As we await for official news on her third solo album, we’ll be saluting Gwen Stefani in this week’s From The Vault. Our pick goes out to her 2004 debut solo single ‘What You Waiting For?’
After over a decade of success as the lead vocalist of No Doubt, the time had come for Gwen to fly on her own. On the high-octane track written by herself and Pop-wonder Linda Perry, the singer reveals transitioning wasn’t as easy as one may think could think. From the pressure of her record label and the expectation of the music industry to writer’s block and the guilt of leaving her bandmates behind, ‘Waiting’ represents a battle between two sides of Gwen’s mind – a rather neurotic one and a more confident one.
The first single of eclectic solo set ‘Love.Angel.Music.Baby’, it wasn’t much of a hit in the US where it peaked at #47 but fared much better overseas including numerous Top 10 placings in Europe and a #1 in Australia.
The great Francis Lawrence is to thank for the tune’s glossy video. Stefani – fresh off tour – is shown rushing back into the studio by then-label head Jimmy Iovine; as she’s trying to get rid of writer’s block she gets “inspired” by a very eccentric “dream” based on the tales of Alice In Wonderland.
In this clip, the artist introduced her back-up dancers The Harajuku Girls who are conceptually very important to the ‘L.A.M.B.’ project.
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Though they all arguably come from the “School of Madonna” we strongly feel Gwen Stefani and her brand of arty, playful, and fashion-forward has paved the way for the GaGa‘s and Katy Perry‘s of the world.
Hopefully, in a very near future she can remind the masses why she made them hollaback before all those female artists could.