The Untold Truth About Celine Dion’s Marriage And Career

1. She Lost the Love of Her Life

Celine Dion recently opened up about the death of her husband René Angélil who passed away from a heart attack in 2016, after fighting a long battle with throat cancer. In his final days, the star did everything she could to take care of him. “I’m still in love with him”, Dion responded when asked about finding new love.

2. She Met Her Husband at 12

Dion was only 12 years old when she met her future husband René Angélil, and five years later, she fell for him in spite of their 26 year age gap. “I was in love with the way he treated everyone around me, including my whole family and myself.” But their relationship would face difficulties along the way.

3. They Kept It a Secret

Before Dion revealed that she and her manager Angélil were in a romantic relationship, the couple had kept it a secret for over five years out of fear of people’s reactions. “When you’re in love, you want to scream it to the world”, Celine Dion said. They finally shared the truth with family and the public.

4. Celine’s Mom Hated Their Relationship

“I want the perfect Prince Charming for you,” but “this man (Angélil) tried marriage twice before, has three children, and he is not responsible”. Celine’s mother was actually apprehensive about the two being together.

5. Big Secret Revealed

Despite her mother’s disapproval, the singer finally revealed to the public that she had totally fallen for René in her album The Colour of My Love. “Maybe at 17, 18 years old, my feelings started to change for him,” Dion said. Surprisingly, she received a great supportive response from her fans.

6. Next Level

They were both so devoted to the relationship that they decided to take things to the next level. They wanted to get married and spend the rest of their lives together.

7. Gorgeous Princess

The wedding gown was designed by the fashion couple Mirella and Steve Gentile. A twenty foot long train and a twenty-pound tiara made the dress extraordinarily special and made Celine into a real royal princess. But the “extravaganza” of the wedding was not everything.

8. Wedding Broadcast

Celine and René finally tied the knot on December 17, 1994, with their wedding ceremony broadcast on Canadian National TV because they wanted the fans to attend the wedding too. But many media outlets were critical of the event, calling it a “delusion of grandeur”.

9. Younger Than Her Stepson

René Angélil, before his exchanging vows with Celine Dion, had married twice before, and had a son called Patrick Angélil with his first wife.

10. Struggled with Infertility

Now Celine is a mother to three boys, but she had been suffered from fertility problems for years before successfully conceiving her first son René-Charles in 2001. Then she went through another six rounds of IVF and gave birth to her twin boys Nelson and Eddy.

11. Fame Means Less to Her

For Celine, the biggest successes of her life have been her family and her three beautiful children over and above her extraordinary music career. She loves spending time with them and tries to be an important part of their life.

12. She Prepared Her Kids for Their Father’s Death

“I’m proud of the way I prepared my boys for their dad’s death. In life, you never know what’s going to happen, so you should never wait for tomorrow to do what can be done today, to say I love you, or send a thank-you note… The future is now.”

13. You Can Call Her Dr. Dion

The My Heart Will Go On singer never graduated from high school, but she later received an honorary doctorate from Laval University. She dedicated the award to her husband for his tremendous influence on her.

14. Youngest of 14 Siblings

Coming from humble roots, life was not easy for Dion growing up. But the singer didn’t think her family was poor because “we were given love and affection and support,” she told the media.

15. Discovered at the Age of 12

A song written and composed by Celine’s brother and mother was used as the song for Celine to perform. Her mother always believed in Celine’s talent and tried her best to get the demos to as many names in the industry as she could. Eventually, a man named René Angélil got in touch with her.

16. Sang for Pope as a Teenager

Celine Dion performed for Pope John II when he visited Quebec in 1984. She sang “Une Colombe” in Montreal’s Olympic Stadium in front of 65,000 people. Dion always considered singing in front of Pope John II as the pinnacle for her as a performer, despite the fact that she sang for many famous figures later on.

17. She Never Liked the Hit “My Heart Will Go On”

The Titanic soundtrack that made Celine Dion a universally well-known singer has always been far from her favorite work, because the singer believed that the song would do her career damage. She said “... I didn’t really like the song… and I thought we were pushing our luck...”

18. She Speaks a Variety of Languages

As a now legendary singer, she has a huge spectrum of fans from all over the world. To make sure her fans understand her, Celine has been known to record and perform in Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Japanese and Mandarin Chinese. Quite impressive.

19. Accessible to All

We know how she broadcast her wedding on TV, so that her fans could celebrate her big day. Well, after her husband died, Celine allowed everyone who wanted to send their condolences to come to the funeral. No wonder her fans keep coming back for more.

20. Has She Started to Move on?

Rumor has it that Dion has moved on and found herself a new love - 32-year-old dancer Pepe Munoz. She seems to have a little problem in judging age gaps, but her happiness is all that matters, right?