Tamara Tunie

“Fortunately, I'm known as the hardest-working woman in showbiz, not to compete with James Brown. I've always been a multi-tasker.”

“I truly believe that when a person makes a concrete decision and takes action towards a goal that they've set, that the universe will step in and provide opportunities.”

“Understand that the time in the audition is your time. Really own it and take control of it. And do what you prepared. Focus on really executing what it is that you intended to do.”

“The first thing I do is brush my teeth - we like to start the morning with fresh breath - and put on my pajamas and meander down to the kitchen for a glass of orange juice. No coffee. No caffeine.”

“I wanted to make a home that was similar to the kind of home that my mother made. To be able to create something like that in my adopted city, New York City, one of the toughest cities on the planet, is really special.”

“Even though you're married, you're still individuals. You still have to grow and nurture your individuality.”

“I appreciate being able to give back to charities I care about such as the American Diabetes Association - my older sister passed away from diabetes - and Figure Skating in Harlem, which teaches young girls about confidence, focus and goal-setting.”

“There was a time, actually, when I hadn't been singing, and I'd lost a lot of my ability. My range had shrunk.”

“I'm Irish on St. Patrick's Day. I'm Italian on Columbus Day. I'm a New Yorker every day.”

“We sit and read the paper in conjunction with having a little breakfast. Usually fruit salad, or I make myself a smoothie with rice milk, coconut water and yogurt.”

“When I first got to New York, all I did was musicals. After a few years I had to make a conscious choice to close the door on musicals, because I was getting pigeon-holed as a musical theater performer.”

“I grew up in a funeral home, born and raised, and everyone was always like, 'Well, what was that like?' and I was like, 'It was normal', because it's all I knew.”

“You have to continue to grow and evolve as individuals in order for your marriage to evolve. It takes two pillars to support a structure. If those two pillars become one, you have a structure that teeters.”

“I always watch the work I do.”

“I grew up in Pittsburgh, and regularly, my parents would take us to the Holiday House Supper Club to see acts like Nancy Wilson, Sarah Vaughn, Ben Vereen, Freda Payne, Stephanie Mills, and The Temptations, to name a few.”

“I missed singing. I missed performing in a nightclub.”

“I grew up in a funeral home. Both my parents were morticians.”

“Living in New York, for me at least, just keeps it very real and keeps my feet firmly planted on the ground.”

“I was very good in all the maths and sciences.”

“Working on a film is so great because you have the luxury of more time when you're on a movie than when you're on television.”