I'll Be (Celine Dion song) explained

"I'll Be" is a song by Canadian singer Celine Dion from the soundtrack album, Love Again (2023). It was written by John Ryan, Ross Golan, Jacob Kasher Hindlin and Ian Kirkpatrick, and produced by the American production duo Afterhrs under the direction by J Kash. "I'll Be" was released as a promotional single on 5 May 2023. The upbeat track received positive reviews from music critics and entered the sales charts, reaching number two in Quebec and number 25 in Canada.

Background and release

After releasing Courage in 2019 and embarking on the Courage World Tour, Dion joined the cast of the American romantic comedy-drama film directed by James C. Strouse, Love Again.^[1] Principal photography began in October 2020 and ended in early 2021.^[2] Dion recorded five new songs for the film, including "Love Again" released on 13 April 2023, her first new music in four years and since she revealed in December 2022 that she has been struggling with stiff-person syndrome.^[3] The second song, "I'll Be" was released on 5 May 2023.^[4] It was written by American songwriters John Ryan, Ross Golan, Jacob Kasher Hindlin and Ian Kirkpatrick, and produced by Afterhrs (a production duo from Los Angeles, consisting of Andrew Haas and Ian Franzino), under the direction by J Kash.^[5] In 2019, Golan also co-wrote "Lovers Never Die", which was recorded by Dion for her previous album, Courage.^[6] The Love Again soundtrack with 11 songs by Dion was released on 12 May 2023.

Critical reception

Larisha Paul from Rolling Stone gave the song a positive review and called it a "fittingly an alternate universe version of "My Heart Will Go On".^[7] She added that the chorus of "I'll Be", which promises "No, you won't be alone through the highs and the lows/You know you got me/Wherever you go", feels like a repackaging of "Near, far, wherever you are/I believe that the heart does go on", if only Titanic actually followed the story of a woman grieving her fiancé and a journalist assigned to profile Celine Dion and not two star-crossed lovers on a literal sinking ship.^[7]

Commercial performance

"I'll Be" debuted and peaked at number two on the Quebec Top Sales Songs chart. In the second week, it fell to number three.^[8] "I'll Be" also reached number 25 on the Canadian Digital Song Sales chart in its first week. The next week, it dropped to number 43.^[9]

Music video

The lyric video with clips from the film alongside photos and messages from fans around the world was released on YouTube on 5 May 2023.^[4]

Credits and personnel

Recording

• Recorded at Studio at the Palms (Las Vegas), Enemy Dojo (Calabasas) and Juicy Hill (Harbour Island)
• Mixed at MixStar Studios (Virginia Beach)

Personnel

• John Ryan – composer, lyricist
• Ross Golan – composer, lyricist
• Jacob Kasher Hindlin – composer, lyricist
• Ian Kirkpatrick – composer, lyricist
• Afterhrs – producer
• J Kash – producer
• Serban Ghenea – mixing engineer
• Bryce Bordone – assistant mix engineer
• Francois Lalonde – engineer for lead vocals
• Rob Katz – assistant engineer for lead vocals

Charts

Chart (2023)! scope="col"

Peak position
Canada Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[10]	25
Quebec Top Sales Songs (ADISQ)[11]	2

Release history

Region! scope="col"

Date	Format	Label
Various	5 May 2023		Columbia
Italy	26 May 2023	Contemporary hit radio		[12]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Sam Heughan, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Music Icon Celine Dion To Star In Romantic Drama For Screen Gems. Deadline Hollywood. Amanda. N'Duka. 27 October 2020. 22 May 2023. 19 November 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201119002247/https://deadline.com/2020/10/sam-heughan-priyanka-chopra-jonas-celine-dion-screen-gems-text-for-you-1234604056/. live.
2. Web site: 'Text For You': Russell Tovey, Omid Djalili, Arinze Kene & Celia Imrie Among Cast To Join Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Sam Heughan & Celine Dion. Deadline Hollywood. Andreas. Wiseman. 19 November 2020. 22 May 2023. 19 November 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201119161518/https://deadline.com/2020/11/priyanka-chopra-jonas-sam-heughan-movie-text-for-you-russell-tovey-celine-dion-cast-1234618724/. live.
3. Celine Dion Releases New Song "Love Again" Months After Announcing Rare Neurological Diagnosis. Mesfin. Fekadu. The Hollywood Reporter. 22 May 2023. 22 May 2023.
4. Web site: Céline Dion - I'll Be (Official Lyric Video). YouTube. 5 May 2023. 22 May 2023.
5. Web site: Love Again (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture). Apple Music. 22 May 2023.
6. Web site: Courage (Deluxe Edition). Apple Music. 22 March 2024.
7. Paul . Larisha . 5 May 2023 . Celine Dion Breaks Rom-Com Fourth Wall With 'Love Again' Soundtrack Cut 'I'll Be' . 23 May 2023 . Rolling Stone.
8. Web site: This week's top selling digital tracks based on the digital album sales in Quebec. ADISQ. 21 March 2024. 9 June 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230609141420/https://palmaresadisq.ca/en/top-sales/songs/week-20230523/.
9. Web site: Canadian Digital Song Sales. Billboard. 21 March 2024.
10. Canadian Digital Song Sales. Billboard. 22 May 2023.
11. Web site: This week's top selling digital tracks based on the digital album sales in Quebec. ADISQ. 22 May 2023. 21 May 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230521142118/https://palmaresadisq.ca/en/top-sales/songs/week-20230516/.
12. Web site: Celine Dion – "I'll Be" (Radio Date: 26/05/2023). radiodate.it. 2 June 2023.