Shania Twain has publicly named Ricky Nelson as the artist who first inspired her, decades before she ever stepped into a recording studio. In a recent interview, the 60-year-old singer explained how Nelson’s music reached her during a childhood marked by poverty and instability, shaping the instincts that would later define her career. Born Eileen Regina Edwards on August 28, 1965, in Windsor, Ontario, Twain grew up in Timmins under difficult circumstances. Hunger, secondhand clothing, and uncertain survival were everyday realities.
Music offered an escape, and as a child she sang wherever she could, including local clubs and bars where she was far too young to be performing. The goal was never fame; it was helping keep her family going. Watching Ricky Nelson perform on a small television in her living room had a profound effect on her. His smooth, warm voice made her feel safe, and for the first time she remembers thinking she wanted to make people feel something through music.
That early spark stayed with her, even as her life took a devastating turn. At the age of 21, Twain lost both parents in a car accident. She became the guardian of her younger siblings and put her ambitions aside, taking a steady job singing at Ontario’s Deerhurst Resort to support her family. Her breakthrough came in the early 1990s when she signed with Mercury Records and adopted the name Shania, an Ojibway term meaning “on my way.
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Her debut album drew modest attention, but it led to a phone call with producer Robert “Mutt” Lange. Their long conversations and creative connection led to marriage in 1993 and a string of albums that redefined country music. “The Woman in Me” established her as a rising force, while 1997’s “Come On Over” became the best-selling studio album by a female artist in history. The success came with hidden costs.
Her marriage collapsed following a betrayal involving her closest friend, and soon after, Lyme disease and dysphonia nearly destroyed her voice. For years, she could not sing and wondered whether her career was over. During those silent years, she returned to the music of her childhood. Listening to Ricky Nelson again reminded her of the young girl who believed in the power of melody when life felt unbearable.
She also came to understand that Nelson was more than a teen idol; he had been a quiet pioneer who blended rock, country, and pop before the genre mix was widely accepted, and he was often misunderstood by audiences when he evolved. That lesson stayed with Twain, and it helped shape her own willingness to take artistic risks. When she finally regained her voice and returned to performing, she did so with a new sense of purpose. Her later work included new albums, tours, Las Vegas residencies, and a documentary, along with a sense of peace she had not known before.
Twain never met Nelson, who died in 1985. But she says his legacy has lived on in her songs and in the courage she found to keep going. She did not reveal a scandal in this interview; she shared a deeply personal influence that she believes guided her entire journey.
