Céline Dion has chosen France for her big return to the stage, continuing a relationship with the country and the French language that has run through her entire career since her television debut in 1983.
The Canadian singer's bond with France reaches back to a June 1983 appearance, when she performed "D'amour ou d'amitié" at the age of 14 on "Champs-Élysées," the television programme hosted by Michel Drucker, one of French broadcasting's most enduring and popular presenters. It was the start of a long relationship with the country and its language.
Dion has said that if you want to say something, it is better to say it in French, adding that she finds the French language very romantic and very sensitive.
The 'D'eux' album with Jean-Jacques Goldman
That connection deepened in 1994, when the French singer-songwriter Jean-Jacques Goldman wrote her the album "D'eux." Goldman said during the recording that he did not know Dion personally and that the only thing that interested him was her voice, which he described as one of the greatest in the world.
The album produced hits including "Pour que tu m'aimes encore," "J'irais où tu iras," "Destin," "Les derniers seront les premiers" and "Vole," and went on to become the best-selling French-language album in history, with more than 10 million copies sold worldwide. Of the 27 studio albums Dion has released since her recording career began in 1981, 15 have been in French.
Legion of Honour and ties to France
In 2009, Dion received the insignia of chevalier of the Legion of Honour, France's highest order of merit, from Nicolas Sarkozy, who was president of France at the time.
Over the following decades, Dion kept affirming her attachment to France, including while performing far from the country in Las Vegas, where she spends part of the year. In a 2019 interview with journalist Romain Goichon following the release of her album "Courage," she said francophone blood ran in her veins, whether it came from Quebec or from France, referring to Jean-Jacques Goldman.
Stiff person syndrome and the Paris Olympics
In June 2024, Dion spoke with journalist Anne-Claire Coudray for the documentary "I Am: Celine Dion," about her fight against stiff person syndrome, a rare neurological disorder that had forced her to postpone her return to France on several occasions. During that interview, Coudray gave her a small model of the Eiffel Tower as a reminder of the country's attachment to her and its wish to see her back on stage soon.
A few weeks later, Dion performed from the Eiffel Tower, the French capital's best-known monument, during the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
New French-language music expected
The relationship between Dion and France is far from over. Alongside her concerts at the Plenitude Arena, the singer is expected to soon return to recording in French. Following "Dansons," a song written by Jean-Jacques Goldman and released in April, and "Bonjour, Pardon, Merci," a composition by Ycare released in June, a third previously unreleased track is expected imminently.
According to the French newspaper Le Parisien, Dion has recently collaborated with the artists Stromae, Francis Cabrel, Angèle and Grand Corps Malade, as well as with Mosimann, the new director of the French television talent show "Star Academy," ahead of a possible new album.
