Background
After the farewell millennium concert on December 31, 1999 in Montreal, Dion decided to take a break from the public scene for two years to focus on her family. On January 25, 2001, she gave birth to René-Charles Angelil, her first son. Since then, she has performed publicly only a handful of times, including September 21, 2001, when she sang a live rendition of "God Bless America" at the America: A Tribute to Heroes telethon honoring victims of the September 11 attacks, and September 28 for Montreal's companion fund-raiser, A Show for Life, singing "L'amour existe encore."
According to Dion, the album's title, A New Day Has Come, acknowledged a chapter in her life and career. However, she was also deeply affected by the events of September 11 and wanted the words to serve as a reminder of the tragedy as well. "It represents my child, because I gave life," Dion said. "Obviously, it also marks my return with a new album. But a new day has also come in the lives of other people because something bad has happened, because we've lost lives, because there's a scar on our world now." Dion struggled over an appropriate image for the cover of the album, feeling that a portrait reflecting her good fortune was in poor taste. She suggested to Sony Music Entertainment that the album cover not include her picture. However, after much discussion, the photo shoot for A New Day Has Come took place in Montreal in late December 2001 with well-renowned photographer Melvin Sokolsky. On January 30 and 31, 2002 an additional photo session for the album took place in Florida, on a beach near Dion's home by the French photographer Patrick Demarchelier. The album cover for A New Day Has Come by Demarchelier was released on February 28, 2002.
Angélil, Dion, and the Sony family began fielding songs at the beginning of 2001, and on August 28, 2001 she started recording vocal tracks for nearly two dozen songs at Montreal's Piccolo Studios. Because of Dion's unwillingness to leave her seven-months old baby, the album's collaborators traveled to Montreal. "I didn't feel the pressure to try and outdo anything," Dion said of her time in the studio. "I proved myself before, so now I can enjoy. I was relaxed, I just let go. It was such a pleasure. I love these songs: they touch me, I'm happy, let me sing to you my joys and emotions. I've never felt more powerful." I want this album to be soothing," Dion suggested. "If people need a partner, a helping hand, to cry, to dance, whatever it is, I want it to be like a little shoulder to lean on. As we all know, the world is going through a lot." The album was scheduled for release internationally on March 25, 2002 and in North America on March 26, 2002. However, it was first released in Australia, on March 22, 2002.
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