Shania Twain says she's grateful to be 'alive' and 'healthy' for her comeback

TORONTO -

Shania Twain is grateful to be around to witness the Shania-ssance.

After years of health struggles tied to contracting Lyme disease in 2003, the Timmins, Ont.-raised pop-country superstar is experiencing a phenomenon afforded to few performers: a reignited pop music career.

"I'm still alive and I'm healthy," the 57-year-old singer-songwriter said in a recent video call from Las Vegas.

"I'm getting to enjoy all of these fabulous fruits of all these years of work, effort and heart."

Lately, that's included sharing a stage with Harry Styles at Coachella, mingling at the recent Grammy Awards with Beyoncé and other nominees, and witnessing her career's biggest hits -- including "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!" and "Still the One" -- embraced by the TikTok generation.

This week, Twain's sixth album "Queen of Me" debuted in the No. 1 spot on the U.K. charts and No. 2 on Billboard's Canadian albums chart.

Twain called this "second wave" of her career an opportunity for her to take in what she "didn't absorb in the moment 20 years ago."

"I was just too busy, too overcommitted, too distracted by the commitments," she said of a period that saw the meteoric climb of her 2002 album "Up!"

"This time around, I'm really enjoying it ... because I am able to reflect on the past and enjoy the rewards of those accomplishments while still being able to look forward to all these amazing things that are coming."

With more than 70 tour dates booked this year, there's a lot on Twain's calendar. She'll play shows in the United Kingdom and North America, including stops in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto and Montreal.

She said there's also a stage musical in the works that builds its story around many of her songs.

When she was a young artist, Twain noticed how few musicians get a renaissance in their own lifetime.

"I remember thinking, 'Gosh, that person getting this honour, they're not even alive anymore.' Why didn't you guys do that when they were alive?" she said.

It's that perspective on mortality that energizes Twain these days.

She has survived her share of life's hurdles over the years, including a public split from her record producer-husband Mutt Lange, and the many health challenges wrought by Lyme, a tick-borne illness.

"I lost my singing voice and my proper speaking voice for a good seven years," she said.

"And in order to even know if there was a potential to ever get my singing voice back again I had to go through, oh my gosh, so much physiotherapy and specialists."

Twain mounted a 2015 tour that marked her first in 11 years, but said somewhere in that time it became clear her singing voice "wasn't sustainable." About five years ago, she underwent throat surgery.

In early 2020, her Vegas residency was paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which gave Twain the opportunity to begin writing songs for "Queen of Me."

The album came together as she worried about her friends, family and the state of the world, she said. Staying optimistic became her priority as she wrote songs about "taking charge" and self-motivation.

"I would use my songwriting as an exercise to lift my spirits," she said.

"I focused on writing positive lyrics, setting boundaries for myself as far as knowing when to reset my mood, when I needed to cheer up."

"Queen of Me" carries that relentless positivity through most of its electronic-pop tracks. The TikTok-ready opener "Giddy Up!" sets a party atmosphere that runs through most of the songs, including on danceable tracks "Best Friend," "Got It Good" and "Number One."

Hitmakers Adam Messinger of Toronto pop band Magic! and Tyler Joseph from rock duo Twenty One Pilots are among the roster of producers who added their touch to the project.

Twain drops a surprise twist in the middle of the album with "Pretty Liar," a bouncy and carefree takedown of a cheating lover who's drowning in his lies. She dismisses the relationship with the playground chide of "your pants are on fire," before lobbing an F-bomb at him as a final blow.

Hearing Twain swear might shock some of her longtime listeners, but it's apparent she's just trying to have fun.

Late in the conversation, she acknowledged feeling there's a "time crunch" as she faces the uncertain fallout of Lyme. She knows it's possible her voice "won't last forever," and said she wanted to record as many songs as she can, while she can.

She planned to step into the studio when she wraps her tour later this year.

"I was desperate to find my voice again," she added.

"And now that I have it for as long as I have it, I'm celebrating it."

 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 14, 2023.