Celine Dion back with album as she mourns husband

NEW YORK — Canadian superstar Celine Dion is ready with a new album, the first since her husband’s death, that will feature collaborations with French stars and uplifting lyricism, her label announced on Monday (July 18).

The album, which will come out on August 26, is entitled Encore Un Soir. Dion released the title track — which means One More Night in English — in May.

The pop diva, 48, had dedicated the ballad to her late husband Rene Angelil, who died in January from throat cancer at age 73.

Angelil was taken by Dion’s voice when she was a child and became her musical guide and manager, marrying her in 1994 when she was 26.

The song Encore Un Soir was written by Jean-Jacques Goldman, a leading French pop star.

Label Sony Music said that the album will also feature Dion’s first song written by two other prominent French rockers, Francis Cabrel and Serge Lama.

“Celine voluntarily chose uplifting themes that focused on life and positivity,” the label said in a statement.

Dion will also delve into her Quebecois heritage with a cover of Ordinaire by Robert Charlebois, a major artist of the French-speaking province.

Dion, who also sings in English, has sold 220 million albums, placing her among the ranks of the most successful recording artists of all time.

Dion is on a tour that includes nine sold-out shows at the Bercy arena in Paris as well as 10 concerts in Montreal, five in Quebec City and two in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, before she returns to her residency at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. AFP