Hoda Kotb has a secret. Actually, the Broadcast today The co-host revealed to Andy Cohen on Tuesday night (July 9) Watch What Happens Live that during her recent sit-down with Celine Dion to discuss the singer's terrifying battle with Stiff-Person Syndrome, the Canadian superstar almost spilled the beans on a possible comeback to the stage.
In response to a fan question about an interview teaser for the NBC special that aired June 11, in which Kotb seemed to suggest that Dion would perform soon after years off the stage due to the neurological condition, the caller wondered if the Kotb was suggesting that Celine may make her triumphant return by performing at the upcoming Paris Olympics.
“That's a good question,” Kotb said, explaining that when the two were walking on Dion's property, she asked the singer when she planned to perform again after canceling a planned 2023-2024 world tour due to her battle with the rare neurological disease disorder that causes severe muscle spasms. Dion had previously canceled dates on her 2022 North American Courage world tour before revealing her medical condition. With Dion's manager off camera and out of range, Kotb said Celine asked her team, “can I tell her?” At that point Kotb said Dion's manager yelled “no! no!”
“So I'm like, 'so there's something?'” Kotb recalls thinking about the possibility of Dion playing her first show since March 2020. “Whether it's the Paris Olympics, wouldn't that be spectacular? Celine Dion at the Paris Olympics…that would be amazing, but I know he'll be performing live again.” on the scenic Seine River, with the athletes marching and a roster of artists yet to be announced.
WWHL Host Andy Cohen poured cold water on the speculation, saying Dion's condition is unpredictable, which would likely make it difficult to pull off a set-date show. “He will appear again. There will always be a date and time to perform,” Kotb replied, noting that Dion's current medication regimen is more balanced and, unlike before, is not just focused on relaxing her muscles and protecting them from uncontrollable spasms.
In the first hour chat, Dion said she was so desperate to relieve pain from severe muscle spasms during her battle with the rare neurological/autoimmune disease that she took near-fatal doses of Valium.
“I didn't know, honestly, that it could kill me. I'd take, like, before a show, 20 milligrams of Valium and then I'd walk from my dressing room backstage — it was gone,” Dion told Kotb of the pain relief the drug provided at the near-toxic levels she was taking. “At some point, the thing is, my body got used to it in my 20s and 30s and 40s. [milligrams] until it went up. And I needed it. Relax my whole body. For two weeks, for a month, the show went on… but then you get used to it [and] it doesn't work anymore.”
Kotb also praised Dion for her persistence while answering the question about what she learned during her NBC tribute about the singer. “She's an incredible fighter. I had no idea what he had been through, how close he came at one point to not surviving it,” Kotb told Cohen. “Yeah here he is singing again and all that.”
Although the performance exchange Kotb described to Cohen didn't make it into the special, Dion left the door open during the interview to return this year after battling the disease, which she said causes convulsions so severe they caused broken ribs and sometimes he made it feel. such as “someone is strangling you”.
In addition to teasing the reboot of her Kotb performance, Dion also raised hopes in her recent Prime Video doc I am: Celine Dion, in which she spoke of her determination to perform again for her adoring fans. “If I can't run, I'll walk. If I can't walk, I'll crawl… I won't stop,” he said.
Check out Kotb talking Dion back on stage below (Dion's talk comes at 2:50).
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/culture/tv-film/hoda-kotb-celine-dion-almost-revealed-stage-return-interview-paris-olympics-1235727876/
