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For a few years in the late 1980s and early 1990s, there weren’t as many musicians that were finding the type of success that Debbie Gibson was having. As a teenager, Gibson seemed to have come out of nowhere and was landing massive hits on the radio airwaves. Though her time at the top only lasted for a couple of years, Gibson is still active in the music scene, as well as acting, still able to belt out some great tunes in her late 40s.

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Gibson was born on August 31, 1970 in Brooklyn, New York and grew up around the New York City area in her early life. It was clear that Gibson was musically inclined at a young age, learning to sing and play the piano while also writing her own material. Gibson even recorded her work by herself and was hoping to land a record deal during her teenage years.

While still waiting to land a record deal, Gibson was performing at clubs and still going to school. Then, the big break for Gibson came when she signed on with Atlantic Records. They executives were impressed with her songwriting and singing abilities, and made sure that the then-16 year old was well marketed when it came time to release her music. “I’m glad I started so young,” Gibson said. “Because you are really able to endure so much at that age.”

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Talking about starting out at that age, Gibson added that “WHen you are young you are so out of your own way. In retrospect, I can see there were sacrifices, but I did not feel that way at the time. I was always involved in professional shows from the time I was seven so I was used to missing some school and parties, etc.”

Gibson exploded onto the scene in 1987 with the release of her album “Out of the Blue” that reached the top 10 of the Billboard charts and went platinum multiple times. There were a ton of hits that came off of her debut album, including the debut “Only in My Dreams” with “Shake Your Love” and “Out of the Blue” that all reached the top five. She also had her first number one hit from the album with “Foolish Beat”.

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In the first weeks of 1989, Gibson’s sophomore album was released with a lot of anticipation. “Electric Youth” was released, with the song of the same name and “No More Rhyme” nearly reaching the top 10. The debut single from the album, however, “Lost In Your Eyes”, became Gibson’s second number one hit.

During this time, young singer Tiffany was also entering the scene, and many assumed that there was a rivalry between them. However, that wasn’t the case. “Who had time to not get along?” Gibson asked. “We were both during our own things. We were focused. We were on the road…we always kind of bonded over the fact that we were two of really a handful of girls (releasing albums).

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The following year saw the final time that Gibson would crack the top 50 of the singles charts with the song “Anything is Possible” from her third album “Anything is Possible”. It seemed like the allure had went away rather quickly after Gibson’s second album as “Anything is Possible” failed to go platinum, and her follow-up album “Body Mind Soul” in 1993 didn’t reach the top 100 or even land certified gold in sales.

That didn’t mean that Gibson stopped making music, though. “Losin’ Myself” was a top 100 song and she released two more albums in the 1990s with “Think with Your Heart” and “Deborah”. Since then, there have been three more studio albums for Gibson with “M.Y.O.B.”, “Colored Lights” and “Ms. Vocalist”, with that most recent album coming in 2010. While they haven’t charted in the U.S., the latter did have solid sales in Japan, and her most recent single came out in 2019 with “Girls Night Out”.

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On top of being a musician during her career, Gibson also got involved in acting during the 1990s. She had guest appearances in shows like “Step by Step” and “Beverly Hills, 9021”0”, as well as films “My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend” and “My X-Girflriend’s Wedding Reception”. Since the 2000s, Gibson has been in a lot of TV movies, especially with the SyFy Network, starring in campy monster movies like “Mega Shark Versus Mecha Shark” and “Soulkeeper”. Gibson even popped up in the 1980s-based musical “Rock of Ages” with many other stars of her era.

Gibson has also been a big part of the Broadway scene over her career. “In my 20s and 30s, I checked off most of the Broadway roles that I ever wanted to play,” she said. “I got to play all of my dream roles. My career has been crazy gratifying.”

“What I love about how my career has gone up to this point is that I’ve always, always put my head down on my pillow at night, and I’ve been able to say that I’ve done, honestly, what I’ve felt like I wanted to do,” Gibson said. “And that’s really all you can hope for in everything you do.”

“This business is about working,” Gibson continued. “It’s really not about glamour. For me, the most glamorous thing about it is to be able to get on stage and perform my music for people. That’s the privilege. And that’s what all the works leads up to, and that’s why it’s worth it to me…I’ve managed to keep my career going in a way that suits me. I’ll perform, and then I’ll go home to my actual life, and I’ve never been so visible.”