ROB BECK
| 7.4.2007
 
SOME ARTISTS ARE eager to put their pasts behind them. But Tiffanywould never imagine disowning her days as teen pop princess, even though her new album, “Just Me,” and her upcoming performance at WETbar on July 7, aims to showcase a more mature, yet still fun, vibe.
The 35-year-old is a far cry from her days of denim skirts and mall tours. The singer of “I Think We’re Alone Now” loves the feeling that comes with taking part in a definitive time in music.
“You know, it’s awesome,” she says of being at the forefront of the '80s. “As soon as I sing, ‘Children, behave,’ everyone jumps on with the rest. It’s an awesome feeling.”
Despite embracing the past in her upcoming show, Tiffany is eager to showcase the growth that comes with adulthood. She says the new album, featuring the single “Feels Like Love,” offers a familiar sound that fuses a wide variety of musical influences.
“I would say this album is pop because of my voice,” she says. "But I was really influenced by people like David Gray, John Mayer, even the Dixie Chicks. They reflect all my learning experiences.”
TIFFANY’S CAREER IS full of learning experiences. From her current vantage point, she can see how things are different for girls like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.
“At the time when I was real popular,” she says, “it wasn’t acceptable to be drunk in public and go out without your panties. These things would have ruined my career.”
Tiffany’s grateful that she had an anchor to keep her in control without having a public meltdown.
“It was really about my friends and family who kind of smacked it out of me,” she says. “I’ve had the same friends for like 25 years now, so I couldn’t pull Diva Miss Thing. It wasn’t going to work.”
She did, however, earn at least one moment of less-than-squeaky-clean scandal when she posed for Playboy’s cameras in 2002, a gamble that paid off by helping her shake off her self-described “mall girl” image.
“It was mixed emotions,” she says of her photo spread. “I wanted to think about it for my family … but I was really happy with it at the end of the day. I wouldn’t change doing it; it definitely changed the mindset people had of me.”
Tiffany’s most recent stint in the limelight was her turn on the latest season of VH1’s “Celebrity Fit Club,” an experience that saw her lose almost 30 pounds and helped her re-focus on fitness for health’s sake.
“I'm like a little soldier now,” she laughs. “I’ve never really had a weight problem, but, like a lot of women, I have the type of body that if you’re good to it, then it’s good to you.”
TIFFANY ALSO PLANS on being good to her gay fans at her WETbar show, since she credits them for allowing her to do what she loves.
“I think a lot of my gay fans have followed me through the years,” she says. “They’re very familiar with my music, and I'm just so thankful that they support every twist and turn that I do.”
Tiffany takes the stage on Saturday, July 7, doors at 10 p.m. at WETbar, 960 Spring St. 404-745-9494, www.wetbaratlanta.com
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