Quotes from Tiffany Darwish

I grew up on the West Coast during the '80s. But I wasn't a 'valley girl,' since I grew up in Norwalk, which was filled with Latina girls.

My mum really depended on me. I'm the eldest of three girls, and she had emotional issues.

At the end of the day, if you're still kickin', and you're still doin' what you love, and you still have a dream, that's all you need.

I guess getting used to sleeping on the tour bus has been the hardest thing - that and settling for whatever food you can get on the road.

'I Think We're Alone Now' just makes people feel good. It became a teen anthem twice. How cool is that?

Before I even got signed as a teen, I was singing with people like Hoyt Axton and Mickey Gilley. I worked with Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard.

I'm real cautious about staying a regular teenager. I've had other friends who hit it big with a record or something, and they changed completely. I don't want that to happen to me.

I came to Nashville in the early '90s, and I thought, 'OK, enough is enough. I write songs; I just don't have the backbone to show it to anybody. I want to go to Nashville and learn how to properly write a song.'

I've got to overcome that tendency to hide what I write or throw it away.

I don't need a security guy pushing my fans around.

There were just a lot of things that happened between my mother and I, and I thought it would be easier if I lived with my grandmother.

I hope my career will be long-term. It's not something I'm taking for granted, but we try to plan that way.

Over the years, I grew up as a person and made mistakes and had a great time and had a baby, kind of grew as a person and as an artist.

I have a stepfather who isn't around just because he wants to be with my mother and sisters. There's more to it. He's around for the money. He's proven that in a lot of ways. And my mom loves him. And that's not wrong. But when it interferes with my career and my business and becomes a threat to me, there's a problem.

No, I wasn't really suing my mother. I was just trying to get in control of my finances and my life. My stepfather has only wanted me around for my money, and he threatened to leave my mother if he didn't get the money anymore.

I went to Nashville when I was 10. Tried to get a record deal. Everybody was like, 'You're 10. It's not gonna happen. Come back later.'

If it's going to make you happy, go for it - life is short.

It's nice to go out to a club and know you can still turn heads.

Like, it's fun for me to sing 'I Think We're Alone Now.' But when 'Could've Been' comes out as a single, that's a ballad and really shows my voice; then people will say, 'Hey, this girl really can sing.'

I write a lyric, but when I reread it, I think it's awful and either hide it or crumple it up.

From the time I was 2, I told my mom I was going to be a singer. And she'd say, 'Sure, honey, and tomorrow you'll want to be a dancer.'

What I'm hoping is that people in my age group will grow up with me and keep listening.

When I was growing up, I wanted to dress like a lot of my idols, but I simply couldn't afford it, or my mother would say, 'Too much make-up' or 'It's too old for you.' So all I've ever worried about is that my fans could relate to me, and as a teenager with the same tastes and interests.

I am a redhead and was a tomboy for many years.