First published 22 Oct 2026, 8:47am
Pop icon Taylor Dayne has traded the hustle of Los Angeles for a new life in Santa Barbara after recovering from a harrowing battle with colon cancer.
The Tell It To My Heart hit maker, now aged 64, decided to relocate to the coastal city as part of her healing process, describing her new home as a “sacred space” and a “sanctuary”.
“I loved the idea of living in this sanctuary. It’s pretty magical up here,” she told the Montecito Journal .
“I am really relishing being in a sacred space where everybody is pretty damn happy.
“Spending time at Lotusland, going to my yoga classes, meeting up at Lucky’s or the Honor Bar, taking amazing hikes up to Skofield Park.
“I love going to the farmers market on Tuesdays, having dinner with friends at Brophy Bros., or just walking the streets downtown, finding little gems.
“And of course the arts community, which is so tight knit and giving of their time. It’s a great place to lay your head at night.
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Taylor Dayne has traded the hustle of Los Angeles for a new life in Santa Barbara
The Tell It To My Heart hit maker decided to relocate to the coastal city as part of her healing process.
Dayne’s life took a dramatic turn in 2022 when a routine colonoscopy caught colon cancer in its early stages.
The singer underwent urgent surgery to remove 25cm of her colon, but severe post-operation complications left her bedridden in hospital for 20 days and battling for her life.
By the end of her treatment, the singer’s weight had dropped to a fragile 44kg.
“I got really, really sick, and it gave me a new sense of purpose,” the mother-of-two told People in 2024.
“I said, ‘I’m not ready to go. I’m going to fight this.’”
“I went through hell and back … But I hold my hands on my heart, I look at my audience, and then I go for it.”
Before moving to Santa Barbara, Dayne primarily split her time between Los Angeles and the East Coast.
In early 2024, she listed her long-time five-bedroom home in Valley Village, Los Angeles, for $2.5 million and previously purchased an oceanfront condo in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Before moving to Santa Barbara, Dayne primarily split her time between Los Angeles and the East Coast.
Dayne’s CD cover of Tell it to my Heart
Born Leslie Wunderman, Dayne rose to overnight stardom in late 1987 when Tell It To My Heart blew up in European nightclubs.
“It was overnight stardom,” the musician told Stellar in 2017.
“Everything was catch-up. We had to make a video. We didn’t even have a record [ready].
“I was just a woman in my early 20s, working in a Russian nightclub and going to the studio at two or three in the morning to lay down tracks.
“I was so sick of being in bands by then; I wanted to go solo.
“We borrowed money from my father and we made ‘Tell It To My Heart’. I got that track off a guy I went to high school with who was working at [a music label]. We were hustlin’.”
The smash single launched a massive career that went on to sell 75 million albums worldwide, two Grammy nominations and chart-toppers like Love Will Lead You Back and Prove Your Love.
Her 1993 album Soul Dancing was her last super successful venture.
Dayne told the outlet she “took it personally” when her tracks suddenly stopped charting in the mid ’90s, but finds that kind of accomplishment practically irrelevant in the streaming era.
“What is radio anymore? What is Top 40? I make my own radio station happen now,” she said.
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