Celine Dion Breaks Down, Donates Around $500,000 To Las Vegas Shooting Victims [Video]
Celine Dion is doing her bit for those affected by the horrific mass shooting in Las Vegas on October 1.
Dion, who has performed her residency show at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas since 2011, has given close to $500,000 to those in need following the recent massacre by announcing that she would be donating all the proceeds from her October 3 concert in the Nevada city to those in need.
Celine broke down in tears as she told the audience during her most recent residency show – which took place just two days after 59 people were murdered and at least 500 more injured at Route 91 Harvest festival – that every dollar she made from that concert would be going to the victims and their families.
“On Sunday we lost too many beautiful, innocent souls, and so many are still suffering,” the singer told concertgoers during the show according to E! News. “Tonight we’re going to let these families know that we are supporting them and that we will help them through their tragic loss.”
She then announced that she would be dedicating the concert to “all of the victims and their families, and to the first responders, and to the doctors and nurses who are working around the clock to save lives.”
Celine also said that she was dedicating her emotional performance “to so many heroes who did whatever they could to help complete strangers in a time of desperate need” and explained that she decided to go ahead with her concert on Tuesday night to show “love and support to those affected.”
Photos and videos from concertgoers also showed the mom of three crying as she addressed the crowd before then performing an emotional rendition of her hit “I Surrender.”
Twitter user Mike Sington posted photos of Dion wiping away tears as she spoke and confirmed that she “broke down” while performing an “emotional tribute to shooting victims.”
Celine Dion breaks down on-stage in Las Vegas during emotional tribute to shooting victims. Donates all proceeds from show to the families. pic.twitter.com/L1O17Il9eT
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) October 4, 2017
Celine didn’t explicitly confirm how much money she would be donating from the concert, though Telegraph reported in 2013 that the legendary singer makes around $476,000 per show every time she hits the Las Vegas stage for her hugely popular Caesars Palace residency.
That figure suggests the star is likely donating close to half a million dollars to the victims of the Las Vegas shooting.
Photos from the concert on October 4 posted online by fans also showed that Celine flashed up #VegasStrong signs during the show.
Celine Dion is donating all proceeds from tonight’s show to the victims of the Sunday shooting. Love will always win. #VegasStrong pic.twitter.com/eyGzOqHoY6
— Laura Major (@lauragmajor) October 4, 2017
Dion’s concerts at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace take place just a few minutes down the famous Las Vegas strip from the Mandalay Bay resort, which is where a gunman opened fire on concert goers on October 1.
Celine also shared a heartfelt message for all those affected by the tragedy shortly after news of the shooting was announced.
The singer posted a message in both her native language French and English to Instagram where she confirmed that she was praying for all those caught up in the horror, though it’s not clear if the star was in the city at the time.
“Praying for all the innocent victims and their families in Las Vegas,” Dion wrote on the social media site. Celine then captioned her heartfelt statement with the hashtags #lasvegas and #prayforlasvegas.
[Featured Image by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney]
