Celine Dion is no stranger to pain and tragedy — and the same could be said of her eldest son, René-Charles.
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00:00Celine Dion is no stranger to pain and tragedy,
00:03and the same could be said of her eldest son, René Charles.
00:06On January 25th, 2001, singing legend Celine Dion
00:10became a mom when her oldest son,
00:11René Charles Angélil, was born.
00:13He was named after his father,
00:15Dion's husband, René Angélil.
00:17The couple had previously dealt with fertility issues
00:19and Dion was elated by her son's birth.
00:22She told Oprah in 2002,
00:23"'He's a miracle baby for us.
00:25"'It's a dream come true in many ways.
00:27"'I will never be the same person anymore.'"
00:29When René Charles was growing up,
00:30Dion was a hands-on mom
00:32and she spent time reading and playing with him.
00:34On occasion, he got to watch his mom sing live.
00:37While this sounds like a pretty awesome childhood,
00:39René Charles has also had his share of hardship.
00:41He was so inspired by his mom's music career
00:44that he decided to create his own songs when he was 17.
00:46Unbeknownst to Dion,
00:47René Charles released his rap tunes on SoundCloud in 2018.
00:51He was deliberately secretive
00:53because he wanted to succeed on his own merits.
00:55Unfortunately, while two of the five songs
00:57charted at number one and number two,
00:59he got blasted by listeners for using autotune.
01:02While speaking to the Montreal Gazette in 2018
01:04about his music, René Charles noted
01:07that all of his lyrics are very personal.
01:09To that end, one of his songs,
01:10"'Catwalks' has the line,
01:11"'I ran out of tears when I was 16.'"
01:14Sadly, in 2016, just 11 days before he turned 15,
01:18René Charles' father died
01:19following a diagnosis of throat cancer.
01:21At his dad's funeral,
01:22René Charles took on the responsibility
01:24of delivering a eulogy
01:25and he made his poignant speech before a packed crowd.
01:28René Charles said in the eulogy,
01:30"'You left me now with enough good memories
01:34"'of you to share with my younger brothers.'"
01:36Sadly, his twin brothers, Nelson and Eddie,
01:39were five at the time.
01:40While René Charles also vowed to his dad
01:42the family would live up to his standards,
01:44Dion has emphasized compassion
01:46as she and her children have grieved together.
01:48She explained to Extra when René Charles was 16.
01:50I never want him to feel the pressure
01:52that he's the man of the house.
01:55No, you have your own dreams.
01:56In December 2022, Dion revealed she had been suffering
01:59from longstanding health issues,
02:01which led to her diagnosis
02:02of an autoimmune neurological condition
02:04called Stiff Person Syndrome.
02:06In addition to giving this candid explanation
02:08of her health challenges,
02:09she was equally open in her documentary,
02:11"'I Am' Celine Dion."
02:12She even watched a particularly harrowing scene
02:15where she's having a seizure with her twins,
02:17using it as a tool to better explain
02:19her medical condition to them.
02:21Since René Charles is nine years older than his brothers,
02:23he's been playing a visible role supporting his mom.
02:26My kids are scared because they lost their dad.
02:29They're wondering if I'm gonna die.
02:312024 has proven to be a big year for Dion.
02:34In addition to her show-stopping performance
02:35at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics,
02:38she was also presented with an award at the Grammys.
02:40René Charles walked on stage with Dion
02:42when she accepted the award.
02:44A few months later,
02:45he joined her at the premiere of her documentary.
02:47René Charles stood close by while his mom made a speech.
02:50As she spoke, Dion acknowledged her kids saying,
02:53I wouldn't be here without the daily love and support
02:55from my wonderful children.
02:57As she mentioned René Charles by name,
02:59Dion looked to the side offstage and spoke to him directly.
03:02When Dion became teary as she thanked her fans,
03:04René Charles thoughtfully stepped over to his mom's side
03:07and nudged her gently
03:08so she would see he had a tissue for her.
03:10She thanked him with a kiss before he returned
03:12to the wings where he had been standing.