Shania Twain has revealed that she "wasn't allowed to grieve" after her parents, Sharon and Jerry, were killed in a head-on car crash with a lorry in 1987. The country singer was just 22 years old at the time and living in Toronto, studying computer programming, when her sister called with the devastating news.
In a new interview on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs, Twain, now 60, described collapsing upon hearing the news over the phone. "My sister called me, and I could hear my little brother howling in the background," she told presenter Lauren Laverne.
Becoming Guardian at 22
Following the accident, Twain took on the primary role of caring for her three younger siblings. She had to leave her computer programming course and return to the family home. "The kids could not be separated after that accident – they had to stay together," she said.
Beyond caregiving, Twain became responsible for her parents' business affairs. "My older sister was gone and was married with two children and had her own life in another town. I had to do a lot of things I knew nothing about, like take out a second mortgage for the house to sustain what is going to happen next," she explained.
Legal and Financial Burdens
Twain had to organize the sale of equipment from her parents' business and frequently met with lawyers to navigate insurance matters, as passengers in the car and the lorry driver were suing. "There were so many complexities to the accident itself," she said. "I wasn't allowed to grieve because I was thrown into this state of guardianship and executor, plus I don't have a job."
To support her siblings, she took a job at a gold resort six hours from her hometown, moving there with them because the position guaranteed a steady monthly income and allowed her to sing.
Reflections on Parents' Marriage
During the interview, Twain also opened up about her parents' abusive marriage. "It was bad. He would choke her a lot and do things that don't end well," she said, adding that she felt the need to "protect" her mother.
Despite that upbringing, Twain later found happiness with record producer Robert John 'Mutt' Lange. They married in 1993 and welcomed son Eja in 2001. However, they separated in 2008 after Lange had an affair with Twain's friend, Marie-Anne Thiebaud.
Finding Love Again
It was Marie-Anne's then-husband, Frederic Thiebaud, who alerted Twain to the affair. "I didn't know anything that was going on, but he then took the blinders off and told me. I didn't believe him and told him he was imagining things," she said.
Both Twain and Frederic decided to end their marriages, and they eventually found love with each other. "I found out what a beautiful person he was," she said, adding that she would "treat him better." The couple married in 2011.
Frederic recently joined Twain in the UK as she supported Harry Styles on his record-breaking residency at Wembley Stadium. Twain also returned to Ontario, performing at the legendary Horseshoe Tavern on Friday, calling it "pretty surreal."
On Instagram, she wrote: "The bars of Ontario are where I cut my teeth learning how to perform, entertain and hold a room… So making my debut last night at the legendary @horseshoetavern all these years later felt pretty surreal and super special... I've really made it now!! Thank you, everyone who came, you don’t know what it means to me."
The full Desert Island Discs episode is available on BBC Sounds and BBC Radio 4 from Sunday at 10am.
