Let’s take a moment and reminisce about the celebrity relationships, traumatic experiences and deaths that topped the 2016 Google searches in Canada.
10. Prince’s Death
This is definetly news that shocked the world: Prince was found dead at 57 in an elevator inside his Paisley Park home in April. Pills seized from his home contained the dangerously powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl but were mislabelled, according to reports. Speaking to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, officials investigating the artist's death said the pills were labelled as hydrocodone, a weaker type of opioid. Autopsy results released in June revealed Prince died of an accidental fentanyl overdose. Prince will definetly be missed, but his memory will live forever through this music.
9. Selena Gomez Checks Herself into Rehab
All that matters here is that Selena knew what she needed to do to take care of herself and she did it. This was the second time she checked into rehab (she checked in before in 2014 with the same issues, which she believes are caused by her lupus). She also mentioned that she had been spending too much time focusing on trying to make other people happy and not focusing on herself and that social media was toxic. What we’ll never forget though, was her touching speech at the 2016 AMAs where she said “I'm not trying to get validation nor do I need it anymore. All I can say is that from the bottom of my heart I'm so grateful to be able to share what I love every single day with the people that I love, And if that's anything, whether you respect me or not, that's one thing you should know about me, is that I care about people. If you feel broken, you don’t have to stay broken.”
8. Kanye West is Hospitalized
After abruptly canceling the rest of his Saint Pablo tour, Kanye West has reportedly been hospitalized in Los Angeles. According to People, NBC News and CNN, West was taken to UCLA Medical Center Monday to be treated for exhaustion. Since his release he seems to be okay, now sporting multi-coloured hair and recently tweeting a gorgeous picture of his family during the Holidays.
7. Brangelina Divorce
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt broke hearts the world over when Jolie filed for divorce on Sept. 19, 2016. The couple have been together 12 years, though only married for two, and share six children. Media scrutiny makes any relationship harder, and for a long time, these two courted it—remember that W magazine spread that came out while he and Aniston were still together? It looks like the press they loved so much in the beginning finally came back to bite them.
6. Leonard Cohen’s Death
The Canadian singer-songwriter died on November 7 at the age of 82. His death was confirmed a few days later in an announcement on his official Facebook page, which gave no details of the circumstances. On Wednesday, Cohen's manager, Robert Kory, said his death was unexpected. "Leonard Cohen died during his sleep following a fall in the middle of the night on November 7th," Cohen's manager Robert Kory said in a statement. "The death was sudden, unexpected and peaceful." RIP Leonard Cohen.
5. Kim Kardashian's Robbery
I’m sure we all remember the robbery that happened to Kim K while she was in Paris for Fashion Week. There was a lot of noise that this was a publicity stunt but there’s been a huge domino affect after this incident. Kim K just recently made her return to social media and there are still rumors that Keep Up With the Kardashians might be ended permanently for the family’s safety. I think this incident teaches us a really good lesson: be careful of what you’re putting out there to the public because not everyone who’s watching is a fan.
4. David Bowie’s Death
Bowie's team broke the tragic news that the icon had died following an 18-month battle with cancer onJanuary 10, 2016. He had turned 69, and released a new album, Blackstar, just two days prior. It was abosultely tragic, but David Bowie will always be remembered as an iconic singer/songwriter.
3. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Relationship
Meghan first met Prince Harry in Toronto (where Suits is filmed) while he was launching the 2017 Invictus Games back in May. According to Us Weekly, "They had gotten on when they first met but it was just as friends," but then "developed romantic interests in each other and, before you knew it, they were texting every day." By the end of the month, Meghan began following Harry's private Instagram account. PAUSE, he has a private IG account? BRB. Either way, they’re a seriously cute couple and we’re happy for them!
2. Gord Downie’s Cancer
Gord Downie, the lead singer and lyricist of the iconic Canadian rock band the Tragically Hip, announced he has terminal brain cancer, but still joined his bandmates of more than 30 years for a summer tour. Watch Gord’s final show as he says goodbye and try not to cry.
1. Taylor Swift and Tom Hiddleston's Relationship
Even though T-Swift didn’t release any new music this year (with the expectation of the collab with Zayn Malik), she still topped Canada’s top trending celebrity moments with her ex boyfriend Tom Hiddleston. They dated for three (very long) months and shared tons of #CoupleGoal pictures but now this relationship will just be another notch on Taylor Swift’s ex-boyfriend belt.
