Shania Twain is getting vulnerable about her past trauma and alleged sexual abuse by her stepfather, her life growing up in Canada, and how embraced her femininity. She detailed these experiences in a tell-all with The Sunday Times, which came out on Dec 6, and also spoke about a drastic measure she had to take to control the situation.
Keep reading for the details.
The 57-year-old spoke on how she suffered physical and mental abuse at the hands of her stepfather Jerry Twain growing up and how she had to alter a major body part as a coping mechanism.
"I hid myself and I would flatten out my boobs. I would wear bras that were too small for me and I'd wear two, play it down until there was nothing girl about me. Make it easier to go unnoticed. Because, oh my gosh it was terrible- you didn't want to be a girl in my house."
The whole experience was confusing as she grew older.
"Then you go into the society and you're a girl and you're getting the normal other unpleasant stuff too, and that reinforces it. So then you think, oh i guess its just s***ty to be a girl... i was ashamed of being a girl."
A tragic accident claimed the life of her mother and stepfather when she was 22, forcing her to come to terms with her feminine side.
“All of a sudden it was like, ‘Well, what’s your problem? ...what was so natural for other people was so scary for me, I felt exploited, but I didn’t have a choice now.”
Twain began singing at a nearby resort causing her to be more open about her femininity and protect herself from getting "groped, or r***d by someone's eyes and feel so degraded."
The Still The One I Love star finally found fame after a Nashville label signed her and made her meet her producer and first husband, Robert Mutt Lange. By then, she had gained confidence and saw herself as a role model to young girls.
"By the time i had my record contracts, I was the kind of woman that when i walked in the room, it's like, don't even get any closer. It was clear in my body language. and i think maybe what young girls can learn too is to exude that confidence."
The star celebrated the 25th anniversary of her iconic album Come On Over via social media and also looked back on the journey of her third studio recording which housed hits like Man, I Feel Like A Woman, and That Don't Impress Me Much.
"25 years ago I released Come On Over... and because of your support, that album went on to become: The biggest-selling studio album by a female artist of all time, the best-selling country music album ever [and] the biggest-selling album by a Canadian country artist ...Crazy,"
