Gwen Stefani Biography

NAME: Gwen Stefani

OCCUPATION: Fashion Designer, Songwriter, Singer

BIRTH DATE: October 03, 1969 (Age: 42)

PLACE OF BIRTH: Anaheim, California

ZODIAC SIGN: Libra

Singer, songwriter, designer. Born on October 3, 1969, in Anaheim, California. After rising to stardom as the lead singer of No Doubt, Gwen Stefani has become a popular and powerful figure in the world of music and fashion.

Learning to sew from her mother, Stefani developed an interest in fashion early on. Her love of music was influenced by her older brother Eric who played a lot of recordings by such ska revival bands as Madness. With friend John Spence as the lead singer, Eric started the group No Doubt, and Gwen soon joined as their second vocalist. Stefani started dating fellow bandmate Tony Kanal around this time.

In early 1987 Gwen's brother Eric and John Spence founded what is now No Doubt. In the beginning Eric asked Gwen to share vocal duties with John. Sadly, not long after No Doubt's incarnation, John Spence committed suicide which left Gwen to rock the mic.The show must go on, and it did, as No Doubt continued to perform in local gigs. In the meantime, Gwen had graduated high school, and followed up her studies at Cal State Fullerton College.

Gwen was forced to juggle the band, her studies, as well as what turned out to be a 7-year long romance with fellow band member, Tony Kanal. In 1989, two new members joined the No Doubt team, guitarist Tom Dumont and drummer Adrian Young. After No Doubt was really attracting a fan base (thanks mostly to their energetic live performances), Flea, the bassist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers recorded a demo for the band in 1990, which led to their signing with Interscope Records.

In 1992, the band released their self-titled debut, but despite the substantial following the band had garnered, the album was far from a commercial success. Their record company was losing faith in their potential, but No Doubt's persistence did not waver.

The group went back into the studio with their own money, and recorded a collection of "extra" songs they had written. Their sophomore effort, The Beacon Street Collection, was released in 1995, and not only struck a cord with their devout fans, but also re-sparked Interscope's confidence in the band.