In 2004, Gwen Stefani, lead singer of the multiple Grammy-winning band No Doubt, invited us into her creative world with Love. Angel. Music. Baby. The pay-off was mindblowing. Seven million copies sold worldwide, including over 3.8 million in the U.S. Smash hits “Hollaback Girl” (#1 for 4 weeks on Billboard’s Hot 100), “Rich Girl” (which featured Eve), “Cool,” “Luxurious” and “What You Waiting For?” A sold-out tour. So when it came time for Gwen Stefani to record a second album, you would think there would be pressure - to make not just another great record, but also to satisfy the expectations that come with massive success. Think again. As she’s done throughout her career, Gwen hasn’t let anyone dictate what she should do. That’s because she relies on instinct, integrity, and eclectic, heartfelt sources of inspiration. “For me, the music just brings a lot of confidence. Making music is very rewarding,” Gwen says. “It’s really fun to have people listen to your music and get something, whatever that is out of it. So when all is said and done, I hope people enjoy it as much as I’m enjoying it.”
Gwen’s much anticipated sophomore album is The Sweet Escape and as she did on Love. Angel. Music. Baby., one of rock/pop’s most admired, and just straight-up cool singers, brings an unmistakable ability to cross-pollinate genres with effortless joy. Joining Gwen are fellow sonic adventurers, including The Neptunes, No Doubt’s Tony Kanal, Akon, Swizz Beats, Sean Garrett, and Keane’s Tim Rice-Oxley. If that line-up seems far-reaching, it’s deliberate. “All my inspirations were completely different on this record,” Gwen explains. “The last time, it was all about doing a dance record. It was all about ‘80s-inspired music, the music I danced to when I was growing up. But this time, I felt like I was in a whole different place. I have a lot more melodic songs. There are beats but it’s also more. The Sweet Escape is a perfect title because the music takes you away.”
Gwen’s “sugar-coated” direction is on display on The Sweet Escape’s first single “Wind It Up.” One of four tracks produced by The Neptunes (who also helmed “Hollaback Girl”), “Wind It Up” finds the unlikely meeting ground of hip-hop, a drum line and, inexplicably, “The Sound Of Music.”
“Wind It Up” first came to light during recording sessions held in 2005 but was originally meant to be something, well, different. Gwen was looking for theme music for her clothing line L.A.M.B.’s fashion show. She took the original Neptunes’ track and had a friend do a remix that contained a mash-up with “The Sound of Music.” Explains Gwen, “It’s just a dream I always had. To take ‘The Sound of Music’—which is one of my favorite, favorite movies of all time and stars one of my biggest inspirations, Julie Andrews, and put it on vinyl, since I’ve referenced it a million times for other things. There’s just something about that film that’s touched me over the years. It’s something that I’d talked about doing for a long time. And then I thought, ‘Gosh, put a beat to ‘The Sound of Music.’ That would be ridiculous! But when I heard the mash-up, I actually cried. I know that sounds ridiculous, but it was so good and so fresh and amazing. And that inspired me even further, and so, against Pharrell’s will,” Gwen laughs, “I did that, and it ended up being the first single, which is very exciting.” Equally exciting was reuniting with a kindred spirit. “There’s something weird about me and Pharrell. We come from such different places, but we have so many things in common, it’s bizarre. But we inspire each other in this very strange way. When we get together, we always do something that’s such a good blend of the two of us.”
Gwen pushed herself even further by teaming with Akon, one of the hottest singer/producers in the game. The boy from Senegal and the O.C. girl concocted the light-as-meringue title track. A 60’s girl pop meets hip-hop confection, “The Sweet Escape” brings out something special in Akon and Gwen, making it one of the album’s most delicious songs. It is also, according to Gwen, “totally unexpected and a track I’d never imagine in a million years I’d have on this record.” Chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M Records Jimmy Iovine instigated the unexpected meeting of musical minds. Gwen adds, “I kept getting people saying, ‘You’ve gotta work with this guy Akon.’ I was just agreeing to the session because everyone was in my ear. But then, I canceled a session because I was burned out, I was too tired, and I have a baby. Then Jimmy calls me and he says, ‘You can cancel everything else in your life. Just don’t cancel this session! You have to go and work with Akon.’ I said, ‘Okay, dude. I’ll go.’”
Go she did and within 5 minutes of meeting Akon (and Akon meeting Gwen’s son Kingston) the two started writing. ”He had all these tracks he had played for me that blew my mind. I was thinking I was gonna go in there and just have some track that wasn’t me. And when I heard what Akon had? I was like, ‘Whoo-hoo!’ And we ended up with this song, which, it’s just great.”
Gwen also worked with another unlikely partner, Keane’s Tim Rice-Oxley. Together the two labelmates wrote the haunting, melancholy “Early Winter.” Gwen had considered working with Tim On Love. Angel. Music. Baby., but she admits, “It just didn’t feel right for that project.” Cut to two years later. “I just really wanted to have a ballad on this record. And I really wanted to write, ‘Eyes Without a Face,’ by Billy Idol. Or I wanted to write, ‘Killing Me Softly,’ or Cyndi Lauper’s ‘Time After Time.’ I just wanted one of those emotional songs. That’s one of the differences this time. Those sort of songs. Which is why I got back in touch with Tim. He’d never written outside of Keane before, so that made it all the more special. The song is so beautiful and it’s so addictive. I’m very lucky to have worked with Tim.”
“4 A.M.” finds Gwen on more familiar ground, working with No Doubt bassist Tony Kanal. The R&B flavored track came about after Gwen got off tour and was eager to get back to work. “I thought maybe I could write some songs, but I was emotionally not ready to write with anyone that I didn’t know, because that’s always traumatic. So I called Tony, and he’s like, ‘Sure! Come over.’” After two weeks the old friends were at a stalemate. “I finally was like, okay. Because I had said, I’m going to try this but if I’m not having fun and if it’s not going well, then I’m gonna go back, watch TV, and eat as much as I can, and enjoy being pregnant. So, that’s what I did.” After taking a break she then went back and checked out what she and Tony had come up with, including “4 A.M.” Listening with fresh ears, Gwen realized that the song had real potential. So she and Tony finished working on it and the result was what Gwen calls “probably my favorite song on the record.”
Credit success. Marriage. Motherhood. Listen to The Sweet Escape and you hear an artist, and a woman, inspired by the love that surrounds her, on and off the stage. Not surprisingly, The Sweet Escape is dedicated to Gwen’s best project, baby Kingston. “I want him to grow up and look back and just know how important he is. He’s just the most delicious thing. I have no words for him.”
That emotional bond and sheer joy fuels The Sweet Escape. From bass-driven jams to ethereal ballads, this album finds Gwen Stefani in a beautiful place, one that she’s willing to share. “You work so hard on the music. It’s such an emotional outlet, and for me it’s really the hard part of everything. But it’s also the fire for everything because it’s so emotional. When you’re all done with it, to get all made-up, and celebrate, and show it off to everyone… it’s just an expression of your personality. It just shows who you are without having to use words. Just the music.”