Debbie Gibson - The Body Remembers/Winterlicious

[George]

New album from the 80s Pop star drops August 20th.



1. One Step Closer
2. Runway
3. Love Don’t Care
4. The Body Remembers
5. Lost in Your Eyes, The Duet (with Joey McIntyre)
6. Strings
7. Legendary
8. Freedom (feat. ASHBA)
9. Girls Night Out (#Vegasvibe Remix)
10. Dance 4U
11. What Are We Gonna Do?
12. LuvU2Much
13. Red Carpet Ready
14. Tell Me Love
15. Me Not Loving You

Debbie Gibson Says New Album 'The Body Remembers' Is Like 'Electric Youth 2021'

A new pop album is no longer only in Debbie Gibson's dreams.

On Aug. 20, the pop star turned stage and screen actress will release The Body Remembers via her own Stargirl Records, her first set of original pop songs since M.Y.O.B. in 2000. It's preceded by a new version of her chart-topping "Lost in Your Eyes" as a duet with New Kids on the Block's Joey McIntyre, with whom Gibson will be co-headlining Las Vegas shows during August and September.

"This album very much feels like Electric Youth 2021 in a lot of ways," Gibson tells Billboard, referencing her double-platinum sophomore album from 1989, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and launched three top 20 Hot 100 hits, including "Lost In Your Eyes." "The variety of styles, the way it encapsulates my life right now -- I really wanted to let it hang out on this album. The goal was to make an undeniably special, authentic, well-crafted and yet still raw album. I feel great about the fact we found that. I feel like I've made an undeniable album."

But Gibson is quick to assure that, at 50, she's not trying to revert to her teenage self either. "What does make it feel like it's been a long time is the richness of things I have to write about now," she explains. "I've lived a lot of life up to this album, and it's all reflected here. There are chapters and chapters of other songs I've written, especially in the last 10 years. I knew that the next time I put something out I wanted it to be a drop-the-mic 'wow' moment. I feel like this is that album."

The new "Lost in Your Eyes" does hail from Gibson's past, but with more recent context. Gibson and McIntyre performed the song together during NKOTB's Mixtape Tour in 2019 at his suggestion. As Gibson was putting material together for The Body Remembers, she decided, "it's time for us to record 'Lost' together."

"Literally one of the questions I get asked the most on social media is 'When is the 'Lost in Your Eyes' duet gonna get released?'" Gibson says. "It's so special to me. I grew up with New Kids. I had their posters on my wall, and they were my friends. So to team up with them at that point in our lives was amazing. Fans kept saying, 'I was watching my idol and my crush together.' That's powerful."

The collaboration also provided the juice for the duo's shows at the Venetian Resort Las Vegas -- with Sept. 16-19 added after the initial Aug. 26-29 dates sold out. "Joey was like, 'Y'know what? If we record it, how about if we also do some shows together?'" Gibson recalls. "It snowballed into this engagement that's gonna be so much fun."

For the rest of The Body Remembers, recorded under pandemic conditions, Gibson co-produced primarily with Sean Thomas but also collaborated with Tracy Young, Lars Nelson, Fred Coury and others. The songs boast a contemporary pop sheen and classic melodic sensibilities, from dance tracks such as "Love Don't Care" (which has been around the better part of a decade) and "One Step Closer" to the halting, R&B-flavored gait of "Legendary," which started life as a tribute to the late Kobe Bryant. A throbbing techno underpinning drives "Runway," while "Me Not Loving You" and "Strings" dip into lush ballad territory.

"I really wanted to tell the truth about who I am, my life, and the truth about my voice, which sometimes is super slick and sometimes has rough edges," Gibson says. "I had a chapter of my life and my career where I did a lot of Broadway and I wanted to prove to myself and other people I could use the legitimate part of my voice and sound super slick and have all this control. But I'm a rocker at heart in the sense that I have a rawness when I sing. I felt like it was time to really embrace that side of my personality."

The Body Remembers comes at a time when Gibson's visibility is on the upswing. During the Mixtape Tour she hit No. 4 on the Dance Club chart with the single "Girls Night Out." More recently she appeared on the "Bloody Celestial Karaoke Jam" of Netflix's Lucifer, while Kelly Clarkson covered "Lost in Your Eyes" for her Kellyoke series. Gibson is also getting ready to film The Class, "a very cool, kind of modern-day version of The Breakfast Club with Anthony Michael Hall and Charlie Gillespie," in Chicago. There are also, she says, "a couple other movie projects I can't talk about yet." She's also finishing up a Christmas album.

"I feel like I'm sitting at the beginning of this new chapter -- at 50, but I really do feel like a wide-eyed teenager about this music," Gibson says. "I always had dreams of being in show business forever, making music forever. I always idolized Tina Turner and Cher for turning age on its ear in an ageist business. I got enough reality checks along the way that made me realize that is not an easy task; doing something once is a lot easier than sustaining it. So I still have work to do, but I'm being conscious about enjoying all the moments, all the excitement leading up to things instead of just being intense about my work."

[George]

Music Video Premiere:

[George]

Album is out:

[🇯🇲 lucy88 🇯🇲]

[newpower]

I like her new album. The title track is my favorite.

Cherry Pop is releasing a deluxe expanded version of her debut album in October (3 CDs)

[Ling-Ling]

That deluxe edition of Out Of The Blue looks CLUTCH. The first time a lot of these mixes have been on CD, will definitely be nabbing.

[divasummer]

I like some of Debbie’s latest album.
I thought it was going to be to cheesy or extra poppy for my taste.
The up and midtempo songs I enjoy most.
As of now my favorites are “Dance 4 u, Runaway, Love Don’t Care and What Are We Gonna Do”.
I also think “Girls Nite Out” is better than I remembered.
Maybe it’s a different mix they put on here?

[newpower]

Deluxe Edition of Electric Youth coming this year: November 26. 4 CD with many remixes. Tracklist and more info here

[newpower]

This is how you do a Deluxe/Anniversary Edition, I’m talking to you Cyndi Lauper.

[🇯🇲 lucy88 🇯🇲]

[JOJO SIWA DERANGEMENT SYNDROME]

That classic 7" mix of "Only In My Dreams" is finally available!

[Bhad Bill]

New Christmas album “Winterlicious” dropping on October 21!!

Excited for her little holiday tour too.

I just got into Debbie last year with the Body Remembers. That album plus OOTB and Electric Youth made me fall in love!

[George]

Her new film The Class opens today in theaters and On Demand:

[divasummer]

I added a few songs from Debbie’s “The Body Remembers”.
One song “Love Don’t Care” reminds me of something Kylie Minogue would have recorded.
“Dance 4U” was another favorite along with “What Are We Gonna Do”.
I was kind of surprised I liked those tracks so much.
Her style of singing isn’t normally for me now a days but those tracks I Love!!

[George]

Christmas album is out:

[George]

Gonzo Report: Pop wunderkind Debbie Gibson brings Winterlicious to Viejas

Deb Heads’ delight

Mike Madriaga
Dec. 29, 2022


Not only in my dreams: Jenny Corriveau and Debbie Gibson

Debbie Gibson’s Winterlicious concert at Viejas Casino & Resort in Alpine was an early Christmas gift bestowed to local “Deb Heads” on Thanksgiving weekend. “That’s Debbie’s name for her core group of fans,” Jenny Corriveau told me outside the Oak Ballroom, where the concert was held. “I have been a fan since ’87. She is the soundtrack of my life. Damn it, I’m going to cry.” Corriveau showed me a photo she’d taken a few minutes prior with Gibson at the VIP meet and greet. “If 40 people stand outside the door, she will talk to, sign for, and hug every single person.”

A VIP ticket, which allowed attendees to sit close to the stage and enjoy a meet-and-greet with the bubblegum pop songstress, cost about $200. Regular tickets, like the one I purchased for a spot near the venue’s rear, ran $30. Parking was free. The Saturday event was Corriveau’s fifteenth Debbie Gibson concert. While she was talking to me, she realized that her fellow Deb Heads had made their way inside, which cued us to follow. “Tonight, you’re going to see the pure joy with a couple of her hits,” said Corriveau as we walked towards the ballroom, “and songs from Winterlicious, a new album. It’s a holiday album, because it’s got Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Year’s Eve-themed songs.” The LP, Gibson’s eleventh, was released on October 22.

Most concertgoers were fellow Gen-Xers. A few people wore throwback attire reminiscent of the ’80s — Madonna-esque garments with lots of holes, or sweaters tied around their necks a la Alex P. Keaton from Family Ties — but most dressed conservatively, many in Christmas colors, with scarves and beanie caps.

Gibson opened with “God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen,” wearing a sweater that looked like a Life Savers candy wrapper. After the Christmas intro, Gibson doffed the sweater and revealed a bright green mini dress. “I feel a little Barbarella,” she said into the mic, “I love all of that holiday music...I’ve been waiting to wear this dress for, like, months.” The 52-year-old ’80s icon had the same physique as back in the day, according to a person sitting in my row. “I remember seeing her on MTV, singing ‘Shake Your Love’ while dancing in a convertible oldie car.” Next, Gibson performed “Electric Youth,” hitting the dance moves on cue with her male backup dancers. “They can’t keep up with her,” continued the same person in my row. Then suddenly, one dancer did a back flip as Gibson was singing near the Christmas tree on the left side of the stage. The crowd “oohed” and “aahed” at the display of energy, but stayed seated.

Gibson addressed to crowd to recount the story of her early success — before she even graduated high school. “The rotary phone rang, and my mom was, like, ‘It went number one on the Billboard charts’...and it went a little something like this.” Gibson gently played the piano keys, then sang, “Oh, can’t you see I’m not fooling nobody?” from “Foolish Beat,” off her 1987 Out Of The Blue album. A groupmate walked out with a saxophone in hand and played along with the famous synth-pop jam that got so many ‘80s teens through crushes, puppy love, and breakups. Some in the audience sighed, others sniffled. Gibson made history with the track as the youngest artist to produce, write, and sing a song to top the Billboard Hot 100 list — at 16.

Gibson took a short break and returned to the stage wearing a long black dress. On the jumbo screen on the right side of the stage, a man’s image popped up, and he sang with Gibson. “That’s Debbie’s duet with and tribute to her dad, Joe,” explained Corriveau. “It’s a lovely rendition of ‘White Christmas.’”

The nearly one-and-a-half-hour Winterlicious concert played like a Broadway show, including a few outfit changes, onstage dialogue, soliloquies, and even props. At one point, all the performers left the stage, and a team carried out a king-size bed. Then the musicians, backup dancers, and singers got onto the bed and surrounded Gibson. “Welcome to our slumber party,” she said. Everyone on the bed wore pajamas and sang “Christmas Dreams” (with a country twang), a song from her new album.

One of the last songs performed was “Cheers.” “Her mother died earlier this year, and ‘Cheers’ is a tribute to her,” Corriveau said. As Gibson sang, people stood and held their drinks up in the air. “Here’s to the end and the beginning,” Gibson sang. “What a year. Cheers!”