Before Gwen Stefani had children, she had a difficult time imagining how they would fit into her life as a music artist. She loved her career and didn’t want it to go away, but she thought she should prioritize building a family. Stefani said she thought she was being “greedy” with her career.
Gwen Stefani said she wanted to step away from her music career to have children
Ten years after rising to widespread fame, Stefani was looking towards the future. She didn’t have new music on her mind, though.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do, but I’ve always wanted to do the family thing,” she told Rolling Stone in 2005.
She wanted to have children, and she believed she’d have to make some changes in order to do so. She didn’t think she could continue being a celebrity in the way she had been.
“At a certain point I’m going to want to have a family and I’m not going to have time to be running around the world doing this s*** and being greedy the way I have been,” she said. “I can always write songs. But can I always wear an Alice in Wonderland costume? I probably shouldn’t.”
Jimmy Iovine, the head of her record label, had different hopes. While he thought she would be a great mother, he wanted her to balance that with her career.
Gwen Stefani admitted it would be hard to not have a music career
Stefani loved her career and imagined it would be difficult to leave it behind. She hoped her future children would make the transition easier.
“This is the first time in a long time that I actually don’t know what’s gonna happen next,” she said. “You think about it as a famous person. You think about how you’re gonna end it. How you’re gonna get away and have a normal life. I imagine my children are going to save me from my vanity and be my passion and fill whatever fears I have of the amazing time I’m having right now being gone.”
She didn’t necessarily want to let go of fame.
“I don’t want to drop off and not be on the radio or not be able to talk about myself for hours,” she said. “I don’t want it to go away. But at the same time, I never expected to be here in the first place.”
She now balances having a family with having a career
Twenty years after this interview, Stefani’s career is still going strong. She has three sons and continues to put out music and perform. Still, she has hopes of raising her children away from the chaos of Los Angeles. Her relationship with Blake Shelton has helped with this.
“Blake has a very close bond with all the boys,” a source told Us Weekly. “He loves taking them out to farm on the ranch with him, and they spend almost all of their free time together. It makes Gwen feel so much joy seeing how close they all are.”
While Stefani loves California, the whole family enjoys spending time on Shelton’s Oklahoma ranch.
“Gwen loves that the boys 1745167851 have that experience in their childhood,” the source added.