[upbeat music] [crowd cheering] - Hey, everybody.

Welcome to SoundCheck.

I'm Jen Eckert.

We're here at the Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank, New Jersey with a special holiday edition of SoundCheck with the one, the only, Debbie Gibson.

Now, you can see the stage being set behind me and she's going to be singing some classic holiday hits with a twist and some new ones from her album Winterlicious.

She'll tell us just what it was like making her first holiday album.

We'll also hear from friend collaborator and fellow 80s pop icon Joey McIntyre from New Kids on the Block Fame.

So no matter if you're bah humbug or all about deck in the halls, this next half hour, it's gonna be sure to get you in the holiday spirit.

So join me for this SoundCheck with Debbie Gibson.

- I want to welcome NJ PBS.

I'm so happy that you guys are joining us because I grew up at such a huge fan of all the specials on PBS.

So I'm so so honored and thrilled you guys are here.

All right, it's never too early to jingle those bells, let's go!

- Debbie Gibson.

Welcome to SoundCheck.

It is an honor to meet you.

You were the soundtrack of my 80s youth.

- Thank you.

- Thank you so much for being here.

Cannot believe I'm sitting across from you.

And let's talk about your holiday album Winterlicious.

How fun was it to make this album?

- It was so much fun and a long time coming and holiday records, it's like you have carte blanche to go into all different genres.

I mean, there's everything from a 36 piece Orchestra to swing and horn sections and Joey Mulatti who's Barry Manilow's pianist plays on it.

My dad sings on it.

Joey McIntyre and I wrote a super modern sounding duet produced by 21 year old Sean Thomas, so it's like we let the music lead the way and I think that there's something for everyone on it.

- Now, it's a mix of classic songs with your magical spin on it and then some originals.

How did you choose the mix?

- I envisioned by the end of this lifetime Winterlicious is gonna have 50 songs on it because there are so many more classics and so many more to be written, but how I went about deciding what went on this album really was, I mean, the originals kind of dropped in.

♪ I'm warm enough to face the night ♪ ♪ With nothing but your love wrapped 'round me ♪ ♪ I'm coming from a place of light ♪ ♪ I'm nothing like the way you found me ♪ ♪ Stay a moment and play ♪ I'm needing this day to melt the cold ♪ ♪ And all my fears fade away ♪ 'Cause your love is ♪ All there is ♪ Your love is ♪ December's kiss ♪ I just tore up ♪ Tore up my list ♪ 'Cause your love is ♪ The gift ♪ I wanted far too much too long ♪ ♪ By all the glitter I was blinded ♪ ♪ But now I sing a different song ♪ ♪ 'Cause in the heart is where you'll find it ♪ ♪ All the things that I need ♪ Are the things they can't see ♪ ♪ Or take away ♪ 'Cause here is where they'll stay ♪ ♪ 'Cause your the gift ♪ Your love is ♪ December's kiss ♪ I just tore up ♪ Tore up my list ♪ 'Cause your love is ♪ The gift ♪ Ooh ♪ Woo ♪ 'Cause your love is ♪ Your love is ♪ December's kiss ♪ I just tore up ♪ Tore up my list ♪ 'Cause your love is ♪ The gift ♪ The gift [crowd cheering] - Tell me about holiday traditions in the Gibson household growing up in Long Island.

- Santa always came live in person on Christmas Eve.

And somehow magically in the time that we got in the car and went to my grandparents' house and got back, Santa had stuffed the stockings and put all the presents under the tree.

He's a magician.

- Magical.

- And I made the Gibson family Christmas tape every year.

So starting from the time.

I was like 13, I had a studio in my house and year after year, I would pull my family in and I would like force them to sing.

Basically, my little sister Denise was always like, "Ah, Deb, I don't want to do this" and meanwhile, we have her like "All is calm" like with this gorgeous soprano voice at age 11 doing Silent Night.

And one of my favorites though was when all of that older generation was still here and they're all gone now.

We all do Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer.

And everybody's howling and everyone's like I'm trying to like keep everyone on the beat and it's not working.

I had to like rent extra headphones.

I passed out all these headphones and all these lyrics sheets and all the old timers took a solo and who like did spoken word for their verse and who started singing and then cackling and so that was an amazing memory because music was always just such a big part of our lives.

White Christmas is something my dad and I always love to sing around the piano and he's pushing 80.

So I was like, "Dad you need to make your recording debut at 79 years old, let's do it" He was like "Where do I go?

What should I do?"

You know, "I'm gonna start warming my voice up."

It's adorable.

He sounds amazing.

♪ I'm dreaming of a White Christmas ♪ ♪ Just like the ones I used to know ♪ ♪ Where the treetops glisten ♪ And children listen ♪ To hear sleigh bells in the snow ♪ ♪ I'm dreaming of a White Christmas ♪ ♪ With every Christmas card I write ♪ ♪ May your days be merry and bright ♪ ♪ And may all your Christmas' be white ♪ ♪ Ooh ♪ Babababbababaa ♪ Badadadada ♪ The treetops glisten ♪ And children listen ♪ To hear sleigh bells in the snow, oh, the snow ♪ ♪ I'm dreaming of a White Christmas ♪ ♪ With every Christmas card I write ♪ ♪ May your days be merry and bright ♪ ♪ And may all your Christmas' be white ♪ ♪ And may all your Christmas' be white ♪ - Deb, you're the best.

I love you.

- I love you too.

- He sleighed it.

I mean, s-l-e-i-g-h-e-d, sleighed it.

I think I just get that like the Show Must Go On thing from him and I love that, his moment is happening for him.

- You mentioned Joey McIntyre.

Let's talk about heartbreak holiday.

- Yes.

- How that song came about?

Did I read it or was it over the phone you guys were singing it back and forth?

- It was over the phone.

I was like we were literally getting off the call and I said, you know, by the way, I am doing this holiday album.

I'm kind of wrapping it up soon.

And I know you had said like you didn't really want to do the holiday thing with me, but do you wanna?

He was like "You know, I've been playing around with this melody" and I was like, "You know, I have this idea.

Initially it was holiday heartbreak" and he was like, "Oh well" and we started bouncing back and forth and I was like, "Let me go to the piano" He goes, "Let me go to the piano" and before you knew it, the song was born.

♪ Heartbreak holiday ♪ Heartbreak holiday ♪ Cold as winter's day ♪ Cold as winter's day ♪ The memories real and dear ♪ 'Cause I still feel you here ♪ On this heartbreak holiday - It was wonderful.

I mean, it was the first song we wrote, you know, not to go too far back.

But this whole relationship with Debbie and I is a very wonderful surprise kind of later in our lives, we knew each other for a long time, but we never really connected as performers until the mixtape tour in 2019 when she was so nice to share her number one record lost in your eyes with me, and that like the spark for us, and we've been working ever since, and I'm a huge fan.

She continues to be such an inspiration to me.

- Your relationship.

You've called each other pop soulmates.

She was talking to me about this.

Where does your bond come from?

Is it the artist's creativity?

Where's this pop soulmate?

- Yeah, I think.

You know, I think it's just, number one, we love to do what we do.

I think we're grateful to continue to have opportunities to share.

You know, our craft.

- He and I have had very parallel lives like doing theater, and we were always like the performers who wanted to be like stretching and you know, like using our chops and are very real way and he is my pop soulmate.

You know, when we played Vegas together, I was like, "Wow, I've never been a part of a duo, " and he had been a part of a group but never working that closely with a female.

So it was just a brilliant surprise for both of us.

- What hits me is I've been lucky enough to have you know, four guys in the New Kids on the Block to go on this journey with, but I've never had a female counterpart.

And I've always been very much in touch with my feminine side.

So the way Debbie and I share and walk through the challenges and the ups and downs of going on stage every night and giving your all and continue to create, I mean, that kind of connection is really invaluable.

[soft music] ♪ Oh, the weather outside is frightful ♪ ♪ But the fire is so delightful ♪ ♪ And since we've no place to go ♪ ♪ Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow ♪ ♪ It doesn't show signs of stopping ♪ ♪ And I've brought some corn for popping ♪ ♪ The lights are turned way down low ♪ ♪ Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow ♪ ♪ When we finally kiss good-night ♪ ♪ How I'll hate going out in the storm ♪ ♪ But if you really hold me tight ♪ ♪ All the way home, I'll be warm ♪ ♪ Oh, the fire is slowly dying ♪ And, my dear, we're still goodbying ♪ ♪ As long as you love me so ♪ Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow ♪ ♪ When we finally kiss good-night ♪ ♪ How I'll hate going out in the storm ♪ ♪ But if you really hold me tight ♪ ♪ All the way home I'll be warm ♪ ♪ Oh, the fire is slowly dying ♪ And, my dear, we're still goodbying ♪ ♪ As long as you love me so ♪ Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow ♪ ♪ Oh, the fire is slowly dying ♪ And, my dear, we're still goodbying ♪ ♪ As long as you love me so ♪ Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow ♪ ♪ Let it snow, let it snow ♪ Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow ♪ ♪ Let it snow, let it snow [crowd cheering] - Each and every song that found it's way to this album, like kind of encapsulated a certain style, a certain musical genre that I wanted to cover or had some kind of meaning in my childhood.

- And you put a twist on them too.

And I heard you call it newstalgia not nostalgia, but newstalgia.

So whether it's Jingle Bell Rock or Electric Youth, you put this great new newstalgia on these songs.

- Yeah, I'm very big on bridging the old and the new.

I think that we all want the great feelings that come from the simpler times and our past and our childhoods and our teen years.

But I also enjoy encouraging people to evolve and to move forward and to not be afraid that "Oh my God.

What if everything great is in my past?"

It's not true.

I think that your future can be as good or better than your past.

But you can hang on to what was great about the then like the music, but yes spin, it in a new way.

- And when you sat down to write the original songs, holiday songs, they're ingrained in us.

We know the lyrics.

Did you feel pressured?

Did you write the lyrics first or did the melody come to you?

What's your process?

- I think what I've learned about songwriting is the more you stay in the moment, you stay in your life, and in feeling, everything that comes with living.

The songs just come in.

I sing my thoughts.

I can't even explain how it happened.

But so nuts.

♪ Ooh, I know what you're thinking ♪ ♪ I see it in your eyes ♪ You outta give our love another try ♪ ♪ If you said jump, I'd say how high?

♪ ♪ If you said run, I'd run and fly ♪ ♪ Just for the chance ♪ Just for the moment ♪ Should the moment pass up by ♪ And if you ask once, I'll tell you twice ♪ ♪ I'll ignore the world's advice ♪ ♪ If we could be together ♪ For a while ♪ Sing with me, New Jersey, come on ♪ ♪ If you said jump, I'd say how high?

♪ ♪ If you said run, I'd run and fly ♪ ♪ Just for the chance ♪ Just for the moment ♪ Should the moment pass up by ♪ And if you ask once, I'll tell you twice ♪ ♪ I'll ignore the world's advice ♪ ♪ If we could be together ♪ For a while ♪ One more time ♪ Every time I'm telling secrets ♪ ♪ I remember how it used to be ♪ And I realized how much I miss you ♪ ♪ And I realize how it feels to be free ♪ ♪ I feel I'm up to no good ♪ And I wanna start again ♪ Can't remember when I felt good ♪ ♪ No, I can't remember when ♪ No, only in my dreams ♪ As real as it may seem ♪ It was only in my dreams ♪ No, only in my dreams ♪ As real as it may seem ♪ It was only in my dreams - I could use your instruments, guys.

Come on.

♪ No, only in my dreams [indistinct] ♪ As real as it may seem ♪ It was only in my dreams ♪ Where I felt good, baby ♪ No, no, no, no only in my dreams ♪ ♪ As real as it may seem ♪ It was only in my dreams ♪ Well, my candy-cane boy wished on a star ♪ ♪ And love sweet love, oh, there you are ♪ ♪ Check it off my list ♪ Santa heard my wish ♪ Now I only need one mistletoe kiss ♪ ♪ I know what love means ♪ Only in my Christmas dream ♪ As I wait ♪ The Christmas Dream ♪ Only in my dreams [crowd cheering] - What do you want fans to take away from this show?

- I just want people to feel moved and inspired and you know, like they can embark on the new year, like with a reset.

I feel like you know, I say it in Christmas Star.

Bring it on the remix of your life.

Like, you know what, let's get all the feelings, all the emotions, all the angst of the year, all the celebratory.

Just let it all flow so you can feel refreshed and renewed going into the holiday season in the New Year.

- Debbie.

Thanks so much for joining us.

- Thank you so much.

- Thank you, guys.

Thank you, NJPBS.

Happy holidays, y'all.

Thank you so much.

- Big thanks to Debbie and Joey, too many great songs to choose from.

I can't decide which was my favorite from the show, but I think I loved White Christmas, just the duet with her dad.

It just evoked all these nostalgic holiday memories.

Well, for all of us here, hope you have a safe, healthy and happy holiday season, ♪ I'm warm enough to face the night ♪ ♪ With nothing but your love wrapped 'round me ♪ ♪ I'm coming from a place of light ♪ ♪ I'm nothing like the way you found me ♪ ♪ Stay a moment and play ♪ I'm needing this day...♪ [Music fades] [upbeat ambient jingle] [upbeat jingle]