Paula Abdul Reveals What Famous Babysitter Michael Bolton Sang to Her, Plus: How She’s Giving Back

Paula Abdul has sold millions of records with hits like “Straight Up” and “Opposites Attract,” but how did she catch the musical bug?

“Extra’s” Terri Seymour spoke with Paula, who recently revealed that Michael Bolton was her babysitter. She shared, “When I was growing up, he was good friends with my sister… He used to sing lullabies to Beatles songs, but he’d change the words to farm animals. He’d do the Beatles’ ‘Twist and Shout,’ but he’d change it to ‘Twist and Moo.’”

Speaking of her youth, Paula is paying her success forward by surprising her childhood dance teacher with a new state-of-the-art studio with the help of “Secret Celebrity Renovation.”

She explained, “I’m giving back to my very first dance teacher… His name is Dean Barlow… He’s so special to me… He was my other father figure and I just adored him. He taught me so much. He made me fall in love with dance. I owe it all to him.”

Another sweet thing Paula did recently was send flowers to Kathy Griffin, who is on the mend after lung cancer surgery. Paula said, “From what I understand, she’s doing very well. She’s making a recovery now and I’m glad for that… I’ve known Kathy for a long time. I was the butt end of her jokes for the longest time.”

Paula has jokes of her own, though, and when Terri brought up the singer’s love for playing pranks on people, she quipped, “I have a whole bunch of new ones up my sleeve just waiting to be released.”

Abdul is also joining Cedric the Entertainer on “The Greatest #AtHome Videos,” surprising a viral singing sensation. She pointed out, “I think it’s in my DNA to always give back. I’ve been that same way since I was a little girl and it’s something that just fulfills my heart.”