Celine Dion says she feels "stronger" as she takes on new projects following husband Rene Angelil's death.
ET's Cameron Mathison caught up with the 48-year-old singer in Las Vegas on Tuesday as she promoted the launch of "The Celine Dion Collection" of handbags, luggage and accessories with the Bugatti Group, where she opened up about how creating the collection helped her through a difficult year, and how Angelil will always be with her.
"[The collection is] not something we had talked about, but I'm pretty sure he would be very proud because my husband is… we've always been 50/50 together in everything that I've done in my life," Dion explained of the new line, which was unveiled at PROJECT WOMEN in Las Vegas on Tuesday, and will be available at select retailers across the globe in September.
"When he left, he came inside of all of my kids' hearts and mine, he gave the rest of his 50 percent for me to be complete, to continue the rest of my life, to feel strong and to believe that I can still do this and he will always be with me," she continued, tearing up.
Angelil died last January after a long battle with throat cancer, and while Dion says the year following his death was definitely "tough," she now feels "stronger" than ever.
"I feel stronger," the "Power of Love" singer revealed. "He gave me the rest of him. I feel stronger, I step forward. I say what I mean, I mean what I say. I stand up for my kids and I feel like I'm the leader of the family."
"My oldest, 16, is not the man of the house [because] you have to have your own dreams. And the twins, they didn't suffer because I told them the truth," she said. "They didn't see my husband the last three years of their life, so they didn't get to know him so well. I was so confident in the way that I presented them the passing of their dad. [I told them that] he was going to be with us in a different way [and] I didn't have the rebound of that."
Taking on more responsibility has interestingly given Dion more confidence in expressing herself.
"Now I have to stand up for myself and say, 'I'm not sure. I need time,'" she confessed, "and I take more time, because before, I didn't even have any questions."
"He said,' We do this. We go on tour. This is what we do. This TV show, not this one.' He was on top of it… he was my husband and my manager," she explained. "Today it's like, 'Let me pause on that, and I'll come back to you.'"
Though Dion is definitely capable of taking charge -- she announced her new European tour last month -- Angelil will still be with her through it all.
See the singer's sweet tribute to Angelil on the first anniversary of his death in the video below.
