Knobby-kneed and full of bravado, she played her first Las Vegas club at age 9.
Tiffany, as she would be known, was ready.
Her stepfather slipped performer Hoyt Axton a homemade tape of his little girl singing, and the older singer shrugged and said, “Kid, you don’t sound like a kid. You sound like you’re 30. You can come on stage tomorrow for one song.”
She belted out “Joy to the World” and “Delta Dawn.” Stage fright? Forget it.
“Performing has always been like breathing for me,” says the artist originally known as Tiffany Renee Darwish.
Now 54, the Norwalk, California, native became one of the defining stars of 1980s pop music with hit singles “I Think We’re Alone Now” and “I Saw Him Standing There.” Her 1987 debut album, “Tiffany,” shot to the top of the charts thanks to a tour that had her playing shopping malls across the country.
Her latest project blends ’80s nostalgia, music and elevated comfort food: It’s a new cookbook, “Pop Life: The Ultimate 80s Kitchen Encore,” co-written with celebrity chef Alicia Shevetone.
Sections of the book include “Born to Rock” with recipes such as Mexican chicken pot pie and cheesy chicken nuggets; “VIP Meet & Greet” with egg roll cups and cheese ball trio. There’s “Backstage for the Band” with puffy cheeseburgers and tour bus tacos, and “After Party” with Waldorf chicken salad and cherry cola brownies. The “Vegas Residency” pages feature recipes for BBQ chicken french bread pizza, clams casino crostino and swedish meatloaf.
Tiffany, who lives in Nashville, Tennessee, with her son, Elijah, shared her good life advice:
Foodie on tour
“I come from a long line of foodies and great cooks,” the pop star says. “My grandmothers were German and Lebanese and would make the most delicious foods of their culture. Later, when I was traveling the world, I never wanted to eat in the hotel. I wanted to escape those walls and eat what the locals ate, so I’d drag my band out there and we ate the best food. … I’d write down exactly what went into that stir fry or how they made that Indian food and it became a game. I’d come home, go to the grocery store and find the ingredients to make it myself.
“Food is like music. It has its own language.”
Take a chance
Tiffany didn’t have any contacts in the music industry when she started. “I was just that kid who didn’t stop singing and drove everybody nuts!” she says. “My parents said, ‘Well, if this is what you want to do, then let’s just go for it.’”
At the San Diego Fair, her stepfather tipped one of the bands $50. “He said, ‘Look, my daughter wants to sing.’ They took the money and I jumped up there,” she recalls.
Troubled past
“I came from a turmoil type of childhood,” Tiffany acknowledges. “There is abuse and alcoholism in my family. I do have compassion now for the people I knew early on. Good people make bad choices. Later, people got sober, which was a big victory for my family. … I always tried to anchor myself because it was extremely humbling to go home to an unstable life when I was a kid and music star. I was the eldest daughter always making sure my sisters were OK. I didn’t have time to play pop star at home.”
Looking back
“I came up at such a magical time,” she says. “The 1980s were like a fairy tale for musicians. Everyone was so unique and you could be different. Sure, there were some cheesy songs and we made fun of them. But there was something about that music that made us happy. It was very uplifting, which is why I’m proud to be a part of the ’80s nostalgia.”
Meet your heroes
She loved meeting rockers including Cyndi Lauper and Madonna. “These were two performers who really lived on the edge, and the music was so much fun,” Tiffany says.
Her best encounter? “I did meet Michael Jackson after knocking his No. 1 song ‘Bad’ down the charts. I thought, ‘Oh gosh, will he even like me now?’ Michael came up and said, ‘Congratulations. Enjoy the ride!’”
Her best fan encounter was with another female singer. “Stevie Nicks is my hero and everything to me,” she says. “We met and she asked about my music and my album. I was a teenager thinking, ‘What is happening here? Stevie Nicks has heard my songs.’”
Days in Vegas
In the early ’90s, Tiffany spent a few years living here while playing a residency at the Las Vegas Hilton. “I lived in this little apartment behind The Mirage. Two bedrooms. I’d come in, do my residency and then go back to my California house. But I loved my time in Vegas, and the people were so nice to me.”
Slow down
“I find now that a hectic schedule looks great … on paper. You really do have to pace yourself and live your life as stress-free as possible,” Tiffany says “I meditate and do red-light therapy. I love yoga. To make sure I do these things, I make appointments with myself to block out the time.
Retro round
Tiffany isn’t above an ’80s speed round, including a confession about the star whose poster hung in her teenage bedroom: “Eddie Van Halen” Favorite ’80s movie? “Jaws.” Fashion trend? “I’d love to see long sweaters make a comeback, but you can keep legwarmers.” First song on her mixtape in those days: “Simple Minds. ‘Don’t You (Forget About Me).’”
Best advice
“Live your dreams at every age,” the singer says. “You never know about tomorrow. If you don’t know how to do it, just ask a lot of questions … and still do it.”
