Celine Dion’s exclusion from Rolling Stone’s ‘Greatest Singers List’ sparks outrage

NEW YORK

Fans cried foul last weekend when Rolling Stone left Celine Dion off the magazine’s 200 Greatest Singers of All Time list.
Announcing the roster on Twitter, the publication was already on the defensive, New York Post has reported

“Before you start scrolling (and commenting), keep in mind that this is the Greatest Singers list, not the Greatest Voices List,” the tweet said. “Talent is impressive; genius is transcendent.”

“Rolling Stone needs to immediately exit the business of music journalism,” said a Twitter user. Another added, “The fact that Céline Dion isn’t anywhere in the top 200 is a crime against humanity.”

“Respectfully, not including Celine Dion, arguably the best vocal technician of all time, in this list is borderline treasonous,” another user said.

Dion, 54, ranks among the highest selling solo artists in history, with more than 250 million albums sold. And her two Las Vegas residencies at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace, “A New Day” and “Celine,” grossed a combined $681 million.

There were other surprises on Rolling Stone’s list. Michael Jackson was ranked at a lowly No. 86, while Kurt Cobain got No. 36. Taylor Swift ranked at 102, well above Barbra Streisand, who snagged spot 147. And, like Dion, Judy Garland and Cher didn’t make the cut at all, yet heavy metal wailer Ozzy Osbourne did.

Rolling Stone’s Top 5 picks were: 1. Aretha Franklin, 2. Whitney Houston, 3. Sam Cooke, 4. Billie Holiday and 5. Mariah Carey.

Dion recently announced she is postponing several Europe tour dates after being diagnosed with a neurological disorder that doesn’t allow her “to sing the way I’m used to.”

The condition she has, stiff-person syndrome, is “a rare, progressive syndrome that affects the nervous system, specifically the brain and spinal cord,” according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.