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"My Heart Will Go On", also called the "Love Theme from Titanic", is the main
to 's blockbuster film . Its music was composed by , its lyrics were written by , and it w
recorded and released it.
Originally released in 1997 on Dion's album
and the , the romantic song went to number 1 all over the world, including the United States, Canada, Ireland, United Kingdom and Australia. "My Heart Will Go On" was released in Australia and Germany on December 8, 1997, and in the rest of the world in January and February 1998.
The song became Dion's biggest hit, and one of the
of all time, and was the world's best-selling single of 1998. The music video was directed by
and released at the end of 1997. Due to the song's widespread popularity when it was released, it is considered to be Dion's . It was also included in the list of , by the
had originally composed the music for the song as an instrumental motif which he used in several scenes during ; the main theme of the song being inspired by the song Flying Dutchman by . He then wanted to prepare a full vocal version of it, for use in the end credits of the film. Lyricist Will Jennings was hired, who wrote the lyrics "from the point of view of a person of a great age looking back so many years." Director
did not want such a song, but Will Jennings went ahead anyway and wrote the lyrics. When Dion originally heard the song, she did not want to record it as she felt she was pushing her luck by singing another film theme song after . Horner showed the piano sketch to , who was working with him on electronic textures and synthesizers for the film score. Franglen, who had, himself, worked with Dion for several years on many of her major hits to date, programmed and arranged an extensive demo to take to Dion.
In Hitmaker: The Man and His Music by , he claims that Dion recorded the song in one take, and that demo is what was released. Mottola states that since so much money was on the line for Cameron's film that Cameron felt obligated to include a theme song to promote the movie.[]
Dion's manager and husband
convinced her to sing on this demo version, which she had not done for many years. Horner waited until Cameron was in an appropriate mood before presenting him with the song. After playing it several times, Cameron declared his approval, even though he worried that he might be criticized for "going commercial at the end of the movie". Cameron also wanted to appease anxious studio executives and "saw that a hit song from his movie could only be a positive factor in guaranteeing its completion."
The song is written in the key of , though the chorus is in the
of . The verses follow the chord progression of E—Bsus4—Aadd9—E—B. The chorus has the chord progression of C?m—B—A—B. The song modulates to
in the final chorus, and ends in the key of . It contains heavy emphasis on the instrumental arranging. Usage of
is prominent, backed by melodic use of
The original Horner/Franglen produced "demo" version of the ballad runs a little over five minutes and has an extended ending with longer, segmented vocalizations by Dion. Franglen mixed the final film and soundtrack version, expanding on the demo and adding orchestra to the final chorus. It is this version that appears on the Titanic soundtrack album and is also played over the
of the film.
When the single was to be released to radio, it was produced further by
who added string and electric guitar, as well as rearranged portions of the song. This version, which runs a little over four and a half minutes, appears on both the 4-track maxi single and Dion's album Let's Talk About Love. At the height of the song's popularity, some radio stations in the US and the UK played an edited version of the song, that had dramatic moments of dialog from the Jack and Rose lead characters in the film inserted in between Dion's vocal lines.
"My Heart Will Go On" received mixed reviews from contemporary critics, but later on received a cult following with positive reviews.
senior editor
in album wrote that this song "shines the most brilliantly" and marked it as a standout track. In an AllMusic review for single editor Heather Phares, rating the single 4 out 5 stars, wrote: "Indeed, her performances of it on VH1 Divas, the 1998 Academy Awards (wearing the film's "Heart of the Ocean" pendant, no less), and on her 1997 album Let's Talk About Love have cemented "My Heart Will Go On" as the quintessence of Dion's sweeping, romantic style." However, not all the reception "My Heart Will Go On" received was positive. Despite the song's immense popularity,
readers rated it the 7th worst song of the '90s in 2011, writing "Celine Dion's song and the movie have aged very poorly...Now [the song] probably just makes you cringe".
described the song as an "emotional power ballad that perfectly captured [Titanic's] romantic yearning". Vulture admitted that song had "“one of the most glorious key changes in recorded music history." Washington Post appreciated how the song was not just tagged on the end of the 3 hour film, but has a lyrical motif that was already placed throughout the key moments of the film's love story in order to create a musical narrative.
As "My Heart Will Go On" proved not to be popular with the readers of
magazine nor did it become popular with , who played Rose DeWitt Bukater – the notional protagonist of the song – in the film. She admitted that the song made her feel "like throwing up", due to people's tendency to start playing it when she was around: "I wish I could say, 'Oh listen, everybody! It's the Celine Dion song!' But I don't. I just have to sit there, you know, kind of straight-faced with a massive internal eye roll." Vulture explained that it has become fashionable to hate on the song, as it "encapsulates most everything that once-enthusiastic moviegoers now dislike about Titanic: It's outdated, cheesy, and overly dramatic". The Atlantic noted that over the years there have been many jokes that parody the song's lyrics by claiming "My Heart Will Go On" goes "on and on and on". Maxim deemed it "the second most tragic event ever to result from that fabled ocean liner".
"My Heart Will Go On" won the
. It dominated the , winning
— marking the first time to be won by a Canadian — ,
and . "My Heart Will Go On" won also the
for "Best Original Song – Motion Picture" in 1998.
The song also won a Japanese Gold Disc Award, for Song of the Year, as well as a
for Soundtrack Single of the Year.
In a 2006 poll for a program on
called Britain's Favourite Break-up Songs, "My Heart Will Go On" was voted tenth. It has been named one of the . It is one of the , selling over a million copies, the second single released by Dion to do so. This made Dion the only female artist to date to have released two million-selling singles in Britain. It was ranked at number 14 on , celebrating the 100 greatest songs in American film history. In April 2010, the UK radio station
voted the single the "top movie song of all time" after listeners's votes. In December 2007, the song peaked #21 on 's "100 Greatest Songs of the 90's".
"My Heart Will Go On" became Dion's biggest hit and one of the best-selling singles in history, having sold more than 15 million copies worldwide. In the United States, the song was given a limited number of copies - 658,000. Regardless, it debuted at number-one on the , with sales of 360,000 copies, where it stayed for two weeks. In addition, the song spent ten weeks at number-one on the , and was number one for two weeks on the . As a testament to the popularity of the song on the radio, the song broke the record for the then-largest radio audience ever, garnering 117 million listeners in February 1998. The single was eventually certified gold in the United States.
reported that the digital copy of the single has sold 1,133,000 units since being available bringing total sales to 1,791,000 copies sold in the US.
In addition "My Heart Will Go On" reached number one in several other U.S. charts, including, Billboard's , , Hot Latin Pop Airplay, and . For the latter, the single became the first English-language song to top the Hot Latin Tracks chart, to which Dion was given a
for that achievement.
Internationally, the song was phenomenally successful, spending many weeks at the top position in various countries, including 17 weeks on the , 15 weeks in Switzerland, 13 weeks in
and Germany, 11 weeks in the Netherlands and Sweden, ten weeks in Belgium Wallonia, Denmark, Italy, and Norway, seven weeks in Belgium Flanders, six weeks in Ireland, four weeks in Australia and Austria, two weeks in Spain and the United Kingdom, and one week in Finland.
In Germany, "My Heart Will Go On" was certified 4x platinum for selling over two million copies, and was ranked as one of the most popular singles ever released there. It sold over 1.2 million copies in France, being certified Diamond. Additionally, the song was certified 3× Platinum in Belgium, 2× Platinum in Australia, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland, Platinum in Greece, and Gold in Austria. "My Heart Will Go On" was released twice in Japan. The regular edition from January 1998 sold 205,300 and was certified 2× Platinum, for 200,000 copies sold. The remixed edition released in June 1998 sold 111,920 copies and was certified Gold for 100,000 copies sold, due the fact that maxi-singles are treated as an album.
In the United Kingdom, the song sold 1.5 million copies, becoming Dion's second million-selling single in Britain following "" in 1995 and Britain's second best-selling single of 1998 behind 's "". This made her the only solo female artist to have two million-selling singles in Britain, a record which stood until early 2012 when 's singles "" (2010) and "" (2011) both topped a million sales.
The song was included on the
DVD and on the Titanic (Three-Disc Special Collector's Edition) DVD release in October 25, 2005. In addition to Dion's
soundtrack, "My Heart Will Go On" appears on several other albums, including , , , , , , , and . It was also included on the DVDs for , , , and .
It was included later on the
second soundtrack album. In France, "My Heart Will Go On" was released as a double A-side single with "". In the Let's Talk about Love album booklet, the lyrics of the song contain an additional line between a second chorus and the final verse. The words "There is some love that will not go away" are not performed by Dion in any available version of the song, however, they are still included on Dion's official site.
The song became "imprinted on the movie's legacy", and every listen prompts a reminder of the blockbuster and the hype surrounding it. USAToday agreed that the song will be forever tied to the film Titanic. The Washington Post says it is the marriage of music and image that make both the song and film greater than the sum of their parts.
After the song had become a huge worldwide hit, many movie studios and record labels tried to duplicate the process. Although many soundtrack singles had become hits before "My Heart Will Go On", a string of similar songs followed afterward, such as 's "" from
and 's "" from
(both of which directed by ). Each followed in the footsteps of the "Titanic" theme, a love ballad for a tragedy. Although those two songs became hits, they did not achieve the same success of "My Heart Will Go On".
Horner himself repeated the formula of making a song from his film themes with films such as , , , and .
The Atlantic noted that its popularity didn't stem from being played at events such as high school proms, weddings, and funerals, but by being indelibly placed into pop culture through numerous plays on the radio station, speakers, and passing cars.
Reportedly, the song was playing when the Costa Concordia crashed into rocks and sank.
Celine Dion has said retrospectively "My Heart Will Go On gave me the opportunity to be associated with a classic that will live forever".
European CD single
"My Heart Will Go On" – 4:40
"" – 4:33
European CD single #2
"My Heart Will Go On" – 4:40
"My Heart Will Go On" ( mix) – 4:20
French CD single
"" – 5:01
"My Heart Will Go On" – 4:40
French CD single #2
"My Heart Will Go On" – 4:40
"Southampton" – 4:02
French CD single #3
"My Heart Will Go On" – 4:40
"My Heart Will Go On" (Tony Moran mix) – 4:21
Japanese CD single
"My Heart Will Go On" – 4:40
"" – 4:04
UK cassette single
"My Heart Will Go On" – 4:40
"I Love You" – 5:30
US CD single and Cassette
"My Heart Will Go On" – 4:40
"Rose" – 2:52
Australian/Brazilian/European/UK/Korean CD maxi single
"My Heart Will Go On" – 4:40
"Because You Loved Me" – 4:33
"" – 4:19
"Beauty and the Beast" – 4:04
Australian CD maxi single #2
"My Heart Will Go On" (Tony Moran mix) – 4:21
"My Heart Will Go On" (Richie Jones mix) – 4:15
"My Heart Will Go On" (Soul Solution) – 4:18
"" (The Serious mix) – 4:59
"" (Underground vocal mix) – 7:10
Brazilian CD maxi single #2
"My Heart Will Go On" (Cuca's radio edit) – 4:22
"My Heart Will Go On" (Tony Moran's anthem edit) – 4:21
"My Heart Will Go On" (Richie Jones unsinkable edit) – 4:15
"My Heart Will Go On" (Tony Moran's anthem vocal) – 9:41
European CD maxi single #2 / UK 12" single
"My Heart Will Go On" – 4:40
"My Heart Will Go On" (Tony Moran mix) – 4:21
"My Heart Will Go On" (Richie Jones mix) – 4:15
"My Heart Will Go On" (Soul Solution) – 4:18
Japanese/Korean CD maxi single
"My Heart Will Go On" (Tony Moran mix) – 4:21
"My Heart Will Go On" (Richie Jones mix) – 4:15
"My Heart Will Go On" (Soul Solution) – 4:18
"My Heart Will Go On" (Richie Jones unsinkable club mix) – 10:04
"My Heart Will Go On" (Matt & Vito's unsinkable epic mix) – 9:53
UK CD maxi single #2
"My Heart Will Go On" (soundtrack version) – 5:11
"" – 4:12
"" – 5:55
"" – 4:32
Chart (1997–98)
Australia ()
Austria ()
Belgium ( Flanders)
Belgium ( Wallonia)
Canada Top Singles ()
Canada Adult Contemporary ()
Denmark ()
Finland ()
Germany ()
Ireland ()
2-track single
5-track Dance Mixes
Netherlands ()
Netherlands ()
New Zealand ()
Charted solely on airplay
Scotland ()
Switzerland ()
UK Singles ()
Chart (1990–99)
Austria (?3 Austria Top 40)
France (SNEP)
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)
Chart (1998)
Australia (ARIA)
Austria (?3 Austria Top 40)
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)
Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)
France (SNEP)
Germany (Official German Charts)
Italy (Hit Parade)
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)
Netherlands (Single Top 100)
Norway Spring Period (VG-lista)
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)
US Billboard Hot 100
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)
US Hot Latin Songs (Billboard)
US Hot Soundtrack Singles (Billboard)
US Tropical Airplay (Billboard)
Australia (ARIA)
Austria (?3 Austria Top 40)
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)
France (SNEP)
Ireland (IRMA)
Italy (Hit Parade)
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)
This section needs additional citations for . Please help
by . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March 2014) ()
On September 11, 2010, Matthew Wilkening of
ranked the song No. 11 on his list of the "100 Worst Songs Ever", while stating a new rule: "From now on, the Canadian warbler, and not the captain, has to go down with this ship." This was in reference to the Titanic itself.
The song was also featured as an episode title for the
in 2011. The episode featured the angel Balthazar going back in time to stop the Titanic from sinking and save its passengers. He (facetiously) claims that he did it purely because he hated the song and wanted to remove the reason for its existence. He mentioned that Dion had become a "destitute lounge singer" in Quebec as a result.
The song appears in the
film , in a parodical sequence wherein the eponymous character and his gay lover strip and embrace in front of an irate crowd towards the end of the movie.
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