Shania Twain Reveals What She Told Jon Bon Jovi Before His Vocal Surgery

Finishing up his residency at Madison Square Garden, Jon Bon Jovi not only celebrated the moment with fans but also with Bruce Springsteen. Although spending decades on stage, Bon Jovi found himself in a scary position in 2022 when he needed to undergo vocal cord surgery. With his entire career centered on his voice, the singer was visibly worried about the procedure. But thankfully, he received some much-needed advice from the Queen of Country Pop, Shania Twain. 

Recalling how she met Bon Jovi, Twain admitted that it just naturally happened when both singers were on the same flight. “We just bumped into each other in the aisle and he said, ‘Shania, it’s really cool to meet you. I’ve heard that you have the reputation of being the hardest-working artist in the industry. I have the same reputation. Nice to meet you.’ I think he felt already early on that we had something in common.”

When Bon Jovi was nervous about the surgery and the damage it could do to his voice, the hitmaker turned to Twain.  “I shared my surgeon’s information with him, my experience with him, and I encouraged him to weigh up all the scenarios. I told him that it worked for me, and that I was honest.” 

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Getting some reassurance, Twain insisted that she didn’t lie to Bon Jovi. “It’s an open-throat surgery, and you have to be awake. I said, ‘I just have to be honest with you because if you’re going into this, you’re going to hear it from the surgeon anyway, but you might as well hear it from somebody who’s been through it.’” 

Eternally grateful for Twain, Bon Jovi considered her to be his “spirit sister.” Leaning on her throughout his vocal cord surgery, he praised her support. “I think she also pulled my leg a little bit because she told me I’d be out there a lot sooner than I have been. She says, ‘Well, I told you that because I knew that you might back out otherwise.’ And so, I couldn’t wait to get the operation.’” 

Going forward with the operation, Bon Jovi found his way back to the stage. And for Twain, while she revealed her voice wasn’t the same, she concluded, “I’m grateful that I can sing, I can hold a note, and I can be loud and proud.” 

(Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)