EXCLUSIVE: Celine Dion Reveals Why Both Her 'Beauty and the Beast' Songs Remind Her of Late Husband
Celine Dion went all-out when performing her song, "How Does a Moment Last Forever," off the most recent Beauty and the Beast soundtrack.
During her concert at Caesars Palace's Colosseum in Las Vegas on Tuesday night, the 49-year-old singer channeled the Disney movie's heroine, Belle, while singing the ballad for the first time in front of 4,000 people. Dion clearly impressed the audience, including ET's Cameron Mathison, but admitted that she was little uneasy before taking the stage.
"It was very, very nerve-racking for me," she confided to Mathison. "It's because I'm Celine Dion. It's because it's the first, and I wanted to make it right."
WATCH: Celine Dion Leads an Epic Cher Singalong Backstage at the Billboard Music Awards
In 1991, Dion also sang the theme song to the Beauty and the Beast animated movie, along with Peabo Bryson. "Beauty and the Beast had put me on the map [over] 25 years ago, and I do respect that tremendously," she noted. "Without sounding pretentious, I want to be as good as possible."
Dion also sweetly recalled meeting a little girl backstage before her Vegas show that was also dressed as Belle. "People thought it was arranged," she exclaimed. "I remember I could still see her. She was, like, on the eighth row."
The GRAMMY winner, of course, invited the girl onstage with her. "It was just a memorable moment," she gushed. "Nerve-racking, but a memorable moment."
WATCH: Celine Dion Remembers Her Late Husband René Angélil at GRAMMYs
Dion noted that her songs on both Beauty and the Beast soundtracks bring back memories of her late husband and manager, René Angélil, because this time around, she had to decide if she wanted to sing on the live-action movie soundtrack without her husband's advisement. "Now I have to make my own decision," she explained. "It was very different."
As for how she came to agree to do a song for the soundtrack, Dion revealed, "I looked at one of the paintings I have of [René] at my house, and I said, 'You know should I do this.'"
WATCH: Celine Dion Shares Video Tribute to Husband René Angélil on First Anniversary of His Death
Also during Tuesday night's performance, Dion paid tribute to the victims of a bombing in Manchester, England, on Monday night. "The whole world is [shaken] by what's going on, and then you wonder, 'Are we going to be stuck in our home? To be prisoner of our own life?'" she pondered. "I still live with that tragedy, and I'm pretty sure people do [too]. It's not something like, 'Oh well, it happened yesterday. The next day it's forgotten.' No, this is very, very serious."
Dion added that she will continue her tour and is "taking as many precautions as possible."
While she was a bit nervous ahead of performing "How Does a Moment Last Forever" for the first time, Dion appeared at ease when singing her hit from Titanic, "My Heart Will Go On," at the 2017 Billboard Music Awards. Check it out:
Disney's live-action Beauty and the Beast will be available on digital and Blu-ray on June 6.
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