TORONTO — Shania Twain has long been a darling of the Canadian Country Music Awards, but this year she’s taking the reins as host of the big event.
The Timmins, Ont.-raised country singer has signed up to oversee the music industry celebration in Hamilton on Sept. 9.
She’ll also accept the CCMA’s Generation Award for her contributions to the country music industry.
The honour has been handed out only once before to American singer Taylor Swift, who showed up to accept the trophy in 2012.
Twain has long been a favourite of the CCMAs, garnering her first nomination in the rising star category in 1993.
A decade later she dominated the awards with her album “Up!” grabbing seven nominations in every major membership-voted category, including two for video of the year.
While this year’s nominees won’t be announced until July 11, it’s possible that Twain could grab the spotlight as a leading nominee again.
Her most recent album, “Now,” was released in September and marked her return to the studio after 15 years without a full-length release of new material.
Twain is also set to embark on her first international album tour in as many years. She starts with dates in Vancouver on May 5 and 6 before swinging by most other major Canadian cities, the United states, Europe and Australia.
The singer ignited some anger over the weekend after she claimed that she would’ve supported Donald Trump, if she was able to vote in the U.S. election.
British newspaper the Guardian ran an interview where Twain said “even though he was offensive, he seemed honest.”
After a quick backlash from some fans, she posted an apology on Twitter saying she regrets not answering with more context, and that she does “not hold any common moral beliefs with the current president.”
She said the question caught her off guard, and that she is “passionately against discrimination of any kind.”
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