SHANIA’S FEAR
THE SUPERSTAR OPENS UP ON BETRAYAL AND HER COMEBACK
Country superstar reveals, ‘I thought I’d never sing again’
Shania Twain is an icon. There’s no doubt about it. She’s sold more than 100 million records, which has, in turn, made her the best-selling country female artist of all time, and she has won five Grammys.
So when we meet her in an LA hotel room, we’re a little taken aback. Nestled between enormous bouquets of white roses, we find a small, softlyspoken woman wearing her teenage son’s hoody and a pair of leggings. Her face, however, is made up to superstar standards, with long false eyelashes and a coiffedbarnet that suggests she’s ready to pick up her gee-tar at the drop of a hat.
It’s been 15 years since Shania (52) put aside her crop tops and began a life that was quiet in more ways than one. Moving to Switzerland with her young son Eja and then husband Robert “Mutt” Lange, Shania’s voice had begun to deteriorate to the extent that she could no longer even call for her dog.
Then, 10 years ago, she discovered Mutt was having an affair with her best friend Marie-Anne. But in a plot that resembles a soap opera,
Shania is now happily married to Marie-Anne’s former husband Fred.
Shania, who lost both her mum and stepfather in a car crash at the age of 22, and spent several years bringing up her younger siblings, is nothing if not a survivor. She’s had surgery to repair nerve damage near her vocal chords after a tick gave her Lyme disease, and she’s back with a world tour and an album full of songs that stick a middle finger up at her ex.
“Does my voice sound deeper? It does, doesn’t it?” she asks, distractedly stroking a fresh scar on her neck left by the surgery. She’s open and upfront – when talking about her tougher moments of the last few years, her eyes are teary, but when she laughs, it’s a headback, raucous sort of belly laugh that has us laughing too. She wraps her hands around a cup of herbal tea, leans forward and discusses everything from peeing herself on stage as a kid to not giving her son birthday presents.
Welcome back to the world stage! Did you always know you’d make a big comeback?
I thought I’d never sing again. At first I was looking forward to a rest. I’d had a baby, I wanted to make a nest and relax − to be a mum and a wife, and not even write songs. I wanted to plant flowers and ride horses. It was awesome, but then my voice still didn’t come back.
How bad was it?
I couldn’t even call out for my dog. If I wanted to be loud, my voice came out screechy. Some doctors told me it was psychological and losing my voice was tied into how I was feeling at the time. I’m angry about that because they sent me barking up the wrong tree.
What was the cause?
It was nerve damage from Lyme disease. I saw a tick fall off me and got treated right away, otherwise the damage would have been a lot more extensive. I was on tour and almost fell off the stage every night because I was so dizzy. I felt lucky when I found out the cause because the disease can go to your brain or heart.
Did you embrace your years out of the limelight – baking cookies, gardening?
[Laughs] I’ve always done all of that. I love cooking, and I’m not a good gardener, but I do love planting flowers. When they die, I just replant them. I don’t know if it’s too much or too little