Celine Dion fans express outrage over Rolling Stone snub

On New Year's Day, Rolling Stone dropped its “200 Greatest Singers Of All Time” ranking, and some impressive names made the cut. Beyoncé. Lady Gaga. Leonard Cohen. We have no argument here.

But where we and millions of fans around the world draw the line is the exclusion of our Québécoise Queen with the pipes that launched a thousand Titanics: Celine Dion. Yes, it’s all coming back to us now, and Rolling Stone is facing a huge backlash.

It would seem that Rolling Stone anticipated the backlash before even publishing the massive ranking because, in their article, they prefaced the entire list with, “Before you start scrolling (and commenting), keep in mind that this is the Greatest Singers list, not the Greatest Voices List. Talent is impressive; genius is transcendent.”

Are they trying to imply that the “Where Does My Heart Beat Now” songstress is just…. A voice? Fans are not having it. 

Several readers were upset by the fact that some of the singers who made the list — like BTS's Jung Kook, SZA, and Billie Eilish — are seemingly too young and new in their careers to qualify as legends, taking up space from those who are established artists. 

"A genuinely pathetic list that has lightweights like Burna Boy, Brandy, Billie Eilish, Taylor Swift, SZA, etc, but not Tony Bennett, Celine Dion, Nat King Cole etc...Did you have a bunch of 14 year olds come up with this list? Is this a list of the last six months?" one fan tweeted. 

Honestly, where’s the lie?

The snub also comes at the most inopportune time, as the “Because You Loved Me” songstress just announced in December that she has been diagnosed with “stiff person syndrome” after months of medical issues and having to postpone her European tour.

In an emotional IG video, she revealed her condition is a rare neurological disorder that affects "something like one in a million people.” To add insult to injury, the condition also affects her ability to sing and perform. 

She welled up, adding, "I've been dealing with problems with my health for a long time, and it's been really difficult for me to face these challenges and to talk about everything that I've been going through." She canceled several of her summer 2023 shows, and postponed her spring 2023 shows to 2024. She noted that she's prioritizing her recovery.

Despite everything that “The Power of Love” crooner has endured lately, fans are also gushing about their undying devotion to her, and that’s something that surely will overshadow any silly magazine ranking.

And that’s the way it is!