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THE AVERAGE pop music performer is now old enough to be the parent ofyour typical teenage pop music consumer, which in some ways is nice:There's something to be said for experience and longevity, after all. But let's face it: Every once in awhile it's nice for teenagers to be able to identify with the music of one of their own kind. And that's where Debbie Gibson and Tiffany come in.
Gibson is the 16-year-old from Merrick whose hit, "Only in My Dreams," has made her more than just a local celebrity. Tiffany's a 15year-old from similarly suburban-tothe-max Chatsworth, Calif., who has a ready-made hit with a remake of Tommy James and the Shondells' "I Think We're Alone Now."
Tiffany's success is due as much to ingenious marketing as it is to music. MCA executive Larry Solters figured that since teenagers like hanging out in shopping malls so much, why not bring Tiffany to where the action is? Tiffany got her start by doing impromptu mall shows, lip-synching a few of her songs, then mingling with her peers - buying mascara and lip gloss.
If Solters was as good a songwriter as he is market analyst, Tiffany would soon be as big as the other single-name female stars. Unfortunately, most of...
