Ones best success comes after their greatest disappointments.
Henry Ward Beecher
I have a confession to make. I am a HUGE Gwen Stefani fan
and have been since the time the hit single “Don’t speak” played on the airwaves back a couple of decades ago. Remember the band No Doubt? Of course you do 🙂
Yes, its lead singer rocked the stage and her unique (and powerful) vocals truly made her stand out. The rhythms made you dance and sing to the top of your lungs (Here I am talking about Holler back girl, Let me blow your mind, Underneath it all, Cool, It’s my life among many others).
I have been following her stellar music and fashion career all through the decades. She is, until this very day, among my favorite singers, performers and overall music influencers.
She has evolved so much, keeps reinventing herself and is clearly at the top of her game. I have always admired her natural ability to try many styles but yet her distinctive ska, pop, rock, new wave and electro-pop sound is an eclectic and unforgettable sound that hardly goes unnoticed!
Being on The Voice as a vocal coach and mentor only solidified her status as a true rock star and musical powerhouse.
I waited (like everyone else) a few years for her third solo album titled This Is What The Truth Feels Like to come out and I was over the moon when it was finally launched on March 18th.
Now is it probably the most personal musical work ever since she has gone through quite a lot in her personal life which inspired her to compose these deep and heartfelt songs. Most of them are the aftermath of her separation from her ex husband while a few are about the new person that now shares her life.
Here are the 12 songs that are included in the new CD:
- Misery
- You’re My Favorite
- Where Would I Be?
- Make Me Like U
- Truth
- Used To Love You
- Send Me a Picture
- Red Flag
- Asking 4 It
- Naughty
- Me Without You
- Rare
In all honesty, I would say that half of the songs describe in detail the experience and lessons learned from the decades she shared with the other person. All the things that once were the source of profound happiness suddenly turned her life upside down and caused her so much conflict, hurt and pain until she finally gathered the courage and decided to leave.
The other songs are dedicated to the new person in her life. She honestly asks him if he is really certain to love her in spite of everything that happened in the past and accept her for who she has become with broken history and all. She refers to him as being “Rare” but in a good way because he made her like him. Basically he won her trust and found his way into her heart in the middle of a dark or sad period.
These are all universal themes and we have all had relationships where person came into our lives at a specific time to become our best teacher as well a learning pad. Our favorite mistakes I must add.
Quite frankly, I love the sincerity and directness of the lyrics. I feel as if she knows exactly how I felt or what I thought at some point or another. She can now look back and tell that man what she truly thinks of him and what he did, his loss. Life will only get better without him in it.
I would like to give her a high-five and tell her, you go girl! You’re way too good for him! As she says, things are about to get real good. Blessings will follow, so keep pressing forward!
I will also be honest with you. I heard the entire CD (thank God for that replay feature) 4 times in a row and have already my favorites (2, 4, 6, 11 and 12). They just struck a chord and tugged at my heart-strings. I sang along and danced them like no one was watching 🙂
This was like a breath of fresh air on the first day of spring and it made me laugh on a few occasions. She can transmit so much energy and that’s the power of music!
I invite you to view the video of Make Me Like You on YouTube.
To get your copy of This Is What The Truth Feels Like go to:
iTunes: http://bit.ly/GwenThisIsWhat
Target: http://bit.ly/GwenNewAlbum (to get 4 more exclusive songs)
Follow Gwen Stefani online and on her social media channels:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/gwenstefani
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gwenstefani
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/GwenStefaniVEVO
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gwenstefani
Now I turn it over to you.
Tell us…
Are you a fan of Gwen Stefani?
If so, what are your favorite songs?
Let us know in the comments!
Until next time.
Tashi Delek, All The Best.
K 🙂
Disclaimer: I was asked to participate in this sponsored album review program as a member of One2One Network. I downloaded the new album to review online and trust me, no arms were twisted to listen to one of my absolute favorite artists. As usual, all opinions are and always be my own as I am not afraid to share my two cents on any topic.
Traveller Soul 