Shania Twain will always be in our hearts, as she is the best-selling female singer in the annals of country music and among the greatest-selling musicians of all time.
Often dubbed the “Queen of Country Pop,” she took the world by storm in the 1990s and rose to fame.
Few, though, are aware of the difficulties she has had throughout life. Before her breakthrough, she was a malnourished and impoverished child. Not to mention that at the age of 22, an intolerable tragedy compelled her to take on new duties, radically changing her life.
rocky upbringing
On August 28, 1965, Eilleen Regina Edwards gave birth to Shania Twain in Windsor, Ontario. Later on, once Shania’s mother, Sharon, remarried a guy named Jerry Twain, she would change her last name.
Shania never identified her biological father in public because he wasn’t around when she was growing up. Jerry, on the other hand, decided to formally adopt Shania and her two sisters and nurture them.”Jerry, my father, went above and beyond to raise three children who weren’t even his. It would have devastated dad much for me to accept another man as my father—a man who never stood by me as a parent and who wasn’t the one who toiled day in and day out to put food on our table—said Shania at one point.
Taking everything into account, Shania had a challenging upbringing. She was raised in rural Timmins, Canada, in abject poverty; her family was not well off. Full-blooded Ojibway Jerry, her stepfather, struggled to support the family and had little money.
Shania and her sisters consequently didn’t always have food on the table. There were occasions when only “goulash,” a dish of dry bread, boiled milk, and brown sugar, was offered. Because her parents couldn’t afford decent boots, Shania was forced to wear bread sacks on her feet throughout Canada’s bitter cold winters.
But she never disclosed her predicament to anyone when she was a young girl. The future Queen of Country Pop was afraid that if she told the authorities about their struggles, they would be forced to divorce.
kept a “survivor mode”
In the meantime, Sharon and Jerry’s marriage had its share of difficulties. Once, Shania persuaded her mother to flee from Jerry, and the three of them made their way to a Toronto homeless shelter. But when Shania was sixteen, her mother went back to Jerry, and they made the decision to try again.
Shania described how the instability of her childhood home forced her to live in “survivor mode” well into adulthood. She didn’t think she could depend on her parents to take care of her consistently or to protect her.
At eighteen, Shania began performing in clubs as a way to supplement her income from home. Shania didn’t particularly enjoy performing it, but it was a bold step for a little child. However, she could also make up to $20 every night, which would have been a huge financial boost for her needy family.
“Music was my greatest love, and it was therapeutic. There were times when I felt like this was terrible. I detested hanging around with inebriated people at bars. However, I survived because I liked the music, she remarked in Shania Twain: The Biography.
In Canada, Shania found that performing in retirement communities and small-town taverns aided in the development of her stage vocabulary and talent exploration. She was soon prepared for a larger stage.
Shania had the opportunity to participate in the renowned country music variety show Tommy Hunter Show, which aired on CBC Television for 27 years, when she was 13 years old. It was a great chance for Shania to market herself as a country artist, and it was hosted by Tommy Hunter, dubbed “Canada’s Country Gentleman.”
Shania was a struggling singer-songwriter attempting to make a name for herself in the music business in the middle of the 1980s. When she was sixteen, she moved to Toronto with her first band, Longshot, but she left the band when she was twenty-one.
As time passed, an increasing number of people became aware of the gifted and lovely singer. Mary Bailey, a well-known country singer, was shocked to see Shania perform in Sudbury, Ontario.
“I was blown away when I saw this little girl playing a guitar up on stage.” She sang “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain” by Willie Nelson and “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry” by Hank Williams. Her voice had a lot of warmth and strength; it made me think of Tanya Tucker. Shania is a star and deserves a chance,” Bailey, who would go on to manage Shania, reminisced.
“After hearing her perform a couple of her own songs, I couldn’t help but wonder where this nineteen-year-old youngster gets her creative inspiration from. This comes from an individual who is sixty years old.
Shania had all the chance in the world in 1987 to become a successful country music artist. Big money and Nashville were waiting for her.
Then disaster struck, altering everything.
parents dying
Driving to a job site in the afternoon on November 1, 1987, Shania’s parents were traveling on a distant logging road.
Regretfully, they ran into a truck that was carrying lumber. Two sons and three girls were left behind when Jerry and Sharon perished in the collision.
After thirty years, Shania remarked, “I feel like I’ve been this tree with good sturdy roots, then all of a sudden someone comes along and is trying to cut me down, cut a part of me off.”
Shania was devastated to hear the news. She chose to go back to Timmins, where she was born. Shania had to take care of her younger siblings, who were 13 years old, 14 years old, and 18 at the time, rather than concentrating on her music career.
It was a really trying period. But it was also a watershed in my life, she told CBC, “bringing me up to where I should have been all along at that age and, I think, maturing me.”
She took care of them all by herself, making sure they had the assistance they required. Subsequently, Shania made the decision to relocate her siblings to Huntsville, Ontario. She was hired by the Deerhurst Resort to sing and dance there.
In 1995, Shania declared, “I was just going to give up music.”
“My family comes first,” I reasoned. I have to look after them. My future was the last thing on my mind. I’m fortunate that Deerhurst hired me because of my background in music. From then, I had no idea where I was going to go.
The path to fame
The stunning vocalist, who is known for her wonderful voice and trademark brown hair, honed her performing abilities while attending Deerhurst.
An executive at Mercury Nashville Records became interested in her tune when she recorded a demo tape. After receiving an invitation to Nashville, Shania Twain released her self-titled debut album in 1993. Although it wasn’t a commercial hit, reviewers gave it favorable reviews.
Mutt Lange, a record producer from South Africa, was one individual who was incredibly taken by what he heard. He was so taken aback, in fact, that he contacted Shania to inquire about producing and writing some music together.
They quickly grew close and began an extensive cooperation after meeting at Nashville’s Fan Fair in June 1993. The pair tied the knot six months later. Even though Shania was over ten years younger than Mutt, the couple clearly shared a strong bond. The Woman in Me (1995) and Come On Over (1997), the upcoming albums that would propel Shania into stardom, featured numerous hits that they co-wrote.
Over 12 million copies of The Woman in Me had been sold in the US by 2007. It was an immediate hit when it was released, making Shania Twain a household name.
“It turned out because we basically took a wild guess and went with our gut. I believe that record has something to offer everyone, Shania stated in a 1997 interview with The News Tribune.
Usually, Mutt composed the music while Shania wrote the lyrics. Having produced Come On Over, Mutt attempted to incorporate rock n’ roll riffs; he had previously collaborated with Def Leppard and AC/DC.
The result was a union of rock and country music that led to a global pop breakthrough and 40 million records sold. Many of Shania’s most well-known songs, such as “You’re Still The One” and “Man! I Feel Like A Woman,” were included in the 1997 album.
Shania said to The Associated Press, “In my mind, I was just being myself, and that was the great thing of all — to just be myself and let my personality come through in the music.”
Saying that “Shaniamania” swept through America in the late 1990s is not hyperbole. Come On Over is currently the best-selling country album in history and the ninth-highest-selling album of any genre in the US.
Shania Twain’s union
Shania and Mutt Lange welcomed a son on August 12, 2001. They gave him the name Eja, which is pronounced “Asia.” The media reported that Shania gave birth to her son in a Swiss hospital without any “media fanfare.”
Her pregnancy mirrored the grounded charm that won her praise from people around. Shania maintained secrecy and quiet, disclosing no information about Eja’s birth.
cried all the time
But a few years later, she would have to file for divorce in public, and less than ideal details surfaced in the press.
Rumors had dogged Twain’s marriage for a long time; some gossip columnists said the pair was having serious issues. In 1997, Shania addressed the allegations and refuted the couple’s impending divorce.
She remarked, “Mutt and I make an unlikely pair.”
“We are extremely happy, despite rumors in the media that we are divorcing. We adore one another unconditionally. We enjoy one other’s company both personally and creatively. We are feeling stronger than ever, and “Still the One” is a song about marriage that I wrote on my own.
However, Shania’s marriage to her husband ended in 2008. The cause? Marie-Anne Thiébaud, Shania’s closest friend, was the woman Lange had an affair with.
Naturally, Shania was utterly devastated. She claimed to take five baths a day and to cry all the time. The country music icon claimed that she was “ready to die.”
“To be really honest, your self-esteem can really suffer when your husband walks out on you and falls into the arms of a close friend,” the woman admitted.
Marie-Anne, who Shania considered a close friend, had initially worked with Mutt Lange as an interpreter and assistant. When Shania learned of the affair, she went up against her “friend.”
“All I could get out of her was that she was a bad person,” I said.I thought, “You’re such a wimp, you coward,” as I was leaving her.
spouse of Shania Twain
Things would soon take an even more unexpected turn. In an attempt to move past her heartbreak, Shania fell in love once more.
2011 saw Shania wed Marie-Anne’s former husband, businessman Frédéric Thiébaud. Overcoming their shared heartbreak, the couple got married in Puerto Rico in front of forty guests, the most of whom were close friends and family.
“I no longer take a day for granted. I have a fresh lease on love because of Fred,” Shania told the Daily Mail.
Shania declared that her husband of more than ten years is a genuine gift to her and that she had met “a true friend and a dear gentleman.” Fred took her on romantic trips when they first started dating. He once booked a whole movie theater for her, and he once flew her to a glacier in Switzerland.
It’s warped. So masterfully contorted,” she remarked.
I cannot describe my affection in words. Every day, my love for her grows,” Thiebaud continued.
Today’s Shania Twain
Shania Twain and her spouse have lived in Corseaux, Switzerland, for a considerable amount of time. The Queen of Country Pop is renowned for being infamously private and rarely does interviews.
She has put out multiple albums in recent years, each to differing degrees of success. She is currently entertaining “fans on a journey through her award-winning career with the best elements from her iconic videos and visual spectacles of her sold-out global tours” as part of her presentation in Las Vegas.
She has also made multiple appearances in films throughout the years as she has tried her hand at the film industry. She costarred with John Travolta in the 2019 film Trading Paint, and she played musician Jeremy Camp’s mother in the 2020 biographical film I Still Believe.
Even though Shania isn’t as frequent on the top lists these days, she has had a huge impact on mainstream culture. She was once the undisputed queen of country music and influenced singers like Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, and Britney Spears.
Even though we may not be aware of it, I believe Shania has had an impact on all of us. At the time, (her music) was quite groundbreaking and unlike anything else. For many of us, she undoubtedly cleared the path,” Carrie Underwood told AP in 2016.
On aging, Shania Twain
Shania’s choices of clothing and vintage supermodel appearances were also highly avant-garde. Readers of Hello! magazine chose her as the #1 Most Beautiful Canadian in 2009. The country music icon has been quite transparent about her beauty secrets throughout the years.
She reportedly meditates every day, consumes a lot of raw food, and is a vegetarian.
She remarked, “A happy face comes after a happy heart.”
The 57-year-old Shania also disclosed how she is coping with aging.
“I feel a little nervous about my evolving body. “I’m letting ‘the girls’ hang loose under my sweat clothes around the house, and I cross my arms under them for support when someone comes to the door,” she revealed to EW.
“I know it’s very different for everyone, but for me, it just started with time.” leaving conflicts that I was unable to win. She stated, “You know, aging is a battle you can’t win,” on the LadyGang podcast in 2020.
“That fight is eating up too much room, as is the concentration and energy required! My mental and emotional states in my life. I need to write some songs. “I’m not going to sit around,” Twain declared.
Do you like Shania Twain as well? She’s still really beautiful, in my opinion.
