Gwen Stefani: Blake Shelton Was ‘An Unexpected Gift’ In the Midst of Divorce
Gwen Stefani opened up -- yet again! -- to Glamour about her relationship with fellow The Voice judge Blake Shelton, offering further tidbits about their friends-first beginnings and the unique way in which they related to each other before they started dating.
Speaking with the publication for its December 2016 Women of the Year issue, Stefani detailed the companionship Shelton offered the No Doubt singer when she felt she was at her lowest point, shortly after filing for divorce from her husband of 13 years, Gavin Rossdale.
Stefani says she entered the studio to record her third album as an exercise in expulsion, and was relieved to learn Shelton -- who divorced from wife Miranda Lambert after four years of marriage just a few weeks earlier -- was going through a similar situation.
"When I was in the studio for This Is What the Truth Feels Like, it was like, I need to be here right now. This is the only place I feel good. It doesn’t matter what comes out of this, as far as my career—this isn’t about a hit. It’s about saving my life," she said.
"And it was interesting, because I know you’re going to ask me about Blake," Stefani continued, "but finding somebody who was going through the exact same experience? That was an inspiration. He was a friend to me when I needed a friend. An unexpected gift. And that became an inspiration in the songwriting."
Stefani -- who spoke at length int he past about how her trust issues initially affected her romance with Shelton -- also talked about the dissolution of her marriage to Rossdale, and the immense feelings of inadequacy and embarrassment she experienced once their relationship fell apart.
"I don’t think you’ll talk to one person who didn’t make it in a marriage who’s not gonna feel that way. The intention of being married is the vow, right? You want to put everything into it to make it a success," the "Misery" singer said. "I had to work really hard at marriage, all the time, like everybody, but ours was extra hard, when you add that we’re from different countries, both of us being in music, and celebrity.
"[Marriage] was the one thing I didn’t want to fail at," she continued, before ultimately recognizing her feelings were completely valid at the time. "People can say whatever they want to about me…and I don’t get too affected. But I didn’t want them to think I was a failure. There’s nothing weird about how I felt."
Head over to Glamour to read the magazine's full profile with Gwen Stefani.
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