Shania Twain wonders why there's not 'another Dolly Parton'. What the ACMs host means.

Ralphie Aversa, USA TODAYFri, May 15, 2026 at 10:46 PM UTC

0

Ahead of her gig as the host of the 61st Academy of Country Music Awards (8 ET/5 PT, Amazon Prime Video), country-pop superstar Shania Twain says she won't need any coffee to get energized for the night.

"I'm just naturally energetic," Twain, 60, tells USA TODAY. "So coffee at all or any kind of caffeine ... I got to manage that, which I do. I'm not a caffeine fiend."

Twain jokes that if anything, producers will be asking her to "slow down" because she'll be full of adrenaline. But the five-time ACM winner explains the anticipation for Sunday night's show is different from a concert.

Shania Twain attends Universal Music Group's Grammy after party on February 01, 2026 in Los Angeles, California.

"I am representing our genre," she says of country music. The show also marks the 30th anniversary of Twain's first ACM wins in 1996. "I am there to represent the talent, to make them feel comfortable. So I think I'm just going to have a really fun time."

Will she crack jokes?

"I'm not a really great joke teller, but yes I plan on being a little funny," Twain says. "I like a great sense of humor."

Will she stick to a script?

"Of course I need to be prompted so I don't ramble on or start getting more interactive than I probably should be for the moment," she admits. "But I really need to just be myself."

Advertisement

Twain also offers that advice, "be yourself," to other artists. She has relied on it over a career that spans four decades, starting as an "outsider" from Ontario, Canada to become the best-selling female country artist globally of all time.

"I am what my greatest influences were as a child and that never left me," Twain says, noting that her version of country was influenced by as much bluegrass and rock 'n' roll as the music Nashville defined for the genre. "So that did make me an outsider when I first came into Nashville. But now I think we're just getting back to more originality, spreading ourselves out stylistically.

"Maybe we're going to have another Dolly Parton finally again, who is the first woman to ever go global," Twain adds. "Why don't we have five of those by now, right?"

While Twain doesn't want to draw comparisons or single anyone out, she does note that the "originality" of artists Ella Langley (five nominations) and Shaboozey (two nominations) stands out. Both will be a part of Sunday's show – Langley is set to perform while Shaboozey is a presenter.

Ella "brings me back to the early country that I grew up with and was singing as a child," Twain explains. "I've heard a lot of producers and writers say, 'Well, we don't want to be too country,' or, 'That's too country.' And I'm thinking, 'What is too country?' So Ella Langley to me is really country Western and I've missed that in the genre."

Langley topped the Billboard Hot 100 with her single "Choosin' Texas." The artist is headlining "The Dandelion Tour," which runs through mid-August, in addition to supporting dates on Morgan Wallen's "Still the Problem" tour.

Established in 1966, the Academy of Country Music Awards is the longest-running country music awards show. The ceremony returns to Las Vegas in 2026 after a three-year stint at the Dallas Cowboys headquarters in Texas.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: ACMs host Shania Twain is wondering who the next Dolly Parton will be

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”