From Hip Magazine

How do you decide which songs to include on each album and what to cut, because I know you write more than you need for each album?

• "It's tough, but with this album it was easier. There were songs that I really didn't feel belonged, that didn't have to do with the rest of the album. There are some songs that I feel really good about, that I know will show up on future albums, but then it makes more sense. It's kind of hard as writer to cut songs!"

Let's talk about "Les Miserables." What are some memories you have of doing it?

• "It was one of the best times of my life, doing that show. I had wanted to do that show ever since I was 15 and I auditioned for the original cast at that time. I felt like all the work I had done between the ages of 15 and 21 really paid off. Vocally, I was constantly working; I had built up my stamina vocally to the point that I was ready to do the show, whereas at 15, I wasn't. You didn't have rehearsal time with the cast; I did a lot of work by myself. It was really exciting to come to each rehearsal with something new to offer, and then as things went along, to really grow with the character, was very exciting."

Most people who know your story know that when it comes to music, you're pretty much the boss in the studio. Are you equally that way when it comes to the business side of the music business?

• "Everything stems from what I want, without a doubt, but at the same time, my mom is my manager and her talent is business. Sometimes I'm a little too polite for the business world! Behind the scenes, I can say what I want but I convey it through my mom and she takes it from there. Let's put it this way: No business decision goes down without my knowing about it, approving it and being involved in it. But at the same time, I do have people I work with in that area."

Is it hard sometimes going back and forth between being mother/daughter and being manager/client?

• "Not really, somehow it just works, we don't even have to try. It's a very natural thing because she's always been the one who really looked out for me and my career. She never pushed me, but she always was the only person around who cared about me as a person and an artist. And that's just so important to me. Somehow we're able to sit at the dinner table and discuss business, and then discuss my sister at college, my boyfriend; somehow we're able to integrate it all."

There have been a number of television programs in the past year; a number of "Donahues," about child stars who burn out, get in trouble with the law, etc. Why do you think this happens?

• "Because people don't have their parents around. A lot of child stars have parents who are more caught up in show business than their kids are. And kids count on parents to be stabilizing forces in their lives, not to flake out on them. I've seen a lot of young performers who don't travel with family; they travel with people who are older, people who are out for money, they are basically out to work the artist as hard as they can, and who cares if the artist is left burnt out. My mom is obviously not that way. And she has always said something that is really really important that I live by. 'People are gonna constantly kiss up to you and fill your head, because they love giving compliments, and they know they get things from that. You're going to get your share of criticism, too. You have to know when you're good. You have to know when you're not.' With that philosophy, bad reviews don't bother me and good reviews don't send me on an ego trip."

Do you get a lot of letters from young people asking for advice about a music career, and if so, what do you tell them?

• "Yes, and it's the toughest question to answer because there is no formula; if there was, everyone would be a star. Part of what makes you strong, and able to handle a record contract once you have one, are the steps you take to get there. Keep knocking on doors until one opens. I literally knocked on them all. Also, if you're a singer, try to get into writing, because if you don't, you're at the mercy of other people. You can lose your own identity. Writing helps differentiate you from the next person."

Is it true you turned down some early contracts, because they wouldn't let you record your own music?

• "Yes. I was pursuing a record deal from the time I was 12. But people didn't realize that I didn't want the gimmick of just being young. I wanted to sing my own music. People would come to me and say 'This song is a guaranteed hit, it's going to be done by such and such a producer and you can sing it and there you go. You're off.' And I would say 'But no, because this song has nothing to do with the other 100 songs sitting in my bedroom! What good is it going to do me in the long run? So yes, mom sand I said no a lot."

Do you think getting signed is harder now than it was in 1985-86, when you started?

• "Yes and no. For my kind of music; the more melodic pop, yes. For new artists in rap and hip-hop, no. There are tons of people out there now expressing themselves; it's really cool to see. But I'm definitely glad I started when I did because I think people are getting away from pop music now. But there are still a lot of pop fans out there."

Where do you see yourself over the next year or two?

• "Hopefully, I'll tour this summer, but in the near future I'll be performing at the Special Olympics opening ceremony in Austria. I love the Special Olympics! And there is a possible revival of the musical Grease. I always say 'in the works' until it's all signed, sealed and delivered, because this is show business after all! That will probably happen in 1994."

From Open House Party (January 10, 1993)

What was it like doing Broadway? To me doing the same show over and over would get repetitious.

• "I guess I did about a 100 performances. Which sounds like a lot but there are people there who have done thousands of performances of the same show. I think at that point I become kind of bored of it, but these people are such great actors that they find something new each night and they learn something new every night and they keep it fresh for themselves. It such a great show too, it's not the kind of show that has no substance. That part of what kept it interesting."

What's it like doing Broadway shows as opposed to doing concerts which you've done like millions of?

• "Well, its there is definitely a common thread running through entertainment. There's that whole discipline and it takes a lot of work and everything. It was kind of fun, first of all, being in the same city and in the same theatre for a long period of time as opposed to you never know what your walking into when you are on the road. It was very different and the wierdest part was the first time I got sick. I got a little tonsillitis for about four shows and the fact that I could call in sick was so strange because you cannot call in sick to your own concert. Or if you do, you have 80 million people around you flipping out. That was a very strange concept to me. Partially it took some of the pressure off but at the same time two of those four shows I missed I had friends who came and people who where going to surprise me so it was like a big guilt trip anyway but, hey, what can you do?"

Tell us about the new album, you have an all star lineup of people who have helped you write some of these songs.

• "I decided to work with Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers from Rhythm Syndicate and I figured we'd come up with a song ... maybe ... you know, you never know what might happen and we got together and came up with about 6 songs in two days and 5 of them ended up on the album and one is the first single, so, it was a very pleasant surprise and I also co-wrote one tune with Carol Bayer Sager and Michael Walden who I have admired for years so that was exciting too. And the other ones I wrote on my own."

What is it like co-writing a song with someone. Do you sit down at a piano or a keyboard or something?

• "Well, you see, that's what always boggled my mind. I mean did they sit around saying, 'Well, when I was in love I felt this way, how did you feel?' It either clicks or it doesn't and basically some of the ideas I came up with, some they came up with and we just take it from there. You know, they'd say you know, I've got this really great groove and this cool concept and I'd say oh yeah, you know where we could go from there we could go here and they'd say yeah and its just kinda like trading off and there was just so much energy in the room it was so much fun. It was like we were playing Tetris, ordering Chinese food and writing songs and it was so relaxed and I think the energy comes through on the album and I don't think you can fake that energy."

From Inside San Diego (January 11, 1993)

(about being an idol to young people, and taking that seriously from the beginning)

• "You know it's, I mean, when I was younger I looked up to Billy Joel and Elton John. And it's not only the music that people tune into. I mean, it's their overall attitude. People like Michael Jackson, I mean."

(interviewer says it's hard to call her "Debbie" because of her age)

• "I've always tried to make people - like from the time I was in kindergarten - call me Deborah 'cause I just always preferred to be called Deborah and it would be like, 'Nice to meet you, Debbie.' You know, just as like - people love nicknames."

(asked if she would liked to be called Deborah professionally)

• "Yeah. I mean, maybe some time I'll change it but I feel like I'm still very much at the beginning of my career and I don't really wanna confuse people at this point."

(talking about Body Mind Soul)

• "I got a little heavier into, more I guess you could say more intense emotions and, you know, it's not puppy love anymore - it's about deeper relationships than that and the message songs aren't so much like 'anything is possible' and stuff like that. They're more about current issues like AIDS, racism,..."

(about the songs "Kisses 4 One" and "When I Say No")

• "'Kisses 4 One.' I guess I would say it's about the importance of monogamy in the world of AIDS and also a song called 'When I Say No" which is about date rape which has been in the news a lot and so... I think as you get older, one of the things that happen is you start looking outside of yourself a little more. You stop worrying so much about, 'Am I gonna pass Biology?' You know and start worrying a little bit more about the future and about things going on around you."

(about young people listening to Deborah's music)

• "And I think that's the whole concept of the title of the album is that you can dance, you can think, you can feel, you can do 'em all at the same time."

(about having "funk" on the album)

• "I mean, there is a song called "Shock Your Mama" which is just like good old fun. It's just, you know, I mean, I like to take it to all the extremes. I mean, I think everyone has a side to them that likes fun simple music but also, obviously, people like to think deeper thoughts as well so I like, I try to put all those elements on one album."

(how she feels about "Losin' Myself")

• "It's an intense song. It's about the kind of a conflict between pleasure and pain you feel when you're in a relationship."

(about how her writing style has changed; goes back to talking about "Losin' Myself")

• "I mean, my writing at 16 was more vague, I think not that I'm like woman of the world or anything at this point in time but, you know, your feelings definitely intensify as you get older and it's about that feeling like, you know, your friends are all walking around going 'What happened to her?' When you're going out with someone new or whatever, like, 'What's happened to her?' If sometimes you can go out with someone and they can kind of make you lose sight of yourself. You get so wrapped up in it and that's really what the song is about and the video."

(asked if "Losin' Myself" is about one particular person)

• "I mean, I have a boyfriend right now but I think that whenever I write I gather, I take form experiences but usually I don't write one song about one experience or one person."

(asked how she had the nerve to go on Broadway)

• "Well, I'm a singer 'cause I love to sing and all that lip-synching stuff that goes on... I just don't get it because, like I said, I thought you wanted, people wanna become performers 'cause they want that spontaneous thing which is what Broadway is all about. I mean, it's eight times a week and you never know what's gonna happen technically or vocally or whatever. We use to get these, like, Gypsy taxicabs over the monitors sometimes and I feel... like right in the middle of the death scene and you'd be hearing 'Breaker, breaker.' and the audience can hear it but you're like... I mean, anything can happen. You just have to pretend it's not happening. But I actually started in theater. That was what I was into even before recording."

(about auditioning for Les Miz)

• "I auditioned for the original cast when I was 15 and got called back a few times and I told them, 'Yeah, you know, I'm in the process of doing demos and I hope to get a record deal.' and they were like 'Yeah right.' They followed my career and we got together and auditioned later on and made a plan."

(about critics seeing Deborah in Les Miz)

• "Critics came and admittedly in their reviews said, 'We came to pan her BUT...' and because what they didn't realize was it wasn't something I just decided to do. It was something, I had 10 years experience in theater before I went on that stage and, you know, I love... I think all... every area of entertainment is so closely... You know what I mean... What's the word I'm looking for? It's all... the same thing. I mean, It's all the same thing to me."

From Daily Variety (January 11, 1993)

(about the expectations for "Body Mind Soul")

• "I'm 22 and making a comeback. Yeahhh. The last album only had one hit on it. People might see (the new record) as that, but I really don't know. I haven't stopped working."

(Debbie's thoughts on "Body Mind Soul")

• "For me, this album just meant growth. This is kind of a more intense version of the other albums. I've always included love, message and dance songs. The arrangements, messages, melodies, and every area have just gotten more complex."

(about the "Losin' Myself" video)

• "For me, everything I've done is natural to how I felt. With the latest video, I had to be sexier. If I was losing myself over somebody, it would have to be contradictory to how I looked and acted in everyday life. I always try to do what's appropriate for the song and be true to how I feel at the time."

(about acting)

• "I would love to do film and definately more theatre. What I really want to do is play a role comparabe to Barbra Streisand's Fanny Brice, a character that's strong and witty. I'm not interested in playing cheerleaders."

From the Dallas Morning News (January 15, 1993)

(about her "image")

• "I think all of that's definitely other people's perceptions. Because what I'm doing and what I've always done is just trying to be true to myself, true to my music, and, really, just going by how I feel. I don't sit around with a bunch of image consultants and put too much thought into that -- truthfully."

(about the sexiness of the "Losin' Myself" video)

• "It's just that kind of song. The first single is a very sensual song. It would look more ridiculous if I was performing that video in a T-shirt, jeans and a hat than to be performing in a sexier way."
• "And really, whatever people's perceptions are is fine. You know, it is true that I'm not singing about puppy love in that particular song, so I guess people will get the message. But I think people will automatically assume that it was this major, calculated move when really I just felt this would be a really cool way to kick off the album, and that's what all of the thought process that was involved."

(about living at home with her mom)

• "Yeah, I'm living at home, although I just got an apartment that I'll probably be splitting my time between. I love living at home, though. I'm around so many flaky people all the time, it could really drive me insane, and I love being able to come home to my mom, my dog and my sister. It is just the best reality check I know of."
• "Well, my mom doesn't, you know, say, 'You have to be home by midnight' any more. You know what I mean? ... It's funny -- a lot of what comes from my songs is read and some of it's not, and I've had every opportunity to do whatever I want -- basically."

(making the transition from child to "grown-up")

• "I just want to get to the point where I'm making great music and none of that matters any more, and I'm just trying to get there without giving it too much thought.
• "A funny thought just crossed my mind, though. I was thinking to myself, I think even within your own family and friends, people always stop at a certain age in your mind. To me, I have a little cousin Albert and to me he will always be 9 years old. But the fact of the matter is that he came to New Year's Eve with his girlfriend -- he's in high school. I've have to deal with that. It's like a mixed emotion. On the one hand you're thinking, 'Oh that's so great. He's growing up to be this great person.' And on the other hand you're thinking, 'Oh my God. Oh no. He's growing up. What happened to little Albert, my little Albert?' You know?"

From The Massachusetts Daily Collegian (January 28, 1993):

(about Debbie's image)

• "People right from the start wanted me to have this sexy image, and it took six years before I feel comfortable doing a sexier video or sexier music. [The media] says 'What is this?' when I'm geing too goody-goody and 'What is this?' when I'm being sexy."

(about being asked to pose nude in "Playboy")

• "I could never appear nude. I wasn't flattered by the offer, I kind of figured that everyone gets asked to pose sooner or later."

From Newsday (January 31, 1993)

(about softening her rigorous technical standards on Body Mind Soul)

• "I'm a perfectionist. My ear is always focusing on pitch, and focusing on rhythm, and in the process of all that, you're forgetting that the most important thing about a song is what it's saying, rather than, oops, the third note in the second measure was a little sharp."

(about "Kisses 4 One" being a song about monagomay as a wise health decision)

• "I don't think people can afford to give in to their own selfish desires anymore, because it's not just themselves they're affecting. Madonna always comes out saying, people are too sexually repressed, and I think too repressed? We're talking about AIDS, and unwanted pregnancies, all kinds of stuff. I don't think prudish is the right word to use anymore. I think sensible is more descriptive."

(about "When I Say No")

• "I think every girl has been around a pushy guy in her life. For me, I always felt an incredible sense of self-worth from my own accomplishments, I never relied on attention from males to feel good about myself. But I had a lot of friends who believed that if they didn't have a boyfriend, it was the end of the world, they were nothing. A lot of girls feel that way, and that's why a lot of them get into situations they don't want to be in."

(about Amy Fisher)

• "My sister Denise sat next to her in homeroom at Merrick Avenue Junior High."
• "How do you not notice your daughter has a beeper? How do you raise a child that can lie that well? The way I was raised, I can't tell a lie even if it's one of those lies that you need to tell to protect someone's feelings. My parents always paid attention to what was going on with me emotionally. And that seems to be what was missing there."
• "I saw it in Merrick, where you definitely had your share of spoiled kids, whose parents were so wrapped up in their own social lives that they didn't really pay any attention to the kids. But I think I've seen that everywhere. I don't know if it's just Long Island."

(about working with Elliot Wolff on three songs on the album)

• "He was able to use synthesizers and sequences to get something that had a real feel. It didn't sound like a metronome."

(about working with Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers)

• "They came in quite late on the project. I had gotten out of 'Les Miserables' with a bunch of songs I had written during that period. I thought I knew what the songs on the album were going to be at the time, but I kept feeling: I'm more aggressive than this music I'm doing. I had a meeting with Carl and Evan, and played tapes of the songs I had, and they said, it sounds like you've got an album already. I said, I do, but I've got another side that's not being shown here. I don't want to wait until the next album to show it, I feel it now. So we got together, and came up with six songs in two days."

(talking about a comment she resented)

• "You know what comment I resented? That the last album didn't do well so I resorted to doing Broadway. 'Les Miz' has been around for what, six years? It didn't need my help. Broadway is so tough, if anything, it makes pop music seem like a very easy outlet."

From The Advocate (February 1993)

(about her "new sexy image")

• "I like to think of it as adding another dimension to my image as opposed to completely changing it. I think everyone's got two sides to them-two really extreme sides."

(asking if The Advocate was an usual publication to do an interview with)

• "Not to me. In the entertainment business I'm around many gay people. It seems more in tune with who I am and what my life's about-more so than The New York Times. I would say the majority of my friends [are gay]. There you have it."

(asking if the "virginal, lily-white image" is really Debbie Gibson)

• "Yeah. I'm not a prude but not a slut. You know what I mean? Things change from the time you're 16 to the time you're 22. A lot of people seemed shocked when I dressed a little sexier; for me it's not a big deal. My image when I was 16 was cutesy-even cutesier than most 16-year-olds I knew."

(asking if Debbie's trying to break the "pretty-little virgin image")

• "I was never looking to set any image for myself. What sets an image is other people's perceptions. In the new video, 'Losin Myself,' you can't wear a T-shirt and jeans like I did in "Electric Youth." It wouldn't have made any sense. Nor would it have made any sense to wear a Bob Mackie dress in "Electric Youth" video. I try to do what's best for the song."

(asking which image is the "real" Debbie)

• "Both. I think everyone's got two sides to them-two really extreme sides. I can look like I'm twelve years old one minute and 25 the next."

(about the Christmas card where Debbie is "hanging onto a bare chested man")

• "To me, that's funny. First of all, my boyfriend was right there, and the guy was one of my trainers from the gym. It was meant to wake up radio [programmers], because radio focuses so much on image."

(asked if she thinks there's too much sex in music these days)

• "I think if it becomes the core of your whole being as an artist, then it's too much. People always like a little sex in music. I guess it depends on whether you want to be a star or a musician; I want to combine both. But if I'm going to spend a free hour, it's more important to me to practice voice than to shop for a new hip outfit. In the long run, everyone is going to get wrinkles. You can't carry on your whole life basing your whole identity on sex."

(asked if she gets a lot of sex questions, like asking if she's still a virgin)

• "People were asking me that, and I was thinking, I find that a bit personal to discuss. I was like, a late bloomer. I was never really comfortable with sexuality at a young age. And it still makes me kind of uncomfortable. I'll be like, "My God, my boyfriend finds me sexy what a weird thought."

(the interviewer asks if she's a virgin)

• "You get right to the nitty gritty! Put it this way: I'm not going to say yes, and I'm not going to say no. As I said before, that makes you either a prude or a slut. I have a lot of pride in myself, in my body, putting my emotions on the line. I haven't been in that many serious relationships emotionally. I've been in even fewer physical relationships on any level."

(asked if she still lives at home with her mom)

• "I'm in the process of getting an apartment. But, yeah, I live with my mom, and that's the thing I get the most questions about. I'm around so many strangers all the time and so much phoniness-you need something to ground you."

(mentioned she didn't like Madonna's "Sex" book, asked if she'd seen it)

• "Yeah. A friend had it. At first I found it kind of silly. I don't look at pornography-but from what I've heard, [the book] is nothing new. But the second she goes and wraps it in a mylar bag, really young kids are going to be attracted to it. It's practically a how-to book, espcially with the text. It's extremely detailed, and that I find a little scary. In the text she describes an encounter with a woman and at the end asks her name-and I'm thinking, What is that? What's that about? I mean that's a fantasy? I just don't get it. I went to see her last tour-in fact, I saw it twice. All the sexual stuff on the stage never offended me. You could always see her sense of humor with the pointy bras and 'Like A Virgin.'"

(asked if she thought the book went too far)

• "Once you start associating sex with violence and doing it with a different partner on every page, what kind of message are you sending-espcially when you've become a spokesperson for AIDS?"

(asked if they shouldn't look for a book like that from Debbie)

• "Definately not. I never understood the idea of posing nude. Although the picture of her hitchhiking [nude] with the purse and the shoes-that's funny. That's in good taste and amusing. Just the idea of photographs of people touching you everywhere-it leaves nothing to the imagination, which I don't find sexy. I just wonder when she goes to sleep at night how she feels about the fact that she's shown everybody everything. I guess she hasn't shown everybody everything emotionally, just physically. But I think of the physical part of myself a sacred thing. It's not for people to buy or look at."

(the interviewer brings up the "Losin' Myself" video)

• "I knew that would come up, and people would say, 'Well the video's sexy.'"

(the interviewer brings up some of the sexual aspects of the video)

• "Yeah, that's true. But it's about one relationship and losing yourself in a relationship. I think you can be sexy without being graphic. I think it's pretty G-rated compared to what Madona does. If you look at Natalie Wood in "Gypsy," I don't think I'm showing anything more than she showed. It's sexy glamour without being pornographic."

(asks if there are more people that make her wonder why they do what they do)

• "The only thing that makes me wonder is when I see these hard-rock acts that sell the sex, drugs and rock-and-roll image-when you meet them, they're clean-cut, down-to-earth guys. And I think, If that's who you really are, why don't you stick to that? I've heard stories about heavy metal-acts going to children's hospitals and saying, "Don't say anything to the press, because this would ruin my image." That I definately don't get. Hopefully, there will be a new attitude in the '90's. I hope people will be a little more sensitive and honest, because the other message isn't getting us anywhere."

(asked if she believes in waiting until marriage to get pregnant and have children)

• "Yeah, although I've always wanted to adopt kids. I'd adopt a child before I got married; I wouldn't get pregnant before I got married. And if I did, I wouldn't get married because I was pregnant."

(asked if Debbie would consider adopting a baby with AIDS)

• "Sure. I do a lot of work with terminally ill children. It's amazing what you can do when you really reach out to someone. I don't have a doubt in my mind that I'll adopt kids with...whatever. It dosen't really matter to me."

(interviewer asks why Debbie's done a lot of work for AIDS)

• "It's like the plague in Europe. That's what this is. I don't know if people realize this. It's reached such an astronomical level."

(asked if Debbie's lost friends to AIDS)

• "Not a lot. I know people with AIDS who are functioning incredibly well; they're working in shows. That amazes me. I don't think I would be able to do the same thing; I'd fall apart. I have incredible respect for those people."

(asked Debbie if the message is getting out)

• "Well, even though you feel the message is out there so much, there are so many people who know nothing about it. I had a friend say to me about a month ago, "Oh, is this a new style of jacket, with red ribbons on it?" That's how I feel when I do publicity. You feel you're out there doing so much, but maybe one person reads what you say and one person hears what you say."

(interviewer noticed that Debbie wore a red ribbon at the album-release party)

• "I got that from Richard Jay Alexander [a producer of Les Miz] Being involved in Les Miz got me more involved with AIDS-Broadway Cares and Equity Fights AIDS, they do so much."

(how she feels about someone else's right to know someone's health status)

• "There is someone in Les Miz who is HIV-positive; everyone in the cast knew, and it wasn't a secret. I don't see any problem with it. It's easy to speculate about what you'd do if you were in that situation. It's such a personal choice. Obviously, if you're going to put someone at risk, then they have a right to know. If you're just hanging out with people, you don't have to announce it to them. I don't have to announce that I have a kidney infection this month. It's personal."

(interviewer mentions Tiffany)

• "See, now I get Madonna questions-which is better, because it shows I'm getting older. I haven't had too many Tiffany questions lately."

(interviewer says, "You're here. She's not. You got out of the mall. She didn't.")

• "I thought the direction of her music was a little scattered; that was the root of her problem. She always said that one of her idols was Stevie Nicks. If I were to produce Tiffany, I'd probably put her in that direction."

(asked if she thinks image had anything to do with Tiffany's downfall)

• "It was tough. She didn't have any family around. My mom and I would meet her on the road and feel for her, because you can't be 15 or 16 years old and traveling with just a male manager. That was kind of scary to me. I don't think she was doing what was right for her musically."

(about Les Mis: "Did you need the work, or did you just want to do the show?")

• "I wanted to do the show. My first goal in life was Broadway. Broadway to me is not something you do when you have nothing to do. In pop music you create your own atmosphere, your own little world. In a Broadway show you're stepping into someone else's music, someone else's story. I eventually want to do a Broadway album."

(asked if Debbie goes out to clubs much)

• "Not really. I've played in, like, every club in America though."

(asked if she's played in gay clubs)

• "Yeah, I've done gay and lesbian clubs. I did Backstreets [a gay Miami club]. In fact, there was this drag queen there-what was her name?"

(interviewer responds, "Belle Kincaide," then notes that she died of AIDS)

• "That's so sad. I played there three or four times, and she was always backstage cracking me up and my dancers. That's really sad. I played there once on spring break, and one of my dancers who was real popular in high school had all these football player macho friends. We said, "Come to Backstreets; we're playing a club date!" And they were dying, because it was all gay-"Oh, my God! Oh, my God!" People are so closed-minded, especially in the suburbs."

(asked what Debbie thinks of closed minded people)

• "I have a lot of friends whose familes don't know [they're gay]-still. Some, when they did find out, it was like someone in the family died. It's so ridiculous. Your son didn't come home and say he was a mass murderer; he said he had a different sexual preference than you. I always say it's like if the majority of the people in the world were gay, and you were saying, "But I'm straight; I like members of the opposite sex," and everyone was telling you you were crazy and taking you to the priests and saying you were going to hell. Would you be able to change that feeling that you were hetrosexual? You can't."

(asks if Debbie thinks sexual orientation is something you're born with)

• "I think it's a combination. Maybe some people are and some people aren't. That's something hard for me to figure out because I'm not gay. Some people say they felt it when they were 5 years old. Then other people say, 'I had a lot of problems growing up-abuse and stuff like that-and maybe that had something to do with it.'"

(asked if Debbie ever wondered if she was gay)

• "No, I never did. Like I said, I've always felt sexually embarrassed in general. I think people do know. People who go through a struggle, it's because they're trying to deny it and want to fit in with the majority."

(interviewer asks if the rumors about Debbie and Tiffany aren't true)

• "That we...? There was a story in The Star or something that I had a voodoo doll and that I brought it to my album party and performed a ritual on it with my friends. That was the best story. It was hanging on all my friends refrigerators."

(asked what she thinks of the boycott of Colorado)

• "I think it's stupid-only because it's not every person in Colorado that feels that way. I think someone should go there and address the problem. I went and did radio promotion there recently. and I whipped out my jacket with the big red ribbon on the back and wore it. For me, that says a lot more than not going at all."

(asked that if she had a child who grew and said, "Mom, I'm gay," that she'd be OK with that?)

• "I'd be fine. A lot of people I know who are gay have even gone to my mom before going to their own moms. We're very open-minded in our family, and my mom's always been able to say to people, 'Be yourself-and that's it.' I would hope that my child would be a really good human being-and that's it."

From BBC Radio 1 (March 31, 1993):

(asked about why she didn't so Les Miz during the summer in London after stating she would)

• "Well, there was some pressure from, I guess you could say, 'the business powers that be' to start recording another album and my sister was having a baby and my other sister was graduating high school. It was like everything was coming down at me at once and I said, 'Oh God if I leave now... I'm gonna be in really hot water'. But, I went to see Les Miz here last night actually, 'cause my friend Mark McKerracher who played Valjean in the New York production is now starring in it here. So, I went backstage and... the production here was so wonderful I was like, 'I've gotta do it here! If you do, you'd better stop maturing 'cause you're gonna out grow Eponine soon!' But, I'll try some day."

(asked if she would be doing Grease in London)

• "Well, I auditioned yesterday. So news travels really quick. I'm still waiting to hear if they liked me or not, I don't know."

(interviewer was surprised to hear Deborah had to audition)

• "You gotta audition. They're not gonna hire you based on records. You gotta be able to carry in a theatre, it's a whole other thing, you know?"

(asked why she auditioned for Grease)

• "I love Grease. I love that musical. I've been offered it in the U.S. and I heard they were doing it here and I heard that the production's supposed to be really great. And so I got an appointment yesterday. So, I don't know. I can't believe somebody tipped you off to that already 'cause, you know, who knows I could be the wrong height. I could be too fat, too skinny, too weak, too strong, too whatever. There's so much politics in musicals. So, I don't know yet if I got it."

(interviewer still can't believe she had to audition)

• "Oh yeah. Absolutely. I mean, for Les Miz in New York I had to sing through a lot of the score. Because, you know, like when you're a songwriter you can write songs that are totally in your range and suited for your style and your voice, but when you're singing someone else's material, you know, they've gotta make sure. I mean the writer of Grease was actually at the audition. So, they wanna make sure you're gonna do it justice."

(about the new "Shock Your Mama" image)

• "Well, my mother's really hard to shock, to tell you the truth."

(about the cover picture of the "Shock Your Mama" single)

• "It's, yeah. There's too much. I said, when we picked that photo, I said 'There's too much... boob in that shot!' That's what I thought, but, the whole thing is, if you're gonna do a song called 'Shock Your Mama' I guess you have to kinda go all the way with it. I mean it's, what the song is really about is kinda like the girl next door who's working it and trying to shock someone's mama. So, it's rather appropriate, it's funny."

(about the "Shock Your Mama" video)

• "Well, it's more, it's like I go over to the 'video boyfriend's' house and it's like he's got a very conservative family and I kinda start shaking things up a bit. But it's very funny because the family's so proper, it doesn't take too much to shock them, you know. So, it's kinda like what I would really do if I were to shock someone's mama. Which would be basically just dance on the table and..."

(interviewer asks what an executive producer does)

• "Well, basically the executive producer kind of, even before you get a budget from the record company, the executive producer is kind of there overseeing the project, fronting the money. Basically my mum takes a chance on me before anyone else does."

(asked about what kind of deal she has with Atlantic Records)

• "Well I had, um,... First, I had a three album deal and then I re-signed for some more. So, I've got, yeah, I've got a ways to go with Atlantic."

(interviewer presses to find out how many more albums are in the contract)

• "I said some more. I don't want to say exactly how many... Some more."

(interviewer asks her why she goes by Deborah on the producer credits)

• "My friends and family call me Deborah but... You know everyone loves to have a nickname for you. So, I just went with Debbie 'cause people always call me that anyway."

(asks if it's possible to combine a pop music career with a theatrical career)

• "I think so. I mean, I look at people like Barbra Streisand and Bette Midler. They manage to do it quite well and, I mean, in the long run that's the kind of career I wanna have. I don't want my career to be based on MTV. You know. I want my career to be based on being versatile."

(talking about aggressive versatile women)

• "Well, it's difficult for I guess aggressive women who do wanna be versatile 'cause people have a very tough time; people would much rather you be like a little dance tart."

(interviewer mentions Barbie after the above comment)

• "Yeah, yes. I think that somewhere inside of business people they'd rather you, you know, be a puppet. And so when you get a Barbra Streisand it's quite intimidating and it's very intimidating to know that she does everything and does it all well. I mean, that's frightening. And people know that and..."

(interviewer says about Barbra, "And when she fails, people love jumping on that")

• "Oh, of course. Because they know, they know how talented she is. I mean, they know that she doesn't need MTV, they know that she doesn't need the hype. She's got real talent, which doesn't always mean trendy success. It doesn't mean you're gonna have a hit every month but it's so much better in the long run, I think, to have a real strong foundation."

(pointing out a hyprocrisy)

• "Oh and if a man is a sex symbol, I mean, it's just the greatest thing. If a woman's a sex symbol she's a bimbo. You know, it's just..."

(interviewer asks how she strikes a balance with her sexy image)

• "I just try to ignore what people think, in a way, I mean, I think that, if I wanna play around with a sexy image I really try to make it known that it is just playing around. I don't, I don't really get off on walking around in little dresses and high heels you know, I don't... You know, I mean, that's, that's like kinda the acting part and the fun part of the whole thing."

(asked how she looks after her career)

• "I think the thing is I did it from day one. Like from day one, when I was fourteen years old I was offered a song to record and everyone swore up and down, 'This song is gonna go to the top... da da da da da.' It never did, by the way. But, I said, 'I'm sorry. It's not something that I wrote. So, it really, in my opinion, has nothing to do with me and you can get someone else to do it.' You know? And I had that way of thinking from a very young age. So, people knew right off the bat that I was not fooling around, that this was my life, it was my career and, you know, I've followed through with that."

(asked about relationships)

• "Well, it's difficult because, you know like, one part of me is very old-fashioned and I wanna feel like 'the girl' but yet I have a habit of, I'll walk in a restaurant, I'll immediately start talking: 'Table for two, non-smoking, da da da.' And the guy'll go, 'Oh... O.K.' So, yeah, it takes a very strong person to deal with me as just... my personality, I mean, not even having to do with any, you know, with the fact that I'm a performer. It's just I'm a very strong person."

(asked how she can maintain a relationship)

• "Well, I was telling you in the break that I had pancakes for breakfast and they got cold 'cause I was on the phone; I was on the phone with my boyfriend. I have a boyfriend and it's like, it's very difficult but, it's almost like you have to make a schedule for phone calls and, you know, it's hard but you make it work if you want to. You think, 'O.K., well this is the time we can talk so, let's just talk.'"

(asked how long the relationship has been going)

• "Since Les Miz, since... since you met me."

(interview remarks that he's "in the business")

• "Yeah, he's actually on tour with "Jesus Christ Superstar" in the U.S. right now. So it's very hard, 'cause he's in a different state every week and I'm in a different state or country every week and, you know, we just try to make our paths cross whenever we can."

(asks if the boyfriend is intimidated by her success)

• "I hope not! I hope not. I mean, the good thing is that he has his own thing, I mean. It's not that it has to be someone in the entertainment field. It's like, if you're a plumber and you are devoted to plumbing. I mean, it sounds funny but if you are focused on something and you have a passion for what you do and you have career goals that's kinda what it takes, I guess, you know, for me to click with someone."

(asked if she would be doing live concerts in London)

• "I'd like to. I would really like to. Yeah, I just wanna kind of juggle it, I guess. You know? I'd love to, if Grease did come to be, I mean, I'd love to do live shows either right before or right after it. But I'd always like to, you know, I get bored doing one thing. So, I mean after being in the studio for a while I'm anxious to get out and perform live, after doing my own stuff I'm ready for a new challenge like musicals or whatever. So, I'd like to try to juggle it, make it all work."

From Billboard (April 3, 1993)

• "When I got the news in 1988 of my first No. 1 in BILLBOARD'S HOT 100 with 'Foolish Beat,' I was in my living room in Merrick, New York rehearsing for my tour with background vocalists around the piano. It was one of our first rehearsals, and certainly one of the best!"

From an interview on April 3, 1993 [source unknown]

• "I've got used to the fact that I'm never going to be as hip as Arrested Development or Pearl Jam. Twenty years from now I'll still be here and that's what's really important to me."
• "I definitely feel different at 22 than I did at 16, so whatever comes of that will be the image. I don't really put too much time and effort into planning that out because you can't really second guess how people are going to respond anyway, so you may as well just be yourself."

(describing her fans)

• "They're rebellious, not in the sense that they go out and do bad things, but that they rebel against the stereotype that young people are supposed to be into all kinds of illegal things or whatever They're into my music and they take some heat for it I think, but that makes the audience stronger."

From an interview on April 5, 1993 [source unknown]

(about "taking Madonna on")

• "I'm definitely not trying to take Madonna on. Her image is really very sexy but this is as far as I go."

From The Big Bopper (May 1993)

• "I have a dog named Kringle and I snuck him into a hotel once because I wasn't sure whether dogs were allowed inside. I hid him under my coat and just kind of whistled my way into the hotel!"

From DGIF 5.3

Q: "Your new album... is EXCELLENT. One thing that worries us is your song Goodbye. ... Are you saying goodbye to us?"
A: "No way! Be prepared to hear music from me 'til I'm a hundred years old!

Q: "What is the best piece of advice your mother ever gave you?"
A: "Be yourself!"

Q: "Are you going on tour to promote BMS?"
A: "At the moment I'm working on my role in Grease, and will be performing in it until next April. HOWEVER, there is talk of touring next summer. Also, a USO performanceon the Intrepid was recently filmed for possible release"

(about Doug Morris "making" her write "Shock Your Mama")

• "He said something like 'Why don't you write something wild, something that would shock your mama?' I thought, 'That's a great title for a song'"...

From Smash Hits (August 17, 1993)

(about the 1970's movie, "Grease")

• "I was about eight when the film came out, and me and all my friends at school just went mad for it. I used to sing 'Hopelessly Devoted To You' in my bedroom every night."

(about how she'd heard about Craig McLachlan, her co-star in "Grease")

• "I hadn't heard Craig's records, but I'd seen him a few times on Neighbours and I'd heard that he was a funny, sort of unpredictable, guy. I also saw a photo of him at The Big Breakfast with a moustache drawn on it, and I thought 'Great, does everyone think he's a jerk or something?' Then I found out he drew the moustache on himself!"

(about Debbie's involvement in theatre)

• "I've been doing theatre and musicals from the age of five, and I suppose if you feel comfortable onstage, everything is fun to do. My idols are people like Barbra Streisand and Bette Midler, people who've done it all, not really people who're just into pop music."

(about people's perceptions that she's doing theatre because her pop career's "history")

• "When I go home at night and I'm going to sleep, I think 'I wouldn't want to be doing anything else, be anywhere else, at this point...'"

(about the risk of something going wrong during the show)

• "There's just so much electronic mayhem, and in this instance the problem was with the band who're playing on this hydraulic track. They couldn't fix it so we apologised to the audience and spent about three hours signing programmes. We met the whole audience - they weren't exactly an angry mob!"

(about meeting Fergie when she attended the show)

• "You know what she said to me - 'God, how do you dance in those shoes?' It's like 'Whaaaat?'."

(asked if Fergie gave her any toe-sucking tips)

• "Actually, there was a joke going around that instead of singing 'Go-go-go-go-go' in Greased Lighting, a couple of the guys were gonna sing 'Toe-toe-toe-toe-toe'!!"

From Smash Hits (sometime in 1993, during "Grease"):

20 NOSEY QUESTIONS (Debbie Gibson)

What time did you get up this morning?
"Eight o'clock. But that's only because I had to meet you guys at Smash Hits. Normally I sleep till noon because after the show (Grease) you have somthing to eat and it takes a couple of hours to wind down. But last night I made sure I got to sleep early, I got home and said 'OK, unwind. Immediately!'"

What's your most vivid childhood memory?
"I have a memory like an elephant, I swear, and I remember when I was two years old I was at a block party in Brooklyn, like a street fair where we lived. I was with my family but I just wandered off and didn't think that I had to account to anybody. I've always been independent! I remember thinking 'I'm going to get a hotdog and go round my friend's house', and that's what I did. While my family were busy back home freaking out ha-ha..."

What excuse did you use to bunk off school?
"Oh, just being sick like every kid does. I would just whine in bed and say 'Mom, I don't feel well', but I didn't cut school as a teenager because I was out of school so much anyway. I was in school half the year so when I was in school I really had to go to top of my work."

Do you bite your nails?
"Every now and then with anxiety but it's not a habit. They're strong but I've never really grown them much beyond that because of playing the piano."

What's your favourite joke?
"What d'you call a gay milkman? A Dairy Queen! Uh, do you have Dairy Queens here? The chain store where they sell milk and all kind of stuff? Oh well. Anyway, it's a silly joke and it was told to me by a gay person so I hope no one's offended. I just think it's really cute. I like cute jokes the best."

What's better: Pizza Hut or Pizzaland?
"Well...Pizza Hut is a taste of home. Actually, the last time I went to Pizzaland I ordered a thin 'n' crispy and it came as sollid as a rock. It was toast! So I'll say Pizza Hut. I always have pizza because coming from an Italian background I'm really picky about Italian restaurants. My grandmother's name is Pistizzi so you can imagine what kind of sauce she makes. I'd never have Pizza Hut pasta!"

When God was handing out stuff what did he give you double of?
"Positive energy. Absolutely. I feel like I've got enough to go round. I mean, I can be in a really bad mood and get on stage and still feel like I have something to give people. He gave me a bit of a double nose, too! It has...a bit of a bump he-he!"

Have you ever dialed 999?
"Ah, that's 911 in America, right? No. Ha-ha! Not once. I've never had an emergency, I'm afraid. Sorry! The thing that always gers me with emergency lines is that they always seem to ask you so many questions. If it ever happens to me I'm going to give my name and situation and hang up."

When was the last time you gave cash to someone in the street?
"Oh, God, like two days ago to a homeless person on the street. I think if someone's desperate enough to beg then give'em the money. In New York you could give away twenty dollars, a dollar here, a dollar there, in a day. Easily. You just do what you can, y'know?"

Have you ever had a pee on someone's garden?
"Noooo! Whaaaah...ha-ha! I have a bladder of steel. Maybe God handed me a double-sized bladder too!"

Have you ever had your fortune told?
"I go to a psychic in New York. She's absolutely incredible, she's helped find missing children and helps out the police on major cases. She's told me titles of songs in notebooks that no one's ever heard of and stuff that I should finish - but I would never let her control my life. I use her quite practically, too. She told me once that I should get my tires checked one day and I didn't and two days later I got a flat. Tire, that is. I know that a flat means something quite different over here he-he..."

Are you in love?
"Yes. I'm still with my boyfriend, it's been a year and a half now. He's called Kevin Wright and we love each other very much and it's kind of hard being away from each other. I first knew I was in love about two months into the relationship. He's a special man, very very warm, very thoughtful, very down-to-earth, calming, anything that I'm going through, even if he can't understand it, he tries. Which is an excellent quality and I can't say I do the same!"

How many boyfriends have you had?
"Oh, well, I've dated throughout high school and stuff, you can date for a few weeks but that's not really a boyfriend. Um, I'd say I've had four relationships that I'd think back on fondly, the rest have been people you go to tha movies with, y'know? It hasn't been too traumatic for me and I'm just happy I'm with someone like Kevin for now."

Are you scared of dying?
"Yes and no. I tend to think of what will happen to the people around you if you die, stuff like that. I definitely believe in the spiritual world, absolutely. I believe there are people that have died who are looking over me now, There's definitely gotta be something else, you energy lives on. I don't believe you come back as another person or a tree but maybe your energy comes back as part of another person, like perhapes someone else's soul could be a part of me right now. I think that's comforting."

Do you watch your weight?
"I go through phases. When I'm performing I naturally have to eat what's best for me, I just eat very healthily. I do some weights and I do a lot of vocal practice which people don't realise can really make you sweat. You use so much of your body and it comes right up from the floor. It takes your whole body to support your diaphragm. So I'm pretty fit and I do watch what I eat but I dont get crazy about it. If I want a burger tonight, I'll have one, but I wouldn't have them every day otherwise the baby-fat comes piling onto the stomach."

What was the last photo you took?
"Oh! Well, Kevin and I took a photo of ourselves last night in the hotel restaurant with the self-timer. He was leaving this morning so we thought it would be cute. Mnnmnhnm. I've still to develop it, so..."

Three words that best describe yourself?
"Energetic. Commited. Honest. Commited or dedicated. Oh can I give some more?"

Do you practise safe sex?
"Yes, I would if I was promiscuous, absolutely, but the best way to practise safe sex is to stay monogamous and not rush into your sex life. When I was in high school I didn't even believe in pre-marital sex although I can't say I believe that now but I still think the ultimate is to be able to have one partner for life. You don't need to experiment with so many partners to know if someone's right for you. I've learned a lot of being in a showbusiness relationship because I'm away most of the time, so the physical aspect of my relationship is the least important. The most important aspect is the trust, the understanding and the communication."

When was the last time you threw up?
"I genuinely can't remember the last time I threw up. I have a stomach of steel, so I don't throw up."

How much time do you spend in the bathroom before you go to bed?
"Not a long time because usually I'm anxious to just lie down and unwind. Mmmn, but the last night was the full shift, a ten minute bath, wash and brush the teeth and that's it. 15 minutes maximum."

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