Shania Twain on the CMA Awards Red Carpet at "The 42nd Annual CMA Awards," on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2008, broadcast live from the Sommet Center in Nashville on the ABC Television Network. Photo courtesy of the Country Music Association.
Nov. 17, 2008 — Shania Twain was a surprise guest on last week’s Country Music Association Awards, making an appearance at the close of the show to present Kenny Chesney with the Entertainer of the Year award.
"You look really good," Kenny told her as he started his acceptance speech, but people continued talking about her even after the show.
"I actually didn’t see her," Carrie Underwood — who co-hosted the show with Brad Paisley — told reporters backstage. "Everything happened so fast. She was like a super-secret surprise guest, so they kind of kept her under wraps. But, you know, it was great to have her back. It’s definitely been awhile since she’s hung out with all of us. I think everybody missed her, and it’s great to have her back."
Shania, who recently split with husband-producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange after 14 years of marriage, received a standing ovation from the industry-driven crowd. That was particularly noteworthy because she was the target of plenty of derision from Music Row when her album The Woman In Me started breaking sales records with its Def Leppard influences and her navel-baring videos.
But it’s a new day. Shania’s rock influences aren’t nearly as boundary-pushing as the Metallica-like chords Jason Aldean used in his performance of "She’s Country," and there are plenty of new faces behind the scenes in the business who don’t remember Shania as a controversial figure. That’s also true among artists, including Taylor Swift, who was just five years old when The Woman In Me was released.
Taylor met Shania for the first time at the awards, and she called the moment "awesome" in a blog posting. Shania told Taylor she’s "doing a great job," particularly meaningful since Taylor says the Canadian singer was her original inspiration. Shania, Taylor says, is "the most impressive and independent and confident and successful female artist to ever hit country music." And after their introduction was over, Taylor cried as she experienced a "wave of gratitude."
Kenny, meanwhile, feels a kinship with Shania. Both have won the CMA’s Entertainer of the Year honor, and both have had their marriages end amid a wave of uncomfortable public speculation.
"Relationships are hard anyway for anybody, but it’s even tougher when it’s a spectator sport," Kenny noted. "So I wish her all the best with it. Obviously she’s an amazing artist, and it was really great to have her be a part of [the awards]. I think that she can do anything she wants to do."
"Great songs," he added, "is the key."
Shania’s night on the town didn’t end at the CMA Awards. She also made an appearance at a Universal Records after-party, where People spotted her chatting with George Strait and Julianne Hough.
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