Tina Marie Cross ONZM was born 27 January 1959 in New Zealand. Cross is one of six siblings and grew up in Ōtara from the age of four, except for a three-year stint in Kaitaia. Of Māori descent, she affiliates to Te Aupōuri and Ngāti Porou. Cross' mother is of Maori-Croatian descent. While the family were in Northland, Tina and one of her siblings won a talent quest.
In 1974, her friend, Kim Hart, encouraged Cross to audition for the school's musical productions with their band, Chalkdust, and the pair sharing singing duties. In 1975, the group auditioned for television talent show Opportunity Knocks and while the band missed out, the producers saw enough in 16-year-old Cross to offer her a one-year contract where she learned her craft. Cross was soon presenting herself to a national audience via popular television shows such as Smile and Once More With Feeling.
In 1976 Chalkdust became a finalist in the 1976 Battle of the Bands competition. Kim Hart would sign with EMI Australia in 1977 and would have a top 10 hit "Love At First Night" by 1980. In 1977 Cross spent some time as a dancer on the television show, Top of the World and also appeared on several episodes of Ready to Roll, where she sang the current popular hits of the day. In 1978 Cross won the rising star award at the Entertainer of the Year awards. In 1979, Cross released four singles, all of which made the top 50 of the New Zealand charts. Her fourth single, "Nothing But Dreams", was the New Zealand entry into the 1979 Pacific Song Contest, which it won. Cross released her debut studio album 'You Can Do It' in 1979.
In 1980, Cross again represented New Zealand at the Pacific Song Contest, this time, a duet with Derek Metzger titled, "Once Again With You", taking out second place. Cross began working on a second studio album, a shift from disco to new wave ultimately failed and the album, 'Tina X', did not chart. Cross maintained a high profile with numerous television appearances and in 1982 she relocated across the Tasman to Sydney, Australia and began singing on the cabaret circuit.
In 1984 she teamed up with composer-pianist Leon Berger and formed Koo De Tah. They had a hit with "Too Young for Promises" in 1985 which made it #6 on the Australian charts, two further singles "Body Talk" and "Think of Me" were released and a self-titled album in 1986. The group disbanded in 1987. Following Koo De Tah, Cross launched a corporate cabaret act and toured India and Asia before returning to Auckland in 1990.
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