Shania Twain Will Be an Icon Forever and Always! See the Country Legend Through the Years

Shania Twain has been a staple in country music for the last three decades. The beloved “Forever and Always” songstress has transformed her incredible career many times over the years, but her endearing nature and gorgeous beauty remain just the same today.

Shania, whose real name is actually Eileen Regina Edwards, was born on August 28, 1965, and spent much of her life growing up in Timmins, Ontario. The iconic songwriter was raised by her mom, Sharon Morrison, and stepfather, Jerry Twain, alongside her siblings, Carrie Ann, Jill, Darryl and Mark.

During her teenage years, the “Man! I Feel Like a Woman” hitmaker juggled multiple singing gigs at nursing homes, community centers or “everywhere [her parents] could get [her] booked,” according to Hello! Sadly, she set aside her dreams just as she was on the brink of a career when her mom and stepdad died in a car crash in 1987. Following their deaths, she took it upon herself to care for Darryl and Mark.

“I knew I had to look after my younger brothers,” she once explained. “I really needed to keep the family together. I just put all my singing ambitions on hold until the rest of the family had grown up.”

Three years after her family’s tragic loss, the “Any Man of Mine” artist packed her bags and moved from Canada to Nashville. Changing her name to Shania, the brunette beauty got her first taste of showbiz when she released her self-titled album, Shania Twain, in 1993.

The star found more success following the release of her second album, The Woman in Me, in 1995. Shania’s fan base grew evens stronger when she released her most iconic album, Come On Over, in 1997. Since then, she’s sold more than 100 million records, won five Grammy Awards, six American Music Awards, eight Billboard Music Awards and received many more accolades.

Unfortunately, Shania was forced to take a long singing hiatus when she was diagnosed with dysphonia, which is a rare side effect of Lyme disease and causes vocal-cord muscle paralysis, after being bit by a tick in 2003. When she returned to the spotlight in 2017 and released her first album in 15 years titled Now, Shania opened up about “rediscovering [her] new” voice.”

“I had to come to terms with losing the voice that I had,” the Grammy winner exclusively told Closer Weekly in June 2019. “When you’re a singer and it’s your voice, it is just a terrible, terrible feeling. What I’ve learned through therapy is how to manipulate my voice to get it to do what I want it to do, or at least close enough.”

Despite her setbacks, Shania said she’s looking forward to the future of her new music career. “I’m embracing it,” she gushed. “It’s been a long, really rewarding journey.”

Scroll through the gallery below to see photos of Shania through the years!