Gwen Stefani: "It Is As We Grow Up That We Realise It Is A Strength To Be A Girl"
With the recent resurgence of the 90s, she makes for one of the girls whose style from the past are constantly reposted on Instagram. Crop top, platinum hair, baggy pants, barrettes ... now at 51 years old, Gwen Stefani sees her style moments come back in full force on social networks and in the street. But she is more than just a punk pin-up. With the group No Doubt, she established herself in the rock landscape of the 90s before becoming a solo pop star collaborating with the likes of Dr Dre, Pharrell Williams and Prince. Her charisma and her music have since influenced Rihanna, Katy Perry, Ariana Grande, and Dua Lipa (who invited Gwen on her remix album).
This year, she has returned with her new music as she released her first new track of 2021 in the form of sun-kissed single 'Slow Clap'.This new song, which follows last year's 'Let Me Reintroduce Myself', will be featured on her upcoming fifth solo album.
Ahead, we speak to the singer on her upcoming album release.
Where did you get the idea for your new single, Let Me Reintroduce Myself?
It's a title that talks about my insecurity, as usual (laughs), with self-mockery. It evokes writing new music when I was feeling defensive, representing myself to others. I said to myself: but why be on the defensive, I'm still me, actually. I'm not dead (laughs) . So I share, innocently, what I am.
Is coming back to the reggae-ska that you did with No Doubt linked to the difficult period we are going through, which has left us with a yearning for nostalgia?
The last album I recorded, This Is What The Truth Feels Like , corresponds to a moment when I felt hurt (editor's note: Gwen had divorced Gavin Rossdale, father of her three boys, singer of the band Bush). And then I fell in love (with country superstar Blake Shelton), which transformed me. Anyway, it's a combination of things that brought me to the sound of this new single. The 25th anniversary of No Doubt's album Tragic Kingdom has played, no doubt. There's also everything going on in the world around #metoo and racial issues. We were already talking about that with No Doubt, through the ska music of the 70s which prized unity and anti-racism. I have a teenager at home who also listens to a lot of music. It reminded me of who I was at 14-15 years old and made me want to deepen my work around the music that defined me: ska and reggae.
What did you discover during your research on reggae and ska?
It was interesting because I only knew reggae through the prism of ska. When I was 13, I lived in the Californian suburbs, in a simple and Catholic family, I didn't know anything about reggae. During my research, I discovered the existence of Sister Mary Ignatius Davies, a white, Catholic woman born in the 1920s who lived in Kingston. She educated young boys who took music lessons at the orphanage, which has become an institution for children in difficulty, Alpha Boy's School. When I found out about this nun who was teaching these young Jamaicans who would then go and play with Bob Marley, I felt a strange connection with her.
You created the LAMB brand What role does fashion play in your life?
Fashion has always been there, since I was a little girl. When I went to Disneyland, I was fascinated by the costumes, the colours. My mom was very stylish in the 60s too. And I would watch old Hollywood movies where everyone is so glamorous.
When you wrote Just A Girl with No Doubt, did you realize it was a feminist anthem?
Not at all, that was just my feeling at the time. At the beginning of life, we are not necessarily aware of the gender to which we belong. It is as we grow up that we realize it is a strength to be a girl, but that it also makes us vulnerable. Afterwards Just A Girl became the name of my show in Las Vegas, and performing the song on stage I realized that it was the most relevant title I have ever written.
