Gwen Stefani opened up about “insecurities” she feels in her marriage with country megastar Blake Shelton — and set the record straight about divorce rumors in the tabloids — as she spoke about the story behind the couple’s latest duet, “Purple Irises,” in a new interview.
Stefani recently spoke with NYLON for an in-depth feature published on Tuesday morning (April 9). The “Sweet Escape” hitmaker spoke with the outlet about her highly-anticipated No Doubt reunion at Coachella this month, songwriting, her family, her marriage and much more.
She told NYLON that nervousness in the studio and throughs about her relationship with Shelton were swirling in her mind on the day she wrote “Purple Irises,” which began as a solo track and later evolved into a collaboration with her husband. Stefani reflected: “I had been going through those times where you’re questioning: ‘Oh my gosh, am I just getting older? Am I cute?’ In my own relationship, even though I know the truth of what’s happening today, you still create drama in your own mind about your insecurities and what might happen. I was in that phase of the relationship with Blake and getting paranoid. …The truth is I am in love with my best friend, and all this sh*t I’m thinking of in my brain, that’s all it is — I’m overthinking.”
Shelton added that “it’s an insecurity we both have. These are conversations that she and I have with each other: ‘Are you still going to love me when I’m old or if I forget who I am?’”
Stefani told NYLON, speaking on rumors swirling in tabloids, “when you’re in love and have truly aligned values, nobody can get to us. You can say whatever you want to say about our relationship — I mean, a week ago we were getting divorced again or something. It’s just lies. The truth is the truth, and we know what it is.” Read her full interview here.
Stefani and Shelton related “Purple Irises” in February, and delivered the debut live performance during Stefani’s headlining Super Bowl LVIII TikTok Tailgate in Las Vegas, Nevada. They’ve since performed it on Jimmy Kimmel Live, during the 2024 Country Radio Seminar (CRS) in Downtown Nashville, Tennessee, and more. The husband-and-wife duo met in 2014 on the set of The Voice. They confirmed their relationship the following year and announced their engagement in 2020. Shelton and Stefani tied the knot in July 2021 at Shelton’s ranch in Tishomingo, Oklahoma, and have since embraced their time as a family, including with Stefani’s three children from her previous marriage (Kingston, Zuma and Apollo). Shelton told PEOPLE in a previous interview: “Even though I'm a stepparent, I take that job very seriously. …I’ve made plenty of money, but you can't buy time back. I don't want any regrets. …It's time to push some of this [work] stuff out and let more family and personal life in.”