Because its rules do not specify that competing artists must come from the country they represent, the Eurovision Song competition has had interesting agreements in its history. One of the most classic occurred in Dublin in April 1988, when Céline Dion occurred in the name of Switzerland – and won.
Dion herself was a little puzzled, writing in her autobiography, “My story, My Dream”, (2001): “Although the French Canadian, I represented the Swiss! And singing a song written by an Italian and a Turk. ” (She was close: the slatter, Nella Martinetti, was Swiss but spoke Italian; and the composer, Atilla Sereftug, was born in Türkiye but became a Swiss citizen.)
The song, “do not leave without me” (“don’t beft without me”), was a number in mid -tempo loaded with synth, and Dion – a 20 -year -old woman with perm hair at the time – was not a big fan, later writing that she found “too pompous”.
However, she won a victory in one of the most suspended finishes in the history of Eurovision: the British entry, the “Go” of Scott Fitzgerald, was the finalist in one point. (In her book, Dion is less focused on the competition than on what immediately followed – when she and her long -standing manager, René Angélil, have become romantically involved.)
“Do not leave without me” remains the last entry played in French to win Eurovision; France has not won since 1977. Switzerland waited until 2024 to win again, this time with “The Code” by Nemo, which is written in English – not one of the four official languages in Switzerland.
“Do not leave without me” only succeeded as single, but that has helped to extend the success of Dion beyond his bastions of Quebec and France – and there remains a favorite among the fans, who were worried about a possible surprise appearance in Basel for this year’s final.
She released her first album in English, “Unison”, in April 1990, and her song “Where do Doy My Heart Beat Now” was her first single to enter the top 10 in the United States. After that, world domination was almost his.
