Hoda Kotb and Shania Twain performing at Madison Square Garden on July 11, 2023.
Shania Twainhad a special guest join her on stage Tuesday night:Hoda Kotb!
PEOPLE was in the crowd to experience the celebratory moment. “20 million albums are heavy,” Twain joked as she accepted the honor.
She then went on to announce the news that she’d bereissuingCome on Over, dropping a new version of the LP on Aug. 25.
“You guys are the first to know,” Twain told the crowd. “I’m very excited about it. It’s really amazing how music can go this full cycle and live through generations. And that’s, of course, all because of you [and] thanks to you.”
The country queen then went on to do something she’s never done before with Kotb:duet, in a performance of “You’re Still the One,“Twain’s crossover hit single. “Hoda, after all these years of knowing you, we’re finally going to sing together,” she said before the two sang the song’s chorus.
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Twain, 57, and Kotb, 58, have a long friendship, andcaught up backstage before the concertfor theTodaycameras.
During the talk, Twain confessed that she’s never felt freer during her three decades in music. “It does feel like I’m having the time of my life. So I’m enjoying it, absorbing it. I’m really looking at the people —reallylooking at them, absorbing them,” she said.
“Ifeel more appreciative now than everin my career,” the singer continued. “I’m celebrating loving my voice and the way I sing. It’s very satisfying to me to be able to sing out and express myself through my voice again without any reservation and fear.”
“You’re Still the One” holds a particularly special place in Twain’s heart. The song’s message has always resonated deeply with the singer, especially now more after theCOVID-19 pandemic.
“The whole world has been through, vey recently, such an intense struggle. So coming out on the other side of that, we have [shown] that we’re making it, against the odds,” Twain noted. “The song champions togetherness.”
Todayalso captured a makeover of sorts that Twain did on Kotb, dressing the journalist in a brown sequin off-the-shoulder dress and gold necklaces — one of Twain’s own tour outfits — for Kotb’s on-stage appearance.
“Look how pretty it is with her hair. She’s going to be gorgeous,” Twain said.
“I’m going to pee my pants, seriously,” laughed Kotb, who chose to wear a pair of brown pants under the dress. “This has been the best.”
Whileannouncing Kotb on stage, the singer raved about their longtime bond.
“Before this next song, I want to introduce someone I’ve loved for many years. We’ve been good friends for a long, long time,” Twain said. “We text about all kinds of things staying in touch, but there’s nothing like being in person together. Please welcome to the stage, my good friend Hoda!”
Shania Twain performs at PNC Music Pavilion on June 28, 2023, in Charlotte, North Carolina.Jeff Hahne/Getty Images
Jeff Hahne/Getty Images
As for that sing-along, whichTODAYfilmed as well, Kotb said she was left “stunned” afterwards.
“As I left that stage, Iknew that moment, that magic, would stay with me for a lifetime,” she added. “It was just so incredibly moving.”
“There are moments you think about happening, friends who you’re going to spend a moment like that with. And she’s so generous and kind, I don’t even know what to say,” Kotb raved. “I’m touched and I’m moved, and it’s a moment I’ll never forget.”
Todayairs weekdays on NBC beginning at 7 a.m. ET.
source: people.com
