Hello everyone,

In this issue of "Dream On" we are looking into Celine's cupboard where she keeps all her numerous awards. She's got lots of them. Of course, we are interested in those awards which somehow defined Celine's career, like the Eurovision song contest, for example. Happy reading!

Yuri, celinedreams.com

The awards which defined Celine Dion's life and career... and/or created a scandal*

Picture this! Ireland. 1988. The Eurovision Song Contest. A live broadcast. The action takes place on a massive stage which makes performers look ridiculously lost. A contestant for Switzerland has been announced, the hungry audience and bitchy TV commentators from all over Europe are waiting for another victim to be devoured.

A skinny girl dressed in a white embroidered skirt and a jacket with a scandalous (according to the official web site of the contest) hairdo comes on stage holding a cold black microphone in her sweaty palms. The British TV commentators cannot wait to trash the girl. The giggles are heard in the audience. The girl is slightly nervous, but concentrated. And here comes the music... (Watch video)

That night the critics went mute because the funny girl put the whole house on fire and won the contest. That girl was Celine Dion.

Now, one might ask how does one win a prestigious song contest which jumpstarts your entire career wearing the outfit Celine wore? Easily! Because most of Celine's outfits were done with lots of love by her mom. Celine is a bright example of a truly home-made diva.

1998. The Grammy. Celine has been scheduled to sing with her idol - Barbra Streisand the song they recorded together "Tell Him". All goes well, until right on the eve of the ceremony Streisand calls in sick and doesn't show up at the ceremony at all. It would have been a blow to anyone, but Celine. With virtually no rehearsal she flawlessly performs live "My Heart Will Go On" instead of an anticipated duet with Streisand . Celine wins no awards that night, but proves to everyone that she is a confirmed artist who is capable of holding the show all by herself. Now, the question which remains unanswered -- Was Barbra really sick? :-)

1982. Tokyo, Japan. Yamaha World Song Festival. Celine is among 1900 something contestants fighting to get hold of the main trophy - a gold medal and a worldwide exposure. The competition is fierce. Celine makes it to the finals. The final competition was broadcast live on TV and in front of the audience of 12 000 raging Japanese fans. Right before going on stage to sing her song Celine picks up on the floor a five yen coin. She puts the coin into her shoe hoping it will bring her good luck. Was it the coin or not, but Celine flew back to Canada with a gold medal in her handbag. By the way, since then "five" has become Celine's official lucky number.

Because of her talent and an amazing resistance to stress Celine won lots of awards and contests. See it for yourself here. But the highest reward to date arrived on January 25, 2001, weighing 6 lbs 8 oz.

The birth of Rene-Charles didn't come easy. Celine went all the way with the in-vitro to conceive a baby. Celine told the public every detail of the process. The star and her husband were criticized for the degree of disclosure of their pregnancy to the public. Despite all criticism, the birth of their first child was a turning point for Celine. The motherhood transformed Celine's perfectionism into a cooler and more mature way of working. She could now drink a cup of coffee, which was unthinkable a short while ago. Coffee is known to have a negative effect on fragile vocal cords.

The motherhood gave Celine a new meaning to her life and to her songs. It also brought a long-deserved period of respite. Now there was no need to run all over the world to collect yet another gold medal or win another song contest. Celine could now afford the peace and happiness of her home. To date Celine has won all the awards a recording artist can possibly win. Now she is facing another kind of a challenge all mothers in the world face - bringing up their children. And, Celine says, she is looking forward to this one.

* The rendition of some events is not 100% true to life. However, the names and dates of award/contests are authentic.

Miracle: A Celebration of New Life
by Anne Geddes, Celine Dion

Celine Dion and photographer Anne Geddes conceived Miracle as a way to express something deep within their own hearts, and now both the experience and the outcome will delight music and visual art fans throughout the world.

Miracle features more than 100 stunning new Geddes images. Babies enfolded in blooms, mothers embracing the life flowering within: Anne's artistic eye captures it all.

A stand alone CD from this project is also available. Tracks and order info here