Gwen Stefani Wonders If She Stole “These ”Lyrics in Her Own Hit Song 'What You Waiting For?'
The Grammy winner reflected on her 2004 hit song in a new interview and said its lyrics were "given to me from above"
Did Gwen Stefani steal a lyric for one of her own hit songs?
The Grammy winner, 54, questioned one of the lyrics in her 2004 track "What You Waiting For?" in a new interview on SiriusXM’s Fresh Popped Friday show, where she also opened up about the inspiration behind her latest song, "Purple Irises."
Released as the lead single from her debut solo album Love.Angel.Music.Baby, "What You Waiting For?" finds Stefani pondering solo stardom following her time in No Doubt. "What an amazing time / What a family / How did the years go by? / Now it's only me," she sings on the dance track.
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Gwen Stefani in Los Angeles in May 2023However, another lyric from the song left Stefani puzzled, as she spoke to SiriusXM's Julia Cunningham about relating to "What You Waiting For?" today — especially as she wrote "Purple Irises," a duet with her husband, Blake Shelton.
"This song really captures the idea of evolving as a human being," she said of the collaboration. "I had this song back in the day called 'What You Waiting For?' and in the song, I believe it’s in that song, it says, 'Born to blossom, bloom to perish.'"
"I always questioned like, 'Did I steal that from somebody?' And if I did, guys, please let me know," continued Stefani, who co-wrote the track with Linda Perry of the 4 Non-Blondes. "I’ve been wondering because it’s just such an amazing line, again, just given to me from above. And it’s just such an incredible thing that you do blossom, and you blossom in so many different ways."
The "Hollaback Girl" singer reflected on how people "blossom as a teenager" and later find their personality through fashion, music and more, comparing the process to her own self-discovery as a songwriter and performer. Eventually, she learned that her artistic talents could impact others.
"I was like, 'Oh my God. When I do this, they do that,' and then, 'I’m just gonna keep doing that because that feels good,' you know?" said Stefani. "Your life keeps going, and nothing really does stay the same."
Elsewhere in the interview, she spoke about the lengthy creative process that led to "Purple Irises" — which will seemingly appear on an upcoming studio album.
"It’s just been a long thing to do this record, but I finally landed in this zone of 'Purple Irises,'" said Stefani. "When I wrote that song, it was when I knew like, 'OK, I’ve landed into 2024 me now,' because a lot of the stuff that I had been writing was like chasing, a little bit, the old me."
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