Celine Dion To Receive ICON Award & Cover Queen At Billboard Music Awards

Celine Dion is making an iconic return to television.  

The singer will be honored with this year’s ICON Award at
the Billboard Music Awards, Billboard announced on Wednesday. Celine will be
the fifth artist to receive the prize since 2011, joining previous ICONs Neil
Diamond, Stevie Wonder, Prince and Jennifer Lopez.

In a statement released to Access Hollywood, Billboard
described the ICON as one of its
“most prestigious” awards, and referred to Celine as one of the most
“immediately recognized, widely respected and successful performers
in pop music history.”

Celine Dion
(Getty Images)

The ICON is
“a lifetime achievement award that honors the cultural impact of an artist whose extraordinary
talent as a creator and entertainer has stood the test of time,”
Billboard’s statement continued.

In addition to receiving
the ICON, Celine will also take the stage to perform a “special rendition”
of Queen’s classic “The Show Must Go
On,” a song which Billboard Music Awards executive producer Mark Bracco
said holds personal significance for the superstar.

WATCH: Celine Dion’s Touching Farewell To Husband Rene Angelil 

“Celine Dion has a huge
repertoire of monster hits and she personally chose to perform ‘The Show Must
Go On’ as her ICON performance on the Billboard Music Awards,” Bracco said
in a statement. “I think at this moment in her life, the song has many
meanings and it’s an amazing choice.”

Celine has sold
nearly 250 million albums throughout her three-decade career, earning five
Grammy Awards, six Billboard Music Awards and two Academy Awards along the way.
Her husband and manager of more than 20 years, Rene Angelil, passed away in
January after a long battle with throat cancer.

Celine’s Billboard
appearance will mark the first time she’s performed on television since Rene’s
death.

The Billboard
Music Awards air live from Las Vegas on Sunday, May 22 at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT on ABC. 

— Erin Biglow

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