Released almost 27 years ago, James Cameroon’s ‘Titanic’ is one of the most loved Hollywood films. The movie continues to move the audience, all thanks to the plot and the powerful performance by Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. ‘Titanic’ has many memorable moments but what remains etched in everyone’s mind is the song ‘My Heart Will Go On’ which was sung by Celine Dion.
But did you know that Dion initially did not want to record ‘My Heart Will Go On’?
In an old interview with Andy Cohen, Dion revealed how ‘My Heart Will Go On’ came to fruition. She revealed that she did not want to record the song because it did not appeal to her. The singer said, “It didn't appeal to me. I was probably very tired that day. I don't know, very tired.” However, it was her late husband – Rene Angelil – who convinced her to sing the demo, at least. It was this demo that was used in ‘Titanic.’
Dion continued, “And my husband said, ‘Let’s hold on.’ He talks to the writer and says, ‘Let’s try to make a little demo,’ and I sang the song once and they built the orchestra around it. I never re-sang it for the recording, actually. So, the demo is the actual recording but after that, I sang it three gazillion times.”
And it worked in her favour. ‘My Heart Will Go On’ continues to be Celine Dion’s most successful song. The song won four Grammy Awards in 1999, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year. Additionally, it received the Best Original Song award at both the Academy Awards and the Golden Globe Awards. The song debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on February 28, 1998, propelling the ‘Titanic’ soundtrack to a 16-week run at No. 1 and selling more than 15 million copies worldwide.
