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"I AM: Celine Dion"

Dream to Be an International Star:

• Celine Dion always aspired to be an international star. Despite traveling the world many times, she didn’t really see or experience much beyond her performances.

Health Struggles:

• The story begins with Celine on the floor, requiring a 911 call due to Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS), a rare condition affecting 1 in a million people, triggered by stress, noise, and instability, and affecting women twice as often as men.
• In 2021, she canceled her tour due to her inability to perform. Seventeen years ago, she started experiencing voice spasms, making it difficult to control her voice.
• By 2020, her condition worsened to the point where she struggled to walk and maintain her balance.

Impact on Performances:

• Cancelling shows is difficult for Celine, as she dislikes disappointing her fans. Before SPS, her voice guided her life. Now, breathing and singing are challenging due to the physical effects of the syndrome.

Personal Moments:

• Celine visits her warehouse, reminiscing about her shoes, costumes, and memories with her children.
• Her philosophy: "I walk the shoes, and the shoes don’t walk me." She rarely re-wears dresses due to their association with significant events.
• Her band and backup singers are like family, contributing to her identity as an artist.

Family and Upbringing:

• Celine cherishes moments with her young children, Eddy and Nelson, who once made a mess with coconuts in a video for their butler, which Celine cleaned up.
• Growing up in a large family in Quebec, her strong mother, also a musician, met her father through music. Despite financial struggles, her mother always provided for the family.
• Celine’s first audience was her family.

Coping and Resilience:

• Her necklace from her late husband originally belonged to Maria Callas, a renowned opera singer.
• Celine took high doses of Valium daily to manage her symptoms, risking her life. The medication was necessary for basic functions like walking and swallowing.
• She no longer wanted to lie to her fans about her condition when canceling shows.

Musical Career Highlights:

• In 2018, she performed "You’re the Voice" with John Farnham during her Asian/Australian tour.
• Prefers singing on stage over the studio; in 2018, she did Carpool Karaoke with James Corden at the Bellagio fountain, performing "My Heart Will Go On."

Current Challenges:

• Celine hasn’t sung in two years and is unsure if she will be able to sing again. Her health challenges have caused her embarrassment and required immediate medical intervention.
• Despite these challenges, she remains determined to sing and dance, always having backup plans and refusing to stop pursuing her passion.

Closing Note:

• She performs one more song, "Gotta Be Me," embodying her unwavering spirit and dedication to her craft.

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