two days later when her brother
Daniel also passed away, at 59.
It was, hands down, the worst
time in Celine’s life. But last
week, as the 51-year-old
transfixed the world in a series
of show-stopping outfits at
Haute Couture Paris Fashion
Week, it was plain to see the
vocal powerhouse has come
through the worst of it.
“Celine is finally back,” says
the source. “Her career is on
fire, her fashion is on point
and, most importantly, she’s
finally happy again.”
In the agonising days after
René lost his long battle with
throat cancer, Celine held
steadfast to the promise she’d
made her ailing husband –
that she would find the strength
to go on and raise their three
sons the way they’d always
intended, surrounded by love.
But the first year was
unimaginably hard. While she
maintained a stoic façade,
“Behind closed doors she
was a wreck,” shared the source.
“She felt so lost and alone.”And as the weeks
wore on, things only
got harder. “Celine
cried every single
night. She couldn’t
sleep or eat. The
grief took an
emotional and
physical toll on her.”
The first
anniversary of
her husband and
brother’s deaths
was also intensely
painful but then,
“She slowly started
to pick up the pieces,” tells the
source. “She began writing
songs again and threw herself
into her Las Vegas residency.”
The My Heart Will Go On
singer also made some
important changes in her life,
including attending therapy –
both on her own and with her
kids, René-Charles (18), and
twins Nelson and Eddy (8).
And by the time the Grammy
award winner closed her 16-year
residency at The Colosseum on
June 8 this year, she was like a
phoenix rising from the ashes.
After paying a moving tribute
on stage to René, the singer
partied into the wee hours,
sipping vodka and cutting
shapes on the dance floor.
“My life started over at 50,”
she enthused at the time. “I feel
happy, I feel beautiful... I am like
a one-year-old!
“I’m not saying that I don’t
care what people think of me,
but I’ve reached a point in my
life where I can let myself make
my own decisions and choices.
Now I am discovering myselfmore and more.
“I am a woman
assuming her own
destiny, full of energy
and in love with life.
“It’s never too late
to start. At 51, I have
the sense that I am
at my pinnacle!”
It was a long road
to recovery, but she
didn’t do it alone.
By Celine’s side
throughout the past
couple of years has
been her close friend
and dancer Pepe
Muñoz (35).
“He’s my best friend,” she
says. “He did so much for
me, for my mental health, my
spirituality, my inner strength.”
When the pair first began
stepping out arm-in-arm,
whispers swirled that they
were in love, but Celine
eventually nixed the rumours,
explaining that Pepe is gay.
“The thing is that he’s my
best friend and he did so
much for me and even just
holding my hand... it’s some-
thing that I haven’t had for a
long time. A hug from a 6’
man, it was wonderful.”
Celine’s new album Courage- due out in November – is
inspired by the deaths of René
and Daniel, and she’s currently
gearing up for a tour that will
take in more than 50 cities
across Canada and the US.
It’s testament of just how far
she’s come since those dark
days, when it was a major
feat to just get back onstage.
“I didn’t know if I was going
to have the strength and the
courage to sing again because
René always sang with me,”
she said at the time. “René
was my second half.”
Now, not only does she have
the courage to go on tour, but
also to embrace her newfound
love of high fashion.
The mum-of-three has
become the woman to watch
at world fashion events over
the past two years, and in Paris
set tongues wagging and
cameras flashing as she stepped
out in everything from a Gucci
puff-sleeved mini dress paired
with a silver-spiked bondage
collar to a transparent gown
with a plunging neckline.
But those close to Céline are
just thrilled to see her happy
again. “She has an excitement
about life that her friends and
family haven’t seen in a long
time,” says the source.
“She’ll always miss René,
but she’s made it through
the storm. She’s ready for
a new beginning.” #She’s the
cream of the
crop in this off-
the-shoulder
Alexandre
Vauthier gown.The singer is
simply mind-
blowing in
an Iris Van
Herpen
maxi.
Take a bow
Celine! In
the pink with
a silhouette-
changing Miu
Miu dress, and
(left) sporting an
Off-White blazer
and leotard.Pepe’s support
after the deaths
of her husband
and brother has
been invaluable
for Celine.Making a scene in
a dramatic yellow
tutu skirt and black
blazer by Ronald
Van Der Kemp.