Legendary singer Celine Dion took a year-long hiatus from her lucrative Las Vegas residency at Caesars Palace and cared for her husband, René Angélil, who was diagnosed with throat cancer. The Canadian singer opened up about her husband's illness and why she decided to return to Las Vegas despite Angélil's fading health.
"I didn't want to be here at first, I don't need it. Don't get me wrong, I love singing for people, but I have priorities," the 47-year-old told USA Today. "But René really gave me a gift. All my grieving, it was during this last year. I think I've got this. For now. When it hits me, it's going to hit me. But my biggest job is to tell my husband, we're fine. I'll take care of our kids. You'll watch us from another spot."
The past couple of months were filled with many emotional conversations for Dion and her sick husband. The singer said her normal approach was to be strong for her man, but sometimes he needed something more sensitive and more positive.
"I'll say, 'You're scared? I understand. Talk to me about it,'" Dion explained. "And René says to me, 'I want to die in your arms.' OK, fine, I'll be there, you'll die in my arms."
Dion met Angélil when she was just 12 years old. Later in life he was her manager before they married in 1994.
Dion's husband was diagnosed with throat cancer in December 2013, reported Hello Magazine. After a series of procedures in Boston hospitals, he returned to the family's Las Vegas home. He's been fed intravenously for two years now, Dion said. This was the second cancer diagnosis for Dion's old manager.
Dion announced she was resuming her Las Vegas residency at Caesar's Palace on Aug. 27 upon her husband's request, reported United Press International.
