Brenda Lee Recalls the Poignant Advice She Got from Judy Garland (Exclusive)

Brenda Lee was just 13 years old in 1958 when she recorded her immortal Christmas classic “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.” Despite her tender age, she was already a showbiz professional with years of experience.

Lee started singing before she could even remember. At the age of three, she performed at the counter of a local candy store and received candy and loose change in return. At age five, she won first place in her school’s talent show with a spirited rendition of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.” The win made her a local celebrity and led to invitations to perform in her hometown in the Atlanta suburbs. (She often had to stand on a milk crate to get to the microphone.)

When her father tragically died in a construction accident, eight-year-old Lee became her family’s main source of income. Despite the challenging circumstances, she emphasizes that she never felt pressured and simply did what came naturally to her.

“I think God shaped my style because we didn’t have a radio or a TV,” she tells PEOPLE. “So I didn’t listen to much music as a kid. I think that was good in many ways because I was able to develop my own style. After we got a radio, I listened to everything and attended concerts that came to town.”

Her life changed forever after she attended a show hosted by country variety television show host Red Foley Ozark Anniversary. Foley had heard about the little girl with the big voice and was ready to hear her sing backstage before the show. Impressed, he hired her to appear on his nationally televised television series. “He gave me my big break in television,” says Lee.

The national exposure quickly catapulted her to stardom. Her preternatural talent earned her comparisons to her heroine, Judy Garland, whose mature singing style had also brought her fame at a young age. The two crossed paths in the 1950s when both were booked to perform at the Sahara Hotel and Casino. At the time, Lee’s star was just rising, while Garland was already a bona fide legend – although her tumultuous childhood in Hollywood’s unforgiving studio system undoubtedly worried her.

“Judy was laying by the pool in Las Vegas,” Lee remembers. “I was just a teenager – a teenager’s childhood! I plucked up the courage, walked over, introduced myself and said, ‘Miss Garland, could you give me some show business advice?'”

Lee never forgot Garland’s words. “She just thought for a minute, then looked me straight in the eye and said, ‘Don’t do it.’ always Let them take away your childhood.’ I always remembered that.”

Luckily, Lee followed Garland’s advice. “I had my childhood,” she says. “I went to public school.” I had my friends. I was a cheerleader. I did all the things that all the other kids did. The only difference was that I sang.”

These days, Lee has her own advice for any young hopefuls looking to follow in her footsteps. “I would tell them. “Make sure it’s what you really want and not what someone else wants for you.” Because it’s hard! It’s difficult for children in this industry. You’re just isolated and they tell you everything: how you move, how you look, how you dress. Sometimes you are even told how to perform. Luckily that didn’t happen to me. I had good people around me and they just let me be myself. I’m like Popeye: I am what I am!”

Lee celebrated two major milestones in the weeks leading up to Christmas. She turned 80 on December 11th along with her friends and family. Just a day earlier, it was announced that “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” had surpassed 1 billion streams on Spotify, making it the only holiday song by a female country artist to do so. “I was amazed when I heard it,” Lee tells PEOPLE exclusively. “I can’t even think that high, let alone say it!”