Celine Dion’s sickness has taken so much from her, but nothing more devastating than her voice.
Her health and battle with stiff person syndrome have kept the pop diva out of the spotlight for years. However, with a new documentary coming out this June documenting her journey, Celine is ready to open up on how difficult life has been for her.
Plus, she answers the ever important question: will Celine Dion ever sing again?
Canadian singer Celine Dion performs on the opening night of her new world tour “Courage” at the Videotron Centre in Quebec City, Quebec, on September 18, 2019. (Photo by Alice Chiche / AFP) (Photo by ALICE CHICHE/AFP via Getty Images) (Photo by ALICE CHICHE/AFP via Getty Images)
Celine Dion Talks Sickness On ‘Today’
Céline Dion was frank with in her first broadcast interview in nearly two years. She revealed in 2022 that she has the rare neurological condition known as stiff person syndrome. Because of that diagnosis, she has stepped back to work on her health.
Sitting down with Hoda Kotb for both Today and a primetime special, the Canadian superstar revealed her condition has affected her ability to sing.
And it’s worse than anyone can even imagine.
“It’s like somebody is strangling you,” Celine said a sneak peek of their conversation. “It’s like somebody is pushing your larynx/pharynx this way.”
Celine even goes so far as to demonstrate. She doesn’t sing, but she does fluctuate her voice to demonstrate how it would sound.
“It was like talking like that, and you cannot go high or lower,” she explains. “It gets into a spasm.”
‘I Have Broken Ribs’
The spasms Celine experiences can attack different parts of her body, including her abdomen, spine and ribs. They can even be so violent, she has found herself with broken bones.
“I have broken ribs at one point because sometimes when it’s very severe, it can break some ribs as well,” the Grammy-winner shared with Hoda.
Simply dreadful!
Celine Dion speaks onstage during the 66th GRAMMY Awards at Crypto.com Arena on February 04, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images for The Recording Academy )
How is Celine Dion Doing?
“I haven’t beat the disease,” Celine shared in the Vogue interview a few weeks before sitting down with Today.
“It’s still within me and always will be. I hope that we’ll find a miracle, a way to cure it with scientific research, but for now I have to learn to live with it.”
How she’s learned to live with it will be the focus of her new documentary, I Am: Celine Dion, which will debut on Amazon Prime June 25th.
Celine will share more in her full interview with Hoda, which airs June 11 at 10 p.m. ET on NBC.
Celine Dion’s Sickness Makes Singing Feel Like Someone’s … was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.