French-Canadian pop diva Celine Dion was born in Charlemagne, Quebec in 1968, the 14th child
of a musically inclined family. Dion began singing at the age of five, recording her first demo at
age 12. By 1982 Dion had won her first international contest and soon began recording singles in
her native province, becoming a local star. Though her lilting voice sold nearly a million albums in
Quebec, France, and Switzerland, Dion remained an unknown in the United States and even
much of Canada due to her exclusively French lyrics. After learning English in the late '80s, the
young Francophone inked a deal with Sony and released her U.S. debut, Unison, in 1990. With
four Top 10 singles, including "Where Does My Heart Beat Now" and "(If There Was) Any Other
Way," the album surpassed sales expectations. Dion gained further celebrity with a voice
performance in the Disney film Beauty and the Beast; several songs from the soundtrack
appeared on her 1992 eponymous follow-up, which went to No. 1 and won her a Grammy for
"Best Song." Dion embarked on her first American tour with Michael Bolton, then returned in 1993
with The Colour of My Love, which featured another movie theme, "When I Fall In Love," from
Sleepless in Seattle. With contributions from several top-name pop songwriters, the album went
double platinum in the U.S. and platinum in Canada. Now at the top of the U.S. pop charts, Dion
returned to her Quebecois roots with 1994's Dion Chante Plamondon, her first international
French release. A tribute to the French-Canadian songwriter Luc Plamondon, the album sold well
-- particularly in Quebec, of course -- but did not match the performance of her English-language
recordings. That same year she married Rene Angelil, her 55-year-old manager and producer. In
1996 Dion returned to the top of the U.S. pop charts with Falling into You. Dion's successful
streak continued in 1997 with the release of Let's Talk About Love on Epic. The album went
straight to the top of the Billboard charts thanks to the hit singles "Tell Him," a duet with Barbra
Streisand, and "My Heart Will Go On," the love theme from the movie Titantic.
French-Canadian pop diva Celine Dion was born in Charlemagne, Quebec in 1968, the 14th child
of a musically inclined family. Dion began singing at the age of five, recording her first demo at
age 12. By 1982 Dion had won her first international contest and soon began recording singles in
her native province, becoming a local star. Though her lilting voice sold nearly a million albums in
Quebec, France, and Switzerland, Dion remained an unknown in the United States and even
much of Canada due to her exclusively French lyrics. After learning English in the late '80s, the
young Francophone inked a deal with Sony and released her U.S. debut, Unison, in 1990. With
four Top 10 singles, including "Where Does My Heart Beat Now" and "(If There Was) Any Other
Way," the album surpassed sales expectations. Dion gained further celebrity with a voice
performance in the Disney film Beauty and the Beast; several songs from the soundtrack
appeared on her 1992 eponymous follow-up, which went to No. 1 and won her a Grammy for
"Best Song." Dion embarked on her first American tour with Michael Bolton, then returned in 1993
with The Colour of My Love, which featured another movie theme, "When I Fall In Love," from
Sleepless in Seattle. With contributions from several top-name pop songwriters, the album went
double platinum in the U.S. and platinum in Canada. Now at the top of the U.S. pop charts, Dion
returned to her Quebecois roots with 1994's Dion Chante Plamondon, her first international
French release. A tribute to the French-Canadian songwriter Luc Plamondon, the album sold well
-- particularly in Quebec, of course -- but did not match the performance of her English-language
recordings. That same year she married Rene Angelil, her 55-year-old manager and producer. In
1996 Dion returned to the top of the U.S. pop charts with Falling into You. Dion's successful
streak continued in 1997 with the release of Let's Talk About Love on Epic. The album went
straight to the top of the Billboard charts thanks to the hit singles "Tell Him," a duet with Barbra
Streisand, and "My Heart Will Go On," the love theme from the movie Titantic.
