Once upon a time she was “Tiny Tina”, capturing the nation’s attention with her cover of the ABBA hit Ring Ring on Young Talent Time in 1974.
Now singer Tina Arena is looking back on her career as she celebrates 50 years in showbusiness, with the 57-year-old is providing pearls of wisdom she has learned along her half a century in the industry.
”Women, particularly assertive and strong women, are muzzled or put to the side,” she told Sunday Life of her observation, “There’s no room. You’re 40 years old, you’re not relevant any more. According to who? In whose fantastical world does that concept exist? Not mine.”
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The Chains singer has no qualms about speaking her mind, even getting in trouble for it on many occasions.
One of the most notable examples was during the COVID-19 pandemic, when her criticism of the Victorian government’s restrictions and their impact on the arts community led to mixed response.
She says at the time, she drew from the wisdom her mother taught her.
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”She told me that there’s no point in retaliating or buying into it, to just always walk away and always be elegant,” she said.
“When COVID happened, I started to see things for what they truly were, and understood that I am what I am. Before I’m able to love anybody else fully, I need to learn to love me and respect me.
“You realise that a difference of opinion from the masses doesn’t make you a lesser person. It doesn’t make you less worthy. Differentiation is a beautiful thing because it’s where we learn so much.”
She again landed in hot water as recently as earlier this year, when she chastised fans for taking toilet breaks, getting into fights, and even confiscating one’s phone at shows.
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“It’s not being outspoken, it’s just speaking up, and it’s defending my space,” she said.
Even as she celebrates her milestone, Arena says there is still scope for change.
“I’m trying to reprogram myself so I can celebrate myself and go, ‘I’m happy here.’ My faults, my good points, my shit points, the things I’ve got to work on. I might never get to be perfect, but I’m proud of who I am.”
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She is also marking the occasion with her own image in the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra, alongside those of music greats Jimmy Barnes, Olivia Newton-John, Nick Cave, Chrissy Amphlett, to be unveiled on September 5.
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