Shania Twain put her music career on hold to raise her younger siblings. Her mother and stepfather were killed in a crash when she was just 22. But her childhood wasn’t any easier. She opened up about her rough childhood. The singer grew up in an abusive household, often getting “smacked around.” Keep reading for all the details.
Trigger Warning: This article includes references to domestic abuse and child abuse, which some readers may find distressing.
Shania Twain Releases New Album
Shania Twain got a late start to a music career due to her family situation. She was 29 when she burst onto the country music scene with the album The Woman In Me. It sold over 20 million copies. But her follow-up album, the pop-country crossover Come On Over, broke records. It sold 40 million copies worldwide, making it the best-selling studio album by a female solo artist.
Her music career was overshadowed by her personal life when she split from record producer Mutt Lange in 2008 amid allegations he cheated on her with her best friend. In a soapy twist, the singer fell in love with her best friend’s ex-husband, Frédéric Thiébaud, and married him in 2011.
Shania Twain also suffered numerous health issues during all of this. She launched a comeback in 2017 with a new album. She proved that she’s “Still the One” with three sold-out Las Vegas residencies. The last one wrapped up in 2025. The country-pop singer released her seventh studio album, Little Miss Twain, in July 2026.
She Opens Up About Abusive Childhood, Getting ‘Smacked Around’
Shania Twain has been appearing on talk shows to promote her new album. The conversation took a dark turn on NPR’s Wild Card With Rachel Mart. The singer detailed her abusive childhood at the hands of her mother and stepfather, Jerry Twain.
“My parents had a very volatile relationship. They loved each other. They went through so many ups and downs together, but they fought a lot. And they got violent, often,” Shania Twain said.
When asked if they got violent with her, she confirmed that she was a victim of childhood abuse. “If I was standing at the wrong place at the wrong time, definitely. I mean, both my parents were pretty harsh physically. And yeah, we definitely got smacked around a lot — and kicked around sometimes, literally kicked around. But they hurt each other the most.”
Her mother took the brunt of the abuse. “It was very violent. So my mom, you know, she would lose clumps of hair, she was bruised often in the face and … Yeah, it was pretty bad sometimes,” the singer said.
Shania Twain recalled her mom trying to leave the abusive relationship several times but always going back. This wasn’t the first time she brought up her violent upbringing. She detailed the abuse in her 2011 memoir From This Moment On. In 2018, she told The Guardian that her stepfather also sexually abused her but she blocked it out for years.
Shania Twain overcame the trauma of her childhood to become one of the most successful female solo country artists.
If you or someone you know is the victim of domestic abuse, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233.
Jennifer Havener grew up in a small town in Upstate New York. She earned her B.A in Writing & Literature from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. She always knew watching reality TV shows and soap operas, particularly ‘Days of Our Lives’, would come in handy someday. When she’s not writing, she’s playing with her dogs, Lola and Ruger