Céline Dion has a voice rivaled by few others. Soaring and powerful, its extraordinary range has meant the singer can reach stratospheric heights in emotive ballads and descend into sweet, softer keys for love songs. But Dion also has a long history of attracting attention beyond her voice.
She is also an icon of campery, self-deprecation, and endurance, all qualities she has famously shown throughout her (now sadly halted) career. From letting a fan go pee during her own final performance to bravely sharing struggles battling a chronic health condition , Dion is a rare star who is as happy to read herself to filth as she is to wear her pain publicly. This is even after her devastating health diagnosis of stiff-person syndrome (SPS) in December 2022.
The rare neurological disorder has meant Dion can experience painful spasms and muscle stiffening and struggles to sing. Even though SPS has (temporarily) stopped her from performing, she still remains a larger-than-life figure in the Zeitgeist beyond her rare vocal prowess, a superstar defined as much by her public vulnerability as by her playful self-mockery. With the release of her baring new documentary, I Am: Celine Dion , we’ve retraced Dion’s iconography — that is, her back catalogue of iconic moments — into one easy timeline.
Our only wish now is that she’s back onstage soon , calling out to us with her siren song(s) and maybe cracking jokes about water parks as she’s done throughout her legendary career. Di.