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Dion, Céline

Dion, Céline (1968- ), Canadian singer whose clear, strong, vocals helped make her an international superstar in the 1990s.

Dion was born in Charlemagne, Québec, the youngest of 14 children of a French Canadian family. She began performing as a child in a folk music club owned by her parents. At age 12 Dion won the support of Québec pop promoter René Angelil and released her first album, La voix du Bon Dieu (The Voice of God), in 1981. Dion quickly became a pop culture phenomenon across French Canada. In 1983 she became the first Canadian singer to earn a gold record in France for her album, Les chemins de ma maison (The Paths to My House).

In 1989 Dion learned to speak English. The following year, Unison (1990), her first English-language record, garnered success with three hit singles, "(If There Was) Any Other Way," "Where Does My Heart Beat Now," and "Have a Heart." In 1991 Dion recorded "Beauty and the Beast," a duet with Peabo Bryson, which was included in the soundtrack to the Disney animated feature of the same name. This single reached the top ten on the Billboard magazine popular music charts and earned an Academy Award for best song written for a motion picture. Dion married Angelil in 1994.

Dion's many hit songs in the 1990s included "Love Can Move Mountains," "If You Asked Me To," "Water From the Moon," "When I Fall In Love," and "Think Twice." Dion's 1996 single, "Because You Loved Me," the theme song for the film Up Close and Personal, became a best-selling adult contemporary single. Her string of successes with soundtrack songs continued with "My Heart Will Go On," the theme song to the movie Titanic (1997). Dion, whose niece died of cystic fibrosis in 1993, has done extensive charity work for the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

PROFILE:

Profile of Céline Dion

French Canadian vocalist Céline Dion became one of the world’s most popular recording artists in the 1990s. Dion’s success did not occur overnight. She performed in French for more than a decade before deciding to learn English in 1988 to expand her audience. The decision to sing in English helped her achieve phenomenal global popularity, but Dion continued to record albums in French as well as English. This 1997 profile from Current Biography recounts her early life in the French-speaking province of Québec and her career as a singer.

Profile of Céline Dion

Céline Dion, who began her career as a recording artist in the early 1980s, has, in recent years, risen to the status of pop icon. She is the first French Canadian singer to achieve success in both Canada and the U.S., as well as in Ireland, France, Germany, and Australia. Her 1995 single "My Dear Love" was the theme song on a television show in Japan, and it made her the first foreign artist to reach number one on the Japanese charts in 12 years. Her international fame was further evidenced by her appearance at the 1996 Summer Olympics, where she sang "The Power of the Dream."

Helped by her five-octave vocal range and business-savvy husband/manager Rene Angelil, the 29-year-old singer has sold around 50 million albums worldwide, and she is quickly approaching the status of Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Gloria Estefan, and other giants of popular music. "There's talent, and then there's talent," Polly Anthony, the president of Dion's label, 550 Music, a division of Sony Music Canada, remarked to Chuck Taylor of Billboard (November 9, 1996). "Her ambition, her drive, and the sacrifices she makes on a daily basis for her career, for her voice, for her fans—that's what really pushes her over the top." According to Lee Chesnut, vice president of music programming for the cable channel VH1, "Her emergence has come at a time when people are tired of hearing doom and gloom and 'I hate myself.' . . . Céline was in the right place at the right time and rode the wave." Dion's most recent single, "All By Myself," a remake of Eric Carmen's 1975 ballad, went to the top of the adult contemporary charts in the spring of 1997.

For her latest album, Falling Into You, Dion enlisted the help of legendary record producer Phil Spector, but the partnership proved ill-fated, as Spector walked out on the production because of creative differences. This did not hamper the success of the album, however: Released in March 1996, Falling Into You debuted at number two on Billboard's album charts, and soon attained number-one status. It has since sold over 4 million copies in the U.S. alone. The first single off the album, "Because You Love Me" (featured in the film Up Close and Personal, starring Robert Redford and Michelle Pfeiffer) soared to the number-one position on Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart, and was soon followed by "It's All Coming Back To Me Now," another number-one hit.

Céline Dion's big break in America came in 1991, when she paired up with Peabo Bryson to record the title track for the Disney film Beauty and the Beast. In 1993, the song won the Oscar for song of the year, as well as the Grammy for best pop vocal by a duo or group. She has also attained popular success with such songs as "Where Does My Heart Beat Now?," released in 1991, as well as "The Power of Love," "If You Asked Me To," and a remake of the classic "When I Fall In Love" (with British singer Clive Griffin), all in 1993. The last song was featured in the film Sleepless in Seattle, starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.

She recorded her first English-language album, Unison, in 1990. This was followed by a self-titled album in 1992, and then by The Colour of My Love in 1993. Dion garnered tremendous success with The Colour of My Love, particularly in the U.K. For five weeks the album stood at the top of the British album charts, while "Think Twice," a single off the record, reigned atop the British singles charts—an accomplishment last achieved by the Beatles.

Before winning popular acclaim in the English-speaking world, Céline Dion was one of Quebec's most popular recording artists, releasing nine French-language albums in the first six years of her career. Known as "la petite Quebecoise" (the little girl from Quebec), Dion released her first album, La Voix Du Bon Dieu, at the age of 13. It wasn't until 1988 that Dion, then 22, decided to learn English, in an effort to reach American audiences. She still records in French, as well, and in 1995, her album D'eux, known in America as The French Album, became the best-selling French-language album of all time.

Some music critics have complained that although Dion is a highly talented vocalist, she sometimes sings without emotion, and her material is cliched and banal. Nonetheless, she has collected a vast array of awards over her 15-year career. Most recently, she won two Grammys for Falling Into You, including one for album of the year. She also received a Juno Award, her 14th, in her native Canada for best female vocalist of 1996. Also in 1996, she won the World Music Award for best selling Canadian artist, and was awarded the Medaille des Arts et Lettres, due to her status as the best-selling French-language artist in history, at the 30th annual Midem Awards in Cannes, France. On Canada's 125th birthday, in 1992, she was presented with a medal of recognition from the governor general in honor of her contribution to Canadian culture. Before achieving international renown, she had already received 15 of Quebec's Felix Awards.

As for the criticism that her music is too lavish and overproduced, Dion told the Canadian Press (April 19, 1996), "Being overproduced to me is not a bad thing. It's a big thing, it's big time, it's Gone with the Wind."

The youngest of the 14 children of Adhemar and Therese Dion, Céline Dion was born on March 30, 1968, in the small Quebec town of Charlemagne. Hers was a musical family; her parents owned a small piano bar in her hometown, and the entire family performed in local shows on weekends. Céline began singing with the family at the age of 5, and at 12, she composed the song "Ce n'etait qu'un reve" ("It Was Only a Dream") with her mother and one of her brothers. In January 1981, Dion's family sent Rene Angelil a tape of her singing the song. The manager was reportedly so taken with her voice that he mortgaged his house in order to finance her career.

In the following years, the two became close, and in 1994 they were married. "I don't feel the age difference," Dion said to Mike Ross of the Edmonton Sun (May 17, 1996), referring to the fact that Angelil is 25 years her senior. "To me, it is not important. Sometimes he acts like he's younger than me, between you and me." Dion and Angelil have homes in Montreal, and West Palm Beach and Jupiter, Florida. Together, they also own a chain of 25 restaurants in Quebec.

Dion has been the national celebrity spokesperson for the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CCFF) since 1993, and she has been promoting public awareness of cystic fibrosis, a fatal disorder of the respiratory and digestive systems, since 1982. Her commitment to the cause was inspired by her niece Karine, who died from the disease at the age of 16. Dion told People (March 3, 1997) of her niece's passing: "I had her in my arms, and I started to sing softly in her ear, and out of nowhere her eyes closed. . . . One tear came down Karine's cheek, and then she went." The song "Fly" on Céline Dion's album Falling Into You, an English-language version of the song "Vole" from her 1995 French album D'eux, is dedicated to Karine. As part of her association with the CCFF, Dion has participated in interviews, public-service campaigns and fund-raising activities for the organization.

One as-yet unfulfilled desire of Dion's is that of motherhood. She and Angelil are hoping to become parents very soon, especially now that they have taken some time off from touring. "We're working on it right now," she told Mike Ross. "If it happens, it happens. If not, well, I think we have much more than a lot of people. I think we're spoiled. I think I have an amazing career and I think I have the perfect life."