It has been two years since Celine Dion lost her husband René Angélil. Speaking to People in 2016, she finally summoned the courage to speak about her life with René and after his passing.
René was inspirational to Celine’s work. In the beginning, the French-Canadian could hardly speak English. But with the help of René, she was able to channel her talent. She says:
I never wrote my songs. I didn’t even know how to read music or play an instrument. I had a great manager who surrounded me with the best people.
Celine and René were married in 1994. They had three children together: René-Charles, born in 2001, and twins Nelson and Eddy, born in 2010. Celine revealed that life after the death of René was not easy. But her children were very supportive. And Celine said she was motivated by her children.
Together, they paid tribute to their dad at home in their own private ceremony.
She has an endearing ritual she performs in remembrance of René
He may be long gone, but Celine still finds ways to keep the memory of René alive. After his passing, Celine had a bronze replica of René’s hand made. And Celine shakes the hand before going on stage to perform.
I shake my husband’s hand and knock on wood with him every night before every show. Even after he’s gone, I still talk to him.
During the last three years of his life, René battled throat cancer. Celine was always supportive during this troubling time. But René was still insistent that Celine continues to perform.
However, Celine took a break from music in René’s final year to spend time with him. Although she had accepted the reality that her husband was unlikely to recover from cancer, there was still much to share.
Celine says she wrote a long list with René of all his dreams and things he wanted to achieve. And together, they did every one of them. René was also worried that Celine may give up music on his passing. So he insisted on Celine returning to the stage and making music, even while he was sick.
So I went back on stage while he was still alive; he wanted to make sure I could keep going. So I did prove to him, yes, I could keep going.
This year, Celine will be marking two years since René’s death. And as promised, she has no intention of leaving the stage.
She really didn’t like ‘My Heart Will Go On’
The theme song from Titanic is a very big part of pop culture and 20 years after the epic movie hit the cinema, Celine Dion is still receiving accolades for her rendition. Everybody loves the song, but for Celine, the feeling is not so sweet.
For starters, Celine was not keen on doing the song. She was just reeling from the success of “Because You Loved Me,” and then “Beauty and the Beast.” But René had other ideas, and he got Celine to make a demo for songwriter James Horner.
To make matters worse, Celine was having her monthlies and had to contend with cramps, grumpiness, and coffee. One take later, and Celine had people crying. ‘My Heart Will Go On’ won Titanic director, James Cameron over. The rest is history.
