlier French songs, and had always tried to involve herself with the production and recording of her albums. On her first English album, which she recorded before she had a firm command of the English language, she expressed disapproval of the record, which could have been avoided if she had assumed more creative input. By the time she released her second English album Celine Dion
Celine Dion (album)
Celine Dion is an eponymous album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 31, 1992. It is her second English album and 17th in total...
, she had assumed more control of the production and recording process, hoping to dispel earlier criticisms. She stated, "On the second album I said, 'Well, I have the choice to be afraid one more time and not be 100% happy, or not be afraid and be part of this album.' This is my album." She would continue to involve herself in the production of subsequent releases, helping to write a few of her songs on Let's Talk About Love
Let's Talk About Love
Let's Talk About Love is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 18, 1997. It is her fifth English-language album and twenty-third in total. Let's Talk About Love remains one of the best-selling albums in history with over 31 million copies sold worldwide...
(1997) and These Are Special Times
These Are Special Times
These Are Special Times is a Christmas album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on October 30, 1998 through Epic subsidiary 550 Music...
(1998).
Dion is often the subject of media ridicule and parody, and is frequently impersonated on shows like MADtv
MADtv
MADtv is an American sketch comedy television series. It licensed the name and logo of Mad, but otherwise had no connection with the humor magazine outside the animated Spy vs. Spy and Don Martin cartoon shorts and images of Alfred E. Neuman that the show featured during the late 1990s. Its first...
, Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
, South Park
South Park
South Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
, Royal Canadian Air Farce
Royal Canadian Air Farce
Air Farce Live, also credited as Air Farce, previously Royal Canadian Air Farce, and Air Farce—Final Flight! for the final season, was a Canadian comedy series starring the comedy troupe The Royal Canadian Air Farce that previously starred in an eponymous radio show on CBC radio from 1973 to 1997...
and This Hour Has 22 Minutes
This Hour Has 22 Minutes
This Hour Has 22 Minutes is a weekly Canadian television comedy that airs on CBC Television. Launched in 1993 during Canada's 35th general election, the show focuses on Canadian politics, combining news parody, sketch comedy and satirical editorials...
for her strong accent and on-stage movements. However, Dion has stated that she is unaffected by the comments, and is flattered that people take the time to impersonate her. She even invited Ana Gasteyer
Ana Gasteyer
Ana Kristina Gasteyer is an American actress of stage, film, and television. She is best known for her comedic roles when she was a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1996 to 2002.-Early life:...
, who parodied her on SNL, to appear on stage during one of her performances. While she is rarely politically outspoken, in 2005 following the Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
disaster, Dion appeared on Larry King Live
Larry King Live
Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....
and tearfully criticized the U.S. government
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
's slow response in aiding the victims of the hurricane: "There's people still there waiting to be rescued. To me that is not acceptable...How can it be so easy to send planes in another country to kill everybody in a second and destroy lives. We need to serve our country." After her interview, she stated, "When I do interviews with Larry King
Larry King
Lawrence Harvey "Larry" King is an American television and radio host whose work has been recognized with awards including two Peabodys and ten Cable ACE Awards....
or the big TV shows like that, they put you on the spot, which is very difficult. I do have an opinion, but I'm a singer. I'm not a politician."
Voice
Dion is often regarded as one of pop music's most influential voices. She has been described as a reigning "Queen of Pop" for her influence over the record industry during the 1990s, alongside other female entertainers, including Whitney HoustonWhitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
and Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut with the release of her eponymous studio album in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, whom she later married in 1993...
. In a countdown of the "22 Greatest Voices in Music" by Blender Magazine
Blender (magazine)
Blender was an American music magazine that billed itself as "the ultimate guide to music and more". It was also known for sometimes steamy pictorials of celebrities....
and MTV, she placed ninth (sixth for a female), and she was also placed fourth in Cove magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists." Dion is often compared to Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut with the release of her eponymous studio album in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, whom she later married in 1993...
for her vocal style and to her idol, Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
, for her voice.
According to various sources, Dion possesses a five-octave vocal range
Vocal range
Vocal range is the measure of the breadth of pitches that a human voice can phonate. Although the study of vocal range has little practical application in terms of speech, it is a topic of study within linguistics, phonetics, and speech and language pathology, particularly in relation to the study...
. Regarding the power of Dion's voice, Regine Crespin states, "The volume as such is thin, but thanks to her perfect mastery of the nasal backing, her voice acquires an incisive and penetrating timbre, with a great harmonic richness." Dion states she is a mezzo-soprano
Mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...
, while Regine Crespin and André Tubeuf state she is probably a lyric soprano
Lyric soprano
A lyric soprano is a type of operatic soprano that has a warm quality with a bright, full timbre which can be heard over an orchestra. The lyric soprano voice generally has a higher tessitura than a soubrette and usually plays ingenues and other sympathetic characters in opera. Lyric sopranos have...
. However, attempts to adopt classical voice types to other forms of singing has been met with controversy. Without making a classification, maestro Kent Nagano
Kent Nagano
__FORCETOC__Kent George Nagano is an American conductor and opera administrator. He is currently the music director of the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal and the Bavarian State Opera.-Biography:...
remarked, "All you just sang was soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
," after Dion auditioned with two solos of Carmen
Carmen
Carmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself possibly influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies by Alexander Pushkin...
, wanting to know if she could sing opera. Her timbre has been described as "fresh," as well as "thin, slightly nasal, nearly vibrato
Vibrato
Vibrato is a musical effect consisting of a regular, pulsating change of pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music. Vibrato is typically characterised in terms of two factors: the amount of pitch variation and the speed with which the pitch is varied .-Vibrato and...
less," with a "raspy" lower register and "bell glass-like high notes." According to French soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
, Regine Crespin
Régine Crespin
Régine Crespin was a French singer who had a major international career in opera and on the concert stage between 1950 and 1989. She started her career singing roles in the dramatic soprano and spinto soprano repertoire, drawing particular acclaim singing Wagner and Strauss heroines...
, Dion's voice is "comparable to oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
, because of its nasal and fruity timbre and it is mordant in high notes." Crespin is also circumspect about Dion's highest notes, stating, "She doesn't have a head voice
Head voice
Head voice is a term used within vocal music. The use of this term varies widely within vocal pedagogical circles and there is currently no one consistent opinion among vocal music professionals regarding this term...
," further remarking, "she uses falsetto
Falsetto
Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...
," which is "disconnected to the normal voice body."
Dion is often praised for her technical virtuosity. Stephen Holden of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, writes, "Ms. Dion [...] is a belter with a high, thin, slightly nasal, nearly vibratoless soprano and a good-sized arsenal of technical skills. She can deliver tricky melismas, produce expressive vocal catches and sustain long notes without the tiniest wavering of pitch. And as her duets [...] have shown, she is a reliable harmony voice." In an interview with Libération
Libération
Libération is a French daily newspaper founded in Paris by Jean-Paul Sartre and Serge July in 1973 in the wake of the protest movements of May 1968. Originally a leftist newspaper, it has undergone a number of shifts during the 1980s and 1990s...
, Jean-Jacques Goldman states that she has "no problem of accuracy or tempo
Tempo
In musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
." According to Kent Nagano
Kent Nagano
__FORCETOC__Kent George Nagano is an American conductor and opera administrator. He is currently the music director of the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal and the Bavarian State Opera.-Biography:...
, maestro
Maestro
Maestro is a title of extreme respect given to a master musician. The term is most commonly used in the context of Western classical music and opera. This is associated with the ubiquitous use of Italian vocabulary for classical music terms...
of the Munich Symphony Orchestra
Munich Symphony Orchestra
The Munich Symphony Orchestra is a German orchestra based in Munich. Kurt Graunke founded the orchestra as the Graunke Symphony Orchestra in 1945. The orchestra acquired its current name in 1990...
, Dion is "a musician who has a good ear, a refinement, and a degree of perfection that is envious." Mezzo-soprano
Mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...
, Cecilia Bartoli
Cecilia Bartoli
Cecilia Bartoli is an Italian coloratura mezzo-soprano opera singer and recitalist. She is best-known for her interpretation of the music of Mozart and Rossini, as well as for her performances of lesser-known Baroque and classical music...
and soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
, Joan Sutherland
Joan Sutherland
Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, OM, AC, DBE was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano noted for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s....
have expressed that Dion has a very good legato
Legato
In musical notation the Italian word legato indicates that musical notes are played or sung smoothly and connected. That is, in transitioning from note to note, there should be no intervening silence...
, while Charles Alexander of TIME states, "[Her] voice glides effortlessly from deep whispers to dead-on high notes, a sweet siren that combines force with grace."
In her French repertoire, Dion adorns her vocals with more nuances and modulations, with the emotional intensity being "more tender and intimate." Additionally, Luc Plamondon, a French singer-songwriter who has written several works for Dion states that there are three chanteuse that Dion uses: the Québécois, the French, and the American.
Other activities
Dion became an entrepreneur with the establishment of her franchiseFranchising
Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....
restaurant, Nickels
Nickels Grill & Bar
Nickels Grill & Bar is a Canadian restaurant chain. The restaurant has an extensive menu ranging from complete breakfasts to hamburgers, milkshakes, pizza, chicken, ribs, salads and a number of sandwiches, including Montreal-style smoked meat....
in 1990. She has since divested her interests in the chain and is no longer affiliated with Nickels, as of 1997. In 2003, Dion signed a deal with Coty, Inc.
Coty, Inc.
Coty, Inc. is the world's largest fragrance company, founded in 1904. It is also a beauty products manufacturer whose main businesses are fragrances , followed by color cosmetics , toiletries and skin care...
to release Celine Dion Parfums
Celine Dion Parfums
Celine Dion Parfums is a brand line of celebrity-endorsed perfumes by international singing star Celine Dion and Coty, Inc., with global retail sales of more than $850 million by March 2010. As of 2011, there have been 14 perfumes that have been released...
. Her latest fragrance, Signature, was released in September 2011. Since its inception, Celine Dion Parfums has grossed over $850 million in retail sales. In October 2004, Air Canada
Air Canada
Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...
hired Dion as part of their promotional campaign to unveil new service products and an updated livery
Livery
A livery is a uniform, insignia or symbol adorning, in a non-military context, a person, an object or a vehicle that denotes a relationship between the wearer of the livery and an individual or corporate body. Often, elements of the heraldry relating to the individual or corporate body feature in...
. "You and I", the theme song sung by Dion, was written by advertising executives working for Air Canada.
Dion has actively supported many charity organizations, worldwide. She has promoted the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1982, and became the foundation's National Celebrity Patron in 1993. She has an emotional attachment to the foundation; her niece Karine succumbed to the disease at the age of sixteen. In 2003, Dion joined a number of other celebrities, athletes, and politicians, including Josh Groban
Josh Groban
Joshua Winslow "Josh" Groban is an American singer-songwriter, musician, actor, and record producer. His four solo albums have been certified at least multi-platinum, and in 2007, he was charted as the number-one best selling artist in the United States with over 21 million records in that country...
and Yolanda Adams
Yolanda Adams
Yolanda Adams is an American Grammy- and Dove-award-winning Yolanda Adams is an American [[Grammy Awards|Grammy]]- and [[Dove Awards|Dove]]-award-winning...
to support "World Children's Day", a global fundraising effort sponsored by McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
. The effort raised money from more than 100 nations and benefited orphanages and children's health organizations. In addition, Dion has been a major supporter of the T.J. Martell Foundation
Tony Martell
Tony Martell is a veteran American music industry senior executive, and founder of the T.J. Martell Foundation.-Music industry career:Tony Martell’s music industry career spans the 1960s through the 1990s with experience as an A&R director, record label vice president, and record label head...
, the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, and many health and educational campaigns. During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Dion donated $1 million to the victims of the storm, and held a fund-raising event for the victims of the 2004 Asian Tsunami, which subsequently raised more than $1 million. After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake
2008 Sichuan earthquake
The 2008 Sichuan earthquake or the Great Sichuan Earthquake was a deadly earthquake that measured at 8.0 Msand 7.9 Mw occurred at 14:28:01 CST...
, Dion donated $100,000 to China Children & Teenagers' Fund and sent a letter showing her consolation and support.
In 1999, Dion received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame
Canada's Walk of Fame
Canada's Walk of Fame , located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is a walk of fame that acknowledges the achievements and accomplishments of successful Canadians...
and also a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
in January 2004. She dedicated her star to her father, who died the month prior. In 2007, Celine Dion was ranked by Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
as the 5th richest woman in entertainment with an estimated net worth of US$250 million. She also received France's highest award, the Légion d'honneur
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
, in May 2008. In August 2008, she received an honorary doctorate in music from the Université Laval
Université Laval
Laval University is the oldest centre of education in Canada and was the first institution in North America to offer higher education in French...
in Quebec City. In October 2010, Dion was named a Goodwill Ambassador
FAO Goodwill Ambassador
The FAO Goodwill Ambassadors Programme was initiated in 1999. The main purpose of the programme is to increase public awareness and to disseminate information on issues related to food security, hunger and poverty in the world...
, a program created by the UN in 1999. She shared this accolade with Oscar-winner, Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon is an American actress. She has worked in films and television since 1969, and won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the 1995 film Dead Man Walking. She had also been nominated for the award for four films before that and has received other recognition for her...
.
Discography
- 1981: La voix du bon DieuLa Voix Du Bon DieuLa voix du bon Dieu is a French debut studio album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released in Quebec, Canada on November 9, 1981.-Album information:...
- 1981: Céline Dion chante NoëlCeline Dion Chante NoelCéline Dion chante Noël is a French Christmas album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released in Quebec, Canada in early December 1981. It is her second French album and first Christmas album....
- 1982: Tellement j'ai d'amour...Tellement J'ai D'amour...Tellement j'ai d'amour... is a French studio album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released in Quebec, Canada on September 7, 1982. It's her 3rd French album.-Album information:...
- 1983: Les chemins de ma maisonLes Chemins De Ma MaisonLes chemins de ma maison is a French studio album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released in Quebec, Canada on September 7, 1983. It's her 4th French album.-Album information:...
- 1983: Chants et contes de NoëlChants Et Contes De NoelChants et contes de Noël is a French Christmas album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released in Quebec, Canada on December 5, 1983...
- 1984: MélanieMelanie (album)Mélanie is a studio album by Canadian singer Celine Dion, released in Quebec, Canada on August 22, 1984. It's her 7th French language album.-Album information:The title track was dedicated to Dion's little niece Karine, diagnosed with cystic fibrosis....
- 1985: C'est pour toiC'est Pour ToiC'est pour toi is a French studio album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released in Quebec, Canada on August 27, 1985. It's her 10th French album.-Album information:...
- 1987: IncognitoIncognito (Celine Dion album)-1988 French re-release:-Charts:1The chart is available only since April 1995.-Certifications:-Awards:-Release history:...
- 1990: Unison
- 1991: Dion chante PlamondonDion chante PlamondonDion chante Plamondon is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 4, 1991. It is her 15th French-language album and 16th in total...
- 1992: Celine DionCeline Dion (album)Celine Dion is an eponymous album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 31, 1992. It is her second English album and 17th in total...
- 1993: The Colour of My LoveThe Colour of My LoveThe Colour of My Love is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 9, 1993. It is her third English-language album and 18th overall...
- 1995: D'euxD'euxD'eux is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 27, 1995. It was re-named The French Album in the United States. It is Dion's 17th French-language album and 20th in total...
- 1996: Falling into YouFalling into YouFalling into You is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 8, 1996. It is her fourth English-language album and twenty-first overall...
- 1997: Let's Talk About LoveLet's Talk About LoveLet's Talk About Love is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 18, 1997. It is her fifth English-language album and twenty-third in total. Let's Talk About Love remains one of the best-selling albums in history with over 31 million copies sold worldwide...
- 1998: S'il suffisait d'aimerS'il suffisait d'aimerS'il suffisait d'aimer is an album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on September 7, 1998. It's her 19th French album and 24th in total...
- 1998: These Are Special TimesThese Are Special TimesThese Are Special Times is a Christmas album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on October 30, 1998 through Epic subsidiary 550 Music...
- 2002: A New Day Has ComeA New Day Has ComeA New Day Has Come is Celine Dion's 18th studio album which marked her return after two-year hiatus to have a child. It was released on March 22, 2002. A New Day Has Come is Dion's 9th English album and 29th in total...
- 2003: One HeartOne Heart-Charts:-Certifications:1Most certifications are under old criteria, with higher certifications levels than the current ones.-Awards:-Release history:...
- 2003: 1 fille & 4 types1 Fille & 4 Types-Charts:-Certifications:-Release history:...
- 2004: MiracleMiracle (Celine Dion album)Miracle is a concept album credited to Canadian singer Céline Dion and Australian photographer Anne Geddes, released on October 11, 2004. It's Dion's 12th English album and 33rd in total...
- 2007: D'ellesD'ellesD'elles is the title of Céline Dion's French-language album, released between May 18 and June 1, 2007 in certain European countries, on May 22, 2007 in Canada, and February 27, 2008 in Japan. It is her 23rd French album and 35th if counting all longplays...
- 2007: Taking ChancesTaking ChancesTaking Chances is an English language studio album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 7, 2007 on CD and CD/DVD. It is her 13th English album and 36th in total. The album was released physically worldwide during the month of November 2007 in CD edition. The album was also released...
Tours
| Year | Title | Releases |
|---|---|---|
| 1983–1984 | Les chemins de ma maison tournée Les chemins de ma maison tournée Between 1981 and 1984, Céline Dion toured Quebec to promote her albums and to help establish herself as a stage artist. However, her first real own concert tour, was organised in 1985.-History:Between 1981 and 1982, she toured Québec's mall and shopping centres... |
None |
| 1985 | C'est pour toi tournée C'est pour toi tournée Starting in January 1985, Céline Dion en Concert was Céline Dion's first real own concert tour.-History:The tour started in La Sarre, Quebec in January 1985. In a little over two months, Dion gave 36 performances in 25 cities in Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick... |
Vinyl Céline Dion en concert Celine Dion En Concert Céline Dion en concert is a French live album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released in Quebec, Canada in December 1985. It's her 11th French album and 1st live recording.-Album information:... |
| 1988 | Incognito tournée Incognito tournée Starting on January 11, 1988, Céline Dion's Incognito tournée was a concert tour organized to support the album Incognito. Dion gave 75 shows in Quebec.-History:... |
None |
| 1990–1991 | Unison Tour Unison Tour The Unison Tour is the third concert tour by Celine Dion. The tour was organized to support the album Unison. Dion performed her show 75 times in Canada-History:... |
VHS Unison Unison (VHS) Unison is Céline Dion's first home video, released on VHS on July 2, 1991. It includes the music videos from her English debut album Unison.... |
| 1992–1993 | Celine Dion in Concert | None |
| 1994–1995 | The Colour of My Love Tour The Colour of My Love Tour The Colour of My Love Tour is the fifth concert tour by Celine Dion. The tour was organized to support the album The Colour of My Love.-History:The set list included mainly songs from The Colour of My Love and Dion's previous English albums... |
VHS/DVD The Colour of My Love Concert The Colour of My Love Concert The Colour of My Love Concert is Céline Dion's second home video release. It was filmed on September 7-8, 1993 at Le Théàtre Capitole, Quebec City, Canada, long before The Colour of My Love album release and The Colour of My Love Tour. The concert was aired in December 1993 in Canada at the CTV and... ; CD À l'Olympia À l'Olympia À l'Olympia is a live album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on November 14, 1994. It's her 2nd live album, 16th French album and 19th in total.-Album information:... |
| 1995 | D'eux Tour D'eux Tour The D'eux Tour is the sixth concert tour by Celine Dion. The tour was organized to support the highly successful French language album D'eux.-History:After 5 concerts in Quebec City, Canada, Céline Dion toured Europe for 4 months... |
VHS/DVD Live à Paris Live à Paris (DVD) Live à Paris is Céline Dion's third home video release. It was recorded live at the renowned Zenith Theatre in Paris, France in October 1995 before an audience of over 6,000 fans, during the D'eux Tour. The concert was released on VHS on November 8, 1996 and re-released on DVD on November 17, 2003... ; CD Live à Paris Live à Paris Live à Paris is a live album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on October 22, 1996. It's her 3rd live album, 18th French album and 22nd in total.-Album information:... |
| 1996–1997 | Falling into You Tour Falling into You Tour The Falling into You Tour is the seventh world concert tour by Canadian pop singer, Céline Dion... |
VHS Live in Memphis Live in Memphis Live in Memphis is Céline Dion's fourth home video release. Originally filmed on March 14-15, 1997 during the Falling into You Tour, camera crews caught up with Céline Dion in Memphis, Tennessee delivering another show-stopping performance. Live in Memphis was released on VHS on November 2, 1998... |
| 1998–1999 | Let's Talk About Love World Tour | VHS/DVD Au cœur du stade Au cœur du stade (DVD) Au cœur du stade is Céline Dion's fifth home video release. This 90-minute concert was recorded live at the Stade de France in Paris, France during the Let's Talk About Love Tour. It was recorded on June 19-20, 1999 and released on August 30, 1999... ; CD Au cœur du stade |
| 2003–2007 | A New Day... A New Day... A New Day... was a Las Vegas residency show performed by Céline Dion at the 4000-seat Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. It was created and directed by Franco Dragone and premiered on March 25, 2003... |
DVD/BD Live in Las Vegas - A New Day... Live in Las Vegas - A New Day... Live in Las Vegas: A New Day... is Céline Dion's eighth home video, released on DVD between December 7–10, 2007 in Europe, on December 11, 2007 in North America, December 15, 2007 in Australia and December 19, 2007 in Japan. It includes the record-breaking show A New Day... at Caesars Palace in Las... ; CD A New Day... Live in Las Vegas A New Day... Live in Las Vegas A New Day... Live in Las Vegas is Céline Dion's first English live album, released on June 14, 2004. It's her 11th English longplay and 32nd in total.-Album information:A New Day..... |
| 2008–2009 | Taking Chances Tour Taking Chances Tour Taking Chances World Tour is the ninth concert tour by Canadian singer Céline Dion, in support of her 2007 studio albums, D'elles and Taking Chances. The tour marked the return of Dion after performing her groundbreaking show A New Day... in Las Vegas for five years. The tour visited Africa, Asia,... |
DVD Céline sur les Plaines Céline sur les Plaines Céline sur les Plaines is the ninth home video by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on DVD in Quebec on November 11, 2008. Titled Live à Quebec, it was also released in France and Belgium on May 20, 2009, in two editions: standard DVD, and collector's edition DVD in digipak with 10 photographs... ; DVD/BD Celine: Through the Eyes of the World Celine: Through the Eyes of the World Celine: Through the Eyes of the World is the title of the documentary–concert film chronicling the life of Canadian singer, Céline Dion during her Taking Chances Tour. It premiered on February 16, 2010 in Miami Florida. The movie was released in cinemas on February 17, 2010 by The Hot Ticket, a... ; DVD/CD Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert is a live album/home video by Canadian recording artist Céline Dion. It was released between April 29 and May 14, 2010 in two versions: English and French, both in CD/DVD format... |
| 2011–2014 | Celine |
Filmography
- Touched by an AngelTouched by an AngelTouched by an Angel is an American drama series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994 and ran for 211 episodes and nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and produced by Martha Williamson, the series stars Roma Downey, as an angel named Monica, and Della...
- The NannyThe NannyNanny may refer to:* Nanny, a child's caregiver* A grandmother * A Cajun word for godmother * A female goat* Nanny , a 1981–83 British drama series starring Wendy Craig* Nanny of the Maroons...
- All My ChildrenAll My ChildrenAll My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...
- La fureur de Céline
- Des fleurs sur la neige
- Céline sur les PlainesCéline sur les PlainesCéline sur les Plaines is the ninth home video by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on DVD in Quebec on November 11, 2008. Titled Live à Quebec, it was also released in France and Belgium on May 20, 2009, in two editions: standard DVD, and collector's edition DVD in digipak with 10 photographs...
- Celine: Through the Eyes of the WorldCeline: Through the Eyes of the WorldCeline: Through the Eyes of the World is the title of the documentary–concert film chronicling the life of Canadian singer, Céline Dion during her Taking Chances Tour. It premiered on February 16, 2010 in Miami Florida. The movie was released in cinemas on February 17, 2010 by The Hot Ticket, a...
See also
- List of awards received by Celine Dion
- List of best-selling music artists
External links
- CelineDion.com – Official website operated by Sony Music Canada (English, French).
- Celine Dion YouTube Channel
- Celine Dion at WN
- [ Celine Dion] at Allmusic
- Celine Dion at Billboard.com
- FAO Goodwill Ambassador website