Global icon Celine Dion was met with a hero’s welcome at the Grammy Awards on Sunday, when she was revealed to be the ceremony’s final surprise guest and the presenter of the award for Album of the Year. Dressed in a white dress and long coat, Dion walked onstage holding a male helper’s arm and was met with a standing ovation.
“When I say that I’m happy to be here, I really mean it in my heart,” Dion began, to another round of applause. “Those who are blessed enough to be here, [at] the Grammy Awards, must never take for granted the tremendous love and joy that music brings to our lives and to people all around the world.”
She then revealed Taylor Swift’s Midnight had won the accolade.
Earlier in the evening, Dion was spotted heading into the Crypto.com arena with her stylist, Law Roach. She has rarely been seen in public over the last four years due to medical issues.
After she rescheduled several dates on her world tour earlier that year due to “muscle spasms,” Dion revealed in December 2022 that she’d been diagnosed with incurable Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS). The rare condition can cause muscle rigidity and debilitating spasms that have a restrictive effect on mobility.
Dion’s sister said last September that the singer was “doing everything to recover,” but “it’s an illness we know so little about. There’s little we can do to support her, to alleviate her pain.”
Yet the Grammy and Oscar winner recently was able to give a short performance at a public event two months later, in November.
