Shania Twain has been an unstoppable force in country music for over two decades. The “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” singer holds records as the Queen of Country Pop and has inspired a generation of women in country music who have followed in her footsteps. Now, with many years of experience in the industry, Twain is showing no signs of slowing down any time soon.
Shania Twain first debuted in 1993
Music has been Twain’s passion since childhood, and she got her start performing for audiences when she was just eight years old. She put her music dreams on hold after the tragic death of her parents when she was 22 years old, eventually getting back on her feet thanks to a regular gig singing at a Canadian resort.
Twain released her self-titled debut album back in 1993. At the time, she was the new kid in Nashville whose musical direction was initially curated by those at her record label. With her sophomore album The Woman in Me and her smash third album Come On Over, Twain came into her own as a country music star able to blend elements of rock and pop effortlessly (thanks, in part, to her producer and eventual husband, Mutt Lange).
To this day, Come On Over remains the highest-selling album by a solo female artist of all time, with over 40 million copies sold worldwide. She continued her success with her 2002 album Up!, which became her third straight diamond-certified album in a row. But following her Lyme disease diagnosis, Twain stepped back from the spotlight. She reemerged in the early 2010s with her first-ever Las Vegas residency show and released her fifth studio album Now in 2017, her first LP in 15 years. She wrapped up a second Vegas residency in 2022 around the same time she released her Netflix documentary Not Just a Girl.
Shania Twain embraces her age as she becomes the ‘Queen of Me’
Going in 2023, Twain isn’t letting her age stop her from enjoying a successful career. At 57 years old, she’s declaring that she’s the Queen of Me. Her sixth studio album arrives on Feb. 3, 2023, and will be supported by a tour across North America and Europe throughout this year.
“I’m feeling quite liberated in so many ways,” Twain said on the Making Space podcast. “I’m feeling positive and optimistic, but still at the same time unapologetic. I don’t feel like I need to explain myself as much as probably ever in my life. But I feel very responsible, still. The Queen of Me title for the album couldn’t be more fitting for where I’m at in my own mind.”
Shania Twain’s thoughts on aging
Twain has been embracing her body as she’s grown older: the lead single for Queen of Me, “Waking Up Dreaming,” featured cover art with Twain posing topless for the first time ever.
“If I look at myself from head to toe in the mirror I see my faults … I’m just tired of that lack of freedom. I wanna be more relaxed and comfortable in my own skin,” she said. “When you’re naked, now you’re relying entirely on your own love of yourself and respect for yourself.”
Getting to love her body in a new way at 57 has been a way for her to get more comfortable with the process of getting older. “[I] can’t slow the process of aging. That is out of my control so I need to start enjoying aging and enjoying all that comes with that,” she said on Today.
