Kelly Clarkson says Céline Dion’s praise after “My Heart Will Go On” cover is a full-circle momentKelly Clarkson says Céline Dion’s praise after “My Heart Will Go On” cover is a full-circle moment

Weiss Eubanks/NBC Universal

Kelly Clarkson performed “My Heart Will Go On” during the “Kellyoke” segment of her talk show in September, and on Tuesday Céline Dion responded to the performance in an Instagram video, raving, “You were absolutely incredible, fantastic!” Kelly has since responded to Céline’s response and described why it means so much to her.

Kelly says in an Instagram video, “I cried … it blew me away, but what really hit me was — OK, 22 years ago on American Idol, I got laryngitis. Everybody got sick one week, ’cause they worked us ragged … that was the week that I had laryngitis, I had to sing Céline Dion’s ‘I Surrender All.'”

“I bawled that night because I’m just mortified that Céline Dion is going to see this performance. I could’ve cared less about votes at that point,” Kelly recalls. “I just didn’t want Céline Dion [to] or hear this, ’cause it was so bad, ’cause I was sick!”

“And cut to 22 years later, I finally got a Céline Dion performance and I felt like I sang it all right, y’know?” she laughs.  “I didn’t have laryngitis. I wasn’t sick. And I got to honor someone who is such a hero to me vocally — like, she is one of my main inspirations of why I’m a singer.”

“And she watched it and I did good,” Kelly continues. “And I feel like I made my 19-year-old self very proud.”

“She should come on the show!” Kelly concludes, referring to her Emmy-winning talk show. “She said on the video … ‘I hope to see you soon.’ Where do you want me to be? Where do you want me to be? I will be there!”

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.