Behind the Limelight, Shania Twain Reveals Real-Life Tragedy

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Her music is a taste of pure love and passion. A talent that has been polished: from a rugged rock into a sparkling diamond. Some of her songs include From This Moment On, That Don’t Impress Me Much, You’re Still The One, Forever and For Always, Man! I Feel Like a Woman to name a few. And this list goes on and on… Songs that have cemented her position on top and boosted her career. Any artist in mind yet? Why not go for some coffee, have a good seat, and let’s talk more about her?

The “Queen of Country Pop” is Born

Yes, you’re definitely right! Shania Twain is the one who needs a special limelight. And those are just a few words to describe her (and many more). The best one, I must say, that I love is “Queen of Country Pop”. Indeed, she’s a queen and royalty, and her throne is yet to be replaced (or I should say irreplaceable).

Born on August 28, 1965, in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, Shania Twain’s real name is Eilleen Regina Edwards. Twain’s parents divorced when she was two years old and her mother, Sharon, remarried to a man named Jerry Twain, a member of the Ojibwa tribe. Jerry adopted Sharon’s three daughters, and Eilleen Edwards became Eileen ‘Twain.’

Growing up in the small town of Timmins was never easy for little Shania. Twain’s family often struggles to make ends meet. Due to the family’s great poverty and financial strain, her step-father had a violent streak and Shania was riddled with fear of making him angry. On more than one occasion, young Shania and her siblings witnessed their step-father brutally attack their mother in a fit of rage.

Nevertheless, throughout her childhood, music was the shining beacon of hope in Shania’s life. Twain was singing by the age of 3, playing the guitar by 8. At only 10-years-old, a bright-eyed Shania penned her first song, “Mama Won’t You Come Out To Play.” The heartbreaking tune was the young songwriter’s attempt to revive hope in her mama’s broken heart.

With tears in her eyes, Shania revealed,

“My mother was always … very isolating of herself. I don’t still really understand why. She’s not alive anymore for me to ask her. I wish I could, but she was always that person that was watching life happen from inside through a window. She was sad a lot of the time and really just didn’t have the courage to get out and face life, and so that’s why I wrote that song … inviting my own mother to come out and play.”

Throughout her childhood, Shania’s mother was her biggest cheerleader. Sharon encouraged and supported her daughter’s singing career, making all the sacrifices the family could afford to get young Shania to lessons and small gigs.

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A Turning Point in Her Life

In 1987, tragedy struck the Twain family when both Shania’s mother and step-father were killed in a horrendous car accident. And just like that, Shania turned her back on the music career she’d worked so hard to build.

Shania returned to her impoverished hometown of Timmins to support her three younger siblings. Single-handedly, Shania raised her siblings, and accepted a part in a Las Vegas-style show at the nearby resort in Huntsville, Ontario, to cover the family’s expenses.

However, Shania refused to give up on her dreams and never forgot her mother’s relentless encouragement. When she wasn’t busy performing in shows or helping her younger siblings, Shania wrote music.

Eventually, Twain’s demo made it to Nashville. Subsequently, she signed under Polygram Records (now Mercury Nashville).

Her new label liked her music, but they didn’t care for the name “Eilleen Twain.” Nonetheless, Twain wanted to keep her last name to honor her adoptive step-father.

Shania recalled,

“So I thought, ‘What flows well with Twain?’” As it happened, the wardrobe supervisor touring with her was named ‘Shania,’ an Ojibwa name, and Twain thought it “very pretty, unique and it happens to mean ‘On my way.’”

And just like that, Twain changed her first name to Shania, and thus, “Shania Twain” was born.

More Than A Country Artist, A Woman of Substance

More than the limelight she has had (even though she has been silent for a while now) is a normal, simple woman just like everyone else. Truth be told, Shania Twain has endured what a common person has had.

Despite losing her parents at a very young age, she never hesitated to stand up and support her family. She became the breadwinner and eventually guided her siblings to surviving one of the most difficult times of their life.

Music has always been in her heart. Her passion and love for music never faded even the roughest part of her life. She’s a testimony of true love and hard work.

Indeed, Shania Twain’s sacrificial selflessness, unwavering strength, and willingness to forgive even the most horrendous of betrayals is simply astounding. She’s just a reminder to the world what true beauty looks like. And I must say, the world needs more women like Shania. Who wouldn’t agree?

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