You’d assume that a gig like opening the Olympic Games would bring in millions, right?
Well, Canadian singer Celine Dion didn’t earn anything, in dollars or euros, for her breathtaking performance in the Paris 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony.
So technically, the kids running a lemonade stand in your neighborhood on Friday (July 26) earned more money than one of the most renowned names in the music industry.
The Olympics commenced with a spectacular show over the weekend, featuring USA’s flag bearers, basketball icon Lebron James and tennis legend Coco Gauff, who glided down the River Seine alongside the nation’s other 590 Olympians.
The ceremony concluded with Dion’s dazzling rendition of Edith Piaf’s ‘L’Hymne A L’Amour’ from the Eiffel Tower, marking her first performance since publicly revealing her battle with ‘stiff person’ syndrome, which led her to cancel her world tour.
Initially, a report from a prominent US publication erroneously claimed that the 56-year-old singer would receive a staggering $2 million for performing just one song at the opening of this summer’s games.
This enormous sum seemed believable until the Olympics’ organizers debunked the claims.
A statement issued by the Olympics read: “Contrary to information relayed in the media, the performers who will perform during the Paris 2024 Games ceremonies will not receive a fee for their performance.
“This commitment on their part – under these conditions – reflects their desire to participate in a historic event for France and for the world of sport.
“Furthermore, Paris 2024 will cover all technical production and performance organization costs, as is customary.”
The statement continued: “Paris 2024 reminds that the budget of the organizing committee is 96 percent financed by private funding and that at no time do public contributions pay the artistic teams.”
So there you have it, Dion did it for free, and who could blame her? What an incredible honor it would be to perform at the most historic competition on Earth.
This news follows the five-time Grammy winner’s discussion about her ongoing health battle in her recent documentary I Am: Distressing footage of her having a seizure – which lasted for minutes – is featured in the documentary, a scene that shocked and saddened viewers.
Dion was informed by a therapist that the seizure occurred due to her brain being ‘overstimulated’ in the recording studio.
So perhaps Dion saw the Olympic gig as a chance to make a bit of history by doing what she loved, despite concerns about her health.
Viewers of the Opening Ceremony would have also noticed that Lady Gaga performed, and she too did not receive a payment for the event.