Shania Twain, the Canadian country music icon, has reflected on the highs and lows of her career as she marks the release of her seventh studio album, *Little Miss Twain*. The record, released last month, signals a return to the country roots that shaped her early life and catapulted her to international fame.
Twain’s journey began in Nashville, Tennessee, where signing her name at a roundtable session set the stage for a career that would reshape the country music landscape. Married in 1993 to producer Robert John “Mutt” Lange, the pair collaborated on the highly successful album *Come On Over* and welcomed their son, Eja, in 2001.
Her rising trajectory faced significant challenges in 2003 during the *Up!* tour, when a tick bite led to Lyme disease and the development of dysphonia, a voice disorder that required open-throat surgery. For years, the cause of her voice issues remained unclear, and Twain feared she might never sing again. In her Netflix documentary *Not Just a Girl*, she said, “My voice was never the same again. I thought I lost my voice forever. I thought that was it; I would never, ever sing again.” Despite this, she managed to rebuild her voice, acknowledging it would never be identical to before but that she has embraced her “new voice.”
Twain’s personal life also underwent upheaval when her marriage to Lange ended in 2010 following his affair with her best friend, Marie-Anne Thiebaud. The following year, Twain married Frederic Thiebaud, Marie-Anne’s former husband. The couple now primarily reside in Switzerland.
In addition to music, Twain has explored acting, making her film debut opposite John Travolta in the 2018 drama *Trading Paint* and appearing as a grieving mother in the 2020 movie *I Still Believe*. Now 60 years old, Twain continues to inspire a new generation of musicians. Country singer Orville Peck credited her with making him feel safe as a child, while pop star Harry Styles, who invited Twain to wish his mother a happy birthday by phone due to her influence on his upbringing, has become a long-standing friend.
Twain was recently in London, opening for Styles during his 12-night Wembley Stadium residency, coinciding with her friend Taylor Swift’s wedding in New York. Swift, now 36, has openly expressed deep admiration for Twain, calling her the reason she pursued music and describing a starstruck first meeting in 2008. Swift lauded Twain as “the most impressive and independent and confident and successful female artist to ever hit country music.”
As Twain continues to perform and release new work, she remains an influential figure in country music, known for both her distinctive voice and her resilience in overcoming personal and professional challenges.