Shania's Fear 'I Thought I'd Never Sing Again'

The Superstar Opens Up on Betrayal and Her Comeback

- Rosie Hopegood

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, softly spoken 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 coiffed barnet 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.