Céline Dion

Singer Céline Dion was the youngest of fourteen born to a French-speaking Canadian musical family which was supportive of her aspirations to sing. They helped her to record one of her own compositions and send it to a manager, René Angélil. So impressed was he, that he famously mortgaged his house to finance her first record. A performance at the Yamaha World Popular Song Festival in Japan in 1982 and a win at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1988 afforded her greater exposure across the world.

Her move from the Francophone to the Anglophone world was preceded by an image overhaul. Though she had released the French-speaking Incognito in 1987, Unison was the English-speaking soft rock record which broke her in the US. In 1991 she recorded the title track for Disney's Beauty and the Beast, winning an Academy Award and a Grammy in the process. The song was included on the Celine Dion album, released in 1992.

Success followed, and the platinum-selling album, The Colour of My Love (1993) was dedicated to Angélil, who she married shortly after. Falling into You (1996) became Dion's most successful record so far, topping the charts in many countries and winning the Best Pop Album Grammy. It was topped by Let's Talk About Love in 1997, not least because this was the album to feature the huge hit "My Heart Will Go On", the theme tune from the blockbuster movie Titanic.

After two further albums, the Christmas-themed These are Special Times (1998) and the compilation album All the Way... a Decade of Song (1999), Dion was at the top of her game, though the critics were not always supportive of her ballad-laden output. Her Francophone fans were happy too, as she had continued to release French-language albums throughout her career.

She took a three year career break in 2000, principally to nurse her husband (who had developed throat cancer) and to have a baby. In 2002 she returned, releasing A New Day Has Come, which met with the same commercial success in the face of critical reservations. One Heart and Miracle began to encounter slipping sales, and the lacklustre reviews certainly didn't help.

Latter years have seen Dion ensconced in Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, where she performed five nights a week as part of a three-year contract. She continues to release new material: her latest album, Taking Chances, was released in 2007.