Star Image Analysis: Gwen Stefani

The image of Gwen Stefani has drastically changed since the formation her band No Doubt in 1986. It is not until 1995 that the band became commercially successful with the song ‘Just a Girl’. Stefani started out as the lead singer of a pop punk band, this has changed to her being a solo R‘n’B pop artist and thus her image has evolved with this.

A predominant characteristic in Stefani’s music and videos is that of female empowerment. Stefani has created a strong image since the beginning of her career; this is because she was the lead of an all male band. Stefani constantly uses sexual suggestion in her videos and music and to help them sell. The lyrics in ‘Just a Girl’ are satirical as she says ‘I’m just a girl, all pretty and petite, So don’t let me out of your sight’. It is clear that Stefani intends this song to be provocative as she explores male naivety when it comes to their alpha-male role. It is not really until Stefani goes solo that we see her using sexuality in her videos. This could be because she tries to stay contemporary and also as she has shifted her genre of music. However, it seems to the audience that the choice to be ‘sexy’ is a conscious one as she still wears ‘respectable’ clothing (to some extent). Rich Girl for example shows her in a pirates costume and a corset in two separate scenes; however she is wearing trainers, trousers and a hat at the start of the song and also her trademark crop top.Stefani encourages her audience to be independent throughout her career, ‘Ex-Girlfriend’ by No Doubt features numerous close ups of Stefani’s snarling face, also at (2:30), Stefani beats up a bathroom full of men. ‘Hollaback Girl’ and ‘Wind it Up’ demonstrate Stefani being the commander of her productions, she is also suggesting that we should take command of our careers.

Gwen Stefani has developed this characteristic throughout her career as it was the main selling point of No Doubt. This has evolved to Stefani being sexually ambiguous in her music, ‘Wind it Up’ for example suggests that females should ensure they are sexually gratified, the link is not explicit yet it is still there, another example of her female empowerment ideal.

Stefani also has developed the characteristic of female sympathy through her music. ‘Don't Speak’ sees various males (all band members) fed up with her as the video suggests she is the star of the band. The female audience empathises as we see that she has done nothing wrong. This characteristic is shown again in ‘Cool’, the narrative shows that Stefani has to deal with her childhood sweetheart moving on with another woman, Stefani’s audience is familiar with this scenario so again sympathises with her.

Another example of Stefani’s female empowerment is the effort she has gone to to establish that she is the lead in an all male band. We see that in No Doubt that a typical female image doesn’t matter to her as her costumes are usually boyish. However, she does always show her stomach (in almost every video) linking with her being sexually suggestive rather than explicit. ‘Spiderwebs’ features Stefani thrusting her crotch into the camera to the beat of the music. She is also wearing a t-shirt that says ‘Gwen’; this establishes her persona as we don’t know who the other band members are. ‘Don't Speak’ also shows Gwen performing on stage drenched in sweat and giving everything to her performance. Stefani knew that to sell music at this point she had to have the same energy performing as other similar bands, like Blink 182 or Sum 41 as they were No Doubt’s competition.

The image of being an independent leader has developed in Stefani’s solo career. The intertextual reference to ‘Alice in Wonderland’ in ‘What You Waiting For’ shows use that like Alice, Gwen has taken a chance, a clear reference to her solo career. The lyrics and visuals for this video had to be apparent for the audience to understand the intertextual reference. For example watches appear on the screen whilst ‘tick tock’ is playing and as Gwen sings ‘Take a chance or you might grow’ the visual is of her oversized in a house.

Another feature of Stefani’s career is that she always remained contemporary. Nowadays, Gwen is famous for her fashion label L.A.M.B and has become a fashion icon. She also adapted her style of music to ensure she sold records, by the time her solo album came out; the ska sounds of No Doubt were old fashioned. However, in the 1990’s No Doubt were contemporary in the music scene as similar bands such as Reel Big Fish also celebrated success.

It’s not until about 2003 with the release of ‘It’s My Life’ when Stefani starts to develop a more feminine image. The punk clothes are gone and Stefani develops into an entirely different star with her debut solo single. The release of ‘Hollaback Girl’ in 2005 shows that being ‘cool’ is nowon top of Stefani’s list as Pharell stars in the video. Also Stefani is dressed as a cheerleader, with the reference being that cheerleaders are the most popular people in school. The link between the lyrics and visuals in the cheerleader scene amplifies the reference to being cool and popular.

For most of Gwen Stefani‘s career, her videos have all been performance with a side narrative, this has been due to her pop punk genre. This develops toher videos being more concept based as ‘What You Waiting For’, ‘Rich Girl’ and ‘Wind It Up’ focus on a narrative based on various concepts.

For me, Stefani has changed her image through time to remain contemporary; this also came with a change in genre. One of the main characteristic features behind her music has always been that of female empowerment whether it be taking control or your work life or relationships. I think Stefani’s change in image has been a clever attempt to sell music although some hardcore No Doubt fans might see her as a sell out.