15 Secrets We Didn't Know About Celine Dion
Emma Martin Quick Links
The 49-year-old Celine Dion is one of the most successful and beloved singers in the world. She has been at her craft since she was a teen, and over the years, she has only gotten better and better. Fans from all ends of the Earth adore her remarkable talent and love seeing her perform on stage.
These days, the singer has a long-running residency in Las Vegas where audiences are in awe of Dion’s stage presence and performing chops. She sells out her shows night after night, and every performance is pure perfection.
Dion was born in Canada and has lived in many parts of the U.S., now calling Las Vegas home base as she completes her residency in Caesars Palace’s Colosseum. All the “blingy” glitz and glam of Vegas is well-suited for Dion’s over-the-top performances, and fans are impressed, to say the least.
She has had so many hit songs, and when fans hear her sing them live, something truly magical happens. They know all the words to her many songs and love to sing along as she belts out those catchy tunes, one after the next.
But what people may not know about the star is sure to stun and shock them. Here are 15 dark and dramatic secrets about the sublime Celine Dion that make her life even more interesting. From her very early childhood through the present time, Dion’s whirlwind of a life has been adventurous, amazing, and awe-inspiring. Read on to learn more interesting facts about the singer, her life, career, romance, and more.
She Was In An Accident As A Child
Look out! As a kid, poor Celine Dion was backed into by a truck. She was left unconscious for a number of days after being hit. Her tiny skull was fractured and she was completely knocked out.
All this terrible trauma at the tender age of 5 must have been horrible for both Celine and her worried parents.
Thank goodness the Canadian cutie healed over time and did not suffer from any permanent damage to her head or any other body part. Things could have been far worse. Did the trucker get in trouble? We are not sure, but as long as Celine made it through, everyone is thankful. She must have been one tough cookie to have recovered such a traumatic event at such a young age. She probably braces herself every time a truck goes by though.
She Was A Teenager When She First Started Dating René Angélil
Music producer René Angélil was smitten with Celine, but she is 26 years younger than he is. Keep in mind, they met when she was just 12-years old. But once she was old enough, and feelings developed, the two began a romance. The heart clearly wants what it wants, and the two were destined to be together.
Old enough to be her father, this May-December romance has had plenty of judgement from the outside world, but Celine loved her man and always will.
So much so, that they eventually got married and were together until Angélil sadly passed away a few years ago.
Her Family Had No Say Over Her Career
René Angélil agreed to sign Celine to his record label under one condition — her parents would give him full control over her musical career. Perhaps this was due to the fact that he was about to quit show business until he heard the angelic voice of Celine. He took a chance on the young girl and it payed off in more ways than one. He even mortgaged his home on the bet that Celine would hit it big. He had luck and talent on his side.
They would have no input at all and they would have to trust him to make all the right decisions when it came to her professional future.
This may have been stressful for Celine’s parents, but it looks like they made the right decision since she became one of the world’s biggest and most successful stars of all time, and she is still going strong, even after René’s passing. She was only 12 years old when she first met with René, but he saw something special in the budding star. Her talent, even at that age, was beyond anything he had witnessed before, and he saw a diamond in the rough.
She Hid Her Relationship For Five Years
Celine and René were together for five full years before she was comfortable enough to go public with the information about their hidden relationship.
She made the revealing and stunning statement by mentioning her love for him in the notes inside her hit CD "The Colour of My Love."
Later on, she told reporters at People that she kept the news private because she was worried about what people would think about their May-December romance. She may have been right that people would have something to say about such young singer dating her much older producer, but she proved any naysayers wrong by sticking with her man “for better or for worse.” For these two longtime lovebirds, age was nothing but a number, and all that mattered was what was inside their hearts.
She Has A Stepson Who Is Older Than She Is
Yep, Celine is a stepmother to a stepson who is older than she is by three months. Celine’s late husband, René Angélil, has a son named Patrick from a previous relationship who was born before Celine even came into the world. Hey, it's only awkward if you let it be. We all know that Celine was much younger than her dearly departed beloved husband, so it's not all that crazy that he had a son who is about the same age as Celine.
She may never have filled that “mother” role, but surely they have a mutual respect and both cared about René.
Surely things must have been a little strange at first, but families these days are not what they used to be.
She Had Her Teeth Fixed
Celine may smile like a superstar now, but before fame and fortune, she had to do something about her busted smile. Her teeth were all crowded and crooked, making for a grin that wasn’t too great. Extensive dental work fixed the issue, and now the superb singer has a set of teeth that 4 out of 5 dentists approve of. Heck, let’s give her all five. Even if she hadn't gotten the work done early on, once she made some dough from singing, she surely would have taken it upon herself to hit up the cosmetic dental surgeon for some bright white veneers or bonding. Being a celeb is a materialistic business, so even a kind-hearted, down-to-Earth soul like Celine must look the part. She must agree that her improved smile is far more flattering.
She Has 13 Siblings
Apparently, Celine’s mom and pop were super fertile. She is the youngest of 14 kids in the Quebec-raised family, making that full household quite a stir while growing up. Things were also tough financially considering her father brought home only $160 a week to care for his big family.
Being the youngest may have had its perks, but there must have been fights for the attention of her parents with so many youngsters living under one roof!
While the family was supposedly close-knit, the sibling rivalry must have been through the roof! With 14 kids, those parents had their hands full, but we are surely glad they did not stop at 13 or else we’d never hear the angelic voice of Celine. We guess the 14th time was a charm for Adhémar and Thérèse Dion. Any more kids, and they’d have to open a new school in town just to fit them all in a classroom!
Celine Almost Didn’t Record “My Heart Will Go On”
The movie Titanic was one of the greatest box-office blockbusters of all time. And who can forget the moving song, “My Heart Will Go On,” sung so impeccably by the wonderfully talented Celine Dion?
But what if that song was never recorded by Celine or used in the film at all for that matter?
What a mistake that would be, as it has become one of the biggest hits of all time and will always be associated with the amazing movie. But Celine almost did not record the song because she didn’t like it very much at first. Her husband encouraged her to give it a go, so she decided to record it. Little did she know what a hit it would become. We bet she likes it now!
Celine Had a Rough Go When Trying To Grow Her Family
Celine and her hubby wanted to have a baby desperately, but they were having lots of trouble in the baby-making department. After many failed attempts at trying to get pregnant, the couple chose the in vitro route and she eventually became pregnant with her first son, René-Charles. After that successful pregnancy, she sadly suffered a miscarriage, but in 2010, she became pregnant via IVF again, this time with precious twin boys, Nelson and Eddy, who were born on October 23, 2010, making their family complete. Her sons are a blessing, and the work of IVF was surely a miracle for the singer and her husband.
She Lost Her Voice During Her First Tour In The U.S.
Her “heart may go on,” but her voice certainly didn’t when Celine got a case of laryngitis while in America for her Unison tour. Her beautiful voice let her down right in the middle of a concert because her vocal cords were terribly inflamed from being overused and overworked. She had to cancel a bunch of shows, leaving her fans fuming and furious, but there was nothing she could do but rest and recover.
In fact, she wasn’t able to utter a single peep for three whole weeks!
After her stunning voice was back in action, she hit the stage again, but this time, she better minded her health so she would not have the same problem again. Singers must take care of their instrument in order to be at their best.
She Can Sing In Five Languages
We all know that Celine Dion is super talented, but did you know she can sing in five different languages? This incredible woman can sing in English, French, Spanish, Japanese, and German! With her multi-lingual talents, the singer can bless people from all over the world with her impressive vocal skills. It must be difficult to remember all the words to her songs in five different tongues, but Celine is determined, so she must study very hard to make every note of every song count.
French is her native language, so that one is a breeze, and she learned English impressively well over the years. But adding Spanish, German, and Japanese to the mix is quite a feat.
She is not only a stellar singer, but a lover of language too. Is there anything this amazing woman can’t accomplish?
She Is Worth An Estimated $630 Million
Cha-ching! Celine is one heck of a wealthy woman, with an estimated net worth of $630 million. For a gal who started from pretty humble beginnings, this kind of cash is truly astounding. Her hard work surely paid off and having such raw talent was something Celine was able to bank on over her many years in the music biz. Let’s not forget, she is still raking in the dough by performing regularly in Las Vegas.
Vegas was an interesting place to be since it was reported that her late hubby was a big-time gambler. He allegedly spent $1 million per week, risking major money for the thrill of the game.
But this was perhaps money this family had to play with. And who knows how much more money this wonderful woman will make over the lifespan of her career. Her musical talent is as hot as ever, and thousands of fans are in awe of Celine’s amazing voice and unbelievable stage presence. Las Vegas is very lucky to have her and she never fails to give a show-stopping performance.
If The Shoe Fits…
Celine grew up with few material possessions, so when she struck it rich, she was more than ready to splurge. Aside from her lavish homes, wardrobe, cars, and jewels, this wealthy woman loves to spend her hard-earned dough on her feet.
Shoes are her weakness, and the singer reportedly has more than 500 pairs in her walk-in closet.
All are designer brands, and they must cost hundreds of dollars per pair. While she won’t be able to pass down her collection to her sons (unless they have a desire to wear high heels), this collection is impressive nonetheless. She can wear a new pair of shoes every day of the year and even change during the day and never repeat a pair. Talk about pampering from head to toe!
She Cancelled All Of Her Shows In August 2014
In August 2014, Celine made the choice to cancel all of her shows that were scheduled through March 2015 due to her ailing husband who was 72 years old at the time. He was unfortunately suffering from throat cancer and she wanted to be right by his side to care for him from morning through night.
Although he probably suggested she stick to her performing schedule, Celine was determined to be by her man’s side to offer plenty of support, care, and love as he dealt with his debilitating illness.
This must have been a stressful and sad time for her family, but Celine’s love for her husband was more important than performing. Sadly, her husband passed from his illness, but he always knew that Celine was with him until the end.
Celine’s Brother Passed Two Days After Her Husband
Celine had some terrible times at the start of 2016 when her beloved husband and dear brother Daniel died just two days apart from one another. She must have been severely heartbroken and numb, but with the mountain of love and tremendous support of her family, friends, and fans, the singer was able to get through this truly painful time with strength and perseverance. Her brother was just 59 years old when he sadly passed from cancer. Being that his death was just two days after her darling husband’s passing, that time must have been unbelievable for Celine and the rest of her surviving family members. At this time, she cancelled her January 2016 performances in order to cope with the mounds of grief. At her husband's funeral in Montreal, although she was only supposed to greet the public for 30 minutes, Celine was so moved and grateful for support she received, she stayed for more than 7 hours.
