Céline Dion Recalls Receiving a Standing Ovation at the 2024 Grammys: 'Very, Very Touching'

"It was very nerve-wracking, but at the same time, a big honor," the superstar said of the emotional on-stage appearance

Celine Dion speaks onstage at the 66th Annual GRAMMY Awards held at Crypto.com Arena on February 4, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.
Celine Dion presenting at the Grammys in Los Angeles in February 2024. Photo:

Christopher Polk/Billboard via Getty

Céline Dion’s appearance at the 2024 Grammys was an emotional one.

The pop icon, 56, graced the cover of Vogue France on April 22 and, in a now-privated “Life in Looks” video for the magazine, recounted her rare public appearance at the award ceremony in February amid her battle with stiff-person syndrome.

“It was very nerve-wracking, but at the same time, a big honor,” she said of taking the stage to a standing ovation while presenting the award for album of the year to Taylor Swift for Midnights.

"That magic. That excitement. To see the fans, to see the crowd. To see show business again. It took a lot, a lot out of me,” she continued. “But my son, René-Charles — R.C. — came and gave me his support.”

Canadian singer Celine Dion presents the Album Of The Year award on stage during the 66th Annual Grammy Awards at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on February 4, 2024
Celine Dion at the Grammys in Los Angeles in February 2024.

Kevin Mazur/Getty

The “My Heart Will Go On” singer also said that presenting the Grammy for album of the year, which she took home in 1997 for Falling into You, was “an honor, because [Swift] is having the time of her life and I'm the one who's presenting it to her.”

“But it's always very, very touching when you have a standing ovation,” she added of the moment.

Recalling the look she wore during the monumental moment — a mustard Valentino coat, which she wore over a dusty pink gown, also Valentino — Dion told Vogue France, “I was like, ‘You can walk onstage with a coat?’ “

Dion, who was styled for the Grammys by none other than Law Roach, recalled hearing, “Oh yeah! You can do whatever you want in fashion, have a good time, wear that coat, own that coat, go for it.”

“And it made me feel better for a moment, to hold onto this coat, to hide myself a little bit from all these little things,” she said before breaking into her song, “Imperfections.”

“I got my own imperfections,” she sang, before adding, “So, we did it.”

Celine Dion attends the 66th GRAMMY Awards at Crypto.com Arena on February 04, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.
Celine Dion at the Grammys in Los Angeles in February 2024.

Kevin Mazur/Getty

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After Dion’s surprise emotional appearance at the Grammys in February, a source exclusively told PEOPLE that “it was an amazing night for her.”

"She's doing well, and the hope is that she can continue to do more and ease back in," the insider added of Dion, who also shared a sweet moment with Swift backstage after presenting.

Dion's return to the stage — and public eye — came days after the superstar announced her new documentary, I Am: Céline Dion, which will give fans an intimate look at her life following her stiff-person syndrome diagnosis. It is set to premiere April 16 on Prime Video.

"People will see everything she went through," the source told PEOPLE of the documentary, adding that Dion is excited to lean back into her music career this year.

"She's taking things step by step,” the insider said. “[Her illness] is incurable, but she's honestly doing well and looks incredible.”

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