Eileen Regina Edwards was born in Windsor, Ontario on August 28, 1965, to Sharon and Clarence Edwards. Her parents separated when she was two and she and her three siblings (two brothers and one sister) grew up in Timmins, Ontario. She became Eileen Twain after her mother married Jerry Twain, a full-blooded member of the Ojibwa First Nation. At the age of 13, she was invited to perform on television’s “Tommy Hunter Show” and during her high school years she was the vocalist for a local band called the “Longshot” which covered the top forty musical hits. On November 1, 1987 both her mother and adoptive father were killed in a car crash after which she took her two younger brothers, Mark and Darryl, and sister, Carrie-Ann, to Huntsville, Ontario, where she supported her family by performing at the Deerhurst, a local resort. When a Nashville entertainment lawyer named Dick Frank heard her act in 1991, he invited her to record a demo tape.
During that same year, she signed her first recording contract with Richard Frank of Mercury Nashville Records and changed her name to Shania, which is an Ojibwa word meaning “I’m on my way.” Shania’s embrace of the Ojibwa heritage has at times caused some controversy among Canadian First Nations who disagree about whether a non-Ojibwa adopted by an Ojibwa can be considered true-blooded. Still, she is very proud of the influence and heritage bestowed upon her by her adoptive father.
The city of Timmins later renamed a street for her, gave her the key to the city and built a museum dedicated to her life and career. She has been immensely successful in both the country and pop music genres, setting sales records for both female and country recording artists. Her album, “Come On Over,” is the biggest selling album by a female artist of all time. Shania Twain is also the only female recording artist to have three albums certified Diamond by the RIAA. She is also the recipient of five Grammy Awards.
On December 28, 1993, she married rock producer Robert “Mutt” Lange and the couple currently live in La Tour-de-Peliz, Switzerland with their son, Eja. She has said that living so far away gives her a privacy that she wouldn’t have otherwise.
Keep singin’, girl! You’ve got what it takes and more!