Gwen Stefani is wearing her heart on her sleeve!
Gwen Stefani is wearing her heart on her sleeve!
With her new album, This Is What the Truth Feels Like, Gwen seems to be spilling all on her budding relationship with Blake Shelton and her heartbreaking split from ex-husband Gavin Rossdale.
We already knew that the song, "Make Me Like You," was written about Blake, but there is plenty more where that came from. "Truth" is a bold-faced love letter to the country star, while "Asking 4 It" is a sultry take on the uncertainty of a new romance.
Meanwhile, a "shady" ex (Gavin, perhaps?) finds himself on the receiving end of a scathing takedown (and hilarious new nickname) on "Naughty."
Gwen herself has sold this album as her most personal offering yet, telling NPR: "This is the first record I've ever made in real time. ... It starts off angry, sad, mad and quite sarcastic — and then really does take a huge change, to hope. People always want to say, 'How do you evolve as a musician?' The biggest evolution is to write. It's so great to write a record that's mainly about being happy, and that's something new for me."
In an interview with USA Today, Gwen revealed that she began writing sessions for the album in June 2015. The singer has said multiple times that her relationship with Gavin began to crumble in February 2015 (the day after the GRAMMYs, specifically) and she filed for divorce that August. Three months later, a rep for Gwen confirmed that she and Blake had started dating.
"I found out my life was going to change forever. Instead of wanting to die, I said to myself, I’m not going to go down. I’m going to turn this into music," she told the publication.
Read on for a sampling of the most powerful lyrics on Gwen's new full-length -- and our guesses for who each song is about!
WATCH: Gwen Stefani Says Blake Shelton 'Saved' Her After Gavin Rossdale Divorce
Songs Most Likely About Blake:
"Misery"
At the door
I'm thinking things I never thought before
Like what your love would taste like
Give me more
Don't sell this feeling at the grocery story.
Oh 'cause your love, it tastes like
You're like drugs
You're like drugs to me
I'm so into you
Totally
"You're My Favorite"
Thought I had found it, but I wasn't sure
Always a feeling that there could be more
Could be more
But I've been there, done that, buyed it, tried it
More than I can count
Shook it, stirred it, broke it, smoked it
More than I can count
Oh, but out of everything
You're my favorite
"Where Would I Be"
I was drifting out
Then you pulled me in
Lightning on my skin
Turned me on just like a switch
Now you got me lit
"Make Me Like You"
I was fine before I met you
I was broken but fine
I was lost and uncertain
But my heart was still mine
I was free before I met you
I was broken but free
All alone in a clear view
But now you are all I see
"Truth"
I really don't want to embarrass myself
No one's gonna believe me
Not even myself
They're all gonna say I'm rebounding
So rebound all over me
'Cause I don't want nobody else
I know we said we're gonna live in the moment
And that's all good
That's what we agreed
I know it
Every day I believe in you and me more and more
"Send Me A Picture"
Baby I'm wondering, whatcha doing?
Are you laying in bed and listening to music
Whatcha doing?
Whatcha doing?
Are you looking online?
Are you looking at me?
Been thinking of you
Are you thinking of me?
Whatcha doing?
Whatcha doing?
I don't want to wait
'Cause the anticipation's killing me
I don't want to wait
No, I don't want to wait
Send me a picture right now
"Asking 4 It"
I know that it's a lot to handle me
But it is what it is
It's all a part of my broken history
I don't know where I was, I was lost I was nothing
The real version of me I had never ever seen
You've given me truth and it's such an unfamiliar subject
So put your hands on me please
"Rare"
You're a sapphire
You're a rolling stone
You're a sparkle
In a deep black hole
You're like moonshine
When the curtains close
You're my answer
One that no one knows
And I can't believe it
That you even exist
You know I would be dumb to give perfection up
WATCH: Gwen Stefani on Bonding with Blake Shelton Through Heartbreak
Songs Probably About Gavin:
"Used to Love You"
You thought there were no boundaries, but you just pushed me too far
I guess nobody taught you, nobody taught you how to love
Suitcase, Band-Aids
Pulling back out the driveway
You go, I'll stay
You can keep all the memories
I thought I was the best thing that ever happened to you, I thought you loved me the most
"Red Flag"
Look at you, big boy
I'm making it easy for you to go give my love away
Spend the check before it even hits the bank
This is what happens when you don't hear what your mother say
The signs, the signs, the signs, the signs
Big mistake
Red flags cry
Right there
But I close my eyes
Carelessly
I let it slide
A little late
Warning signs
Right there
But I close my eyes
Punish me
I let it slide
You know how to spend it
You know how to blow it up
It's getting so expensive
You know how to screw it up
"Naughty"
I see you hide behind your glasses, see you love the shade
Shady so long that Mr. Shady is your name
Shipping it off, contain it, seal it, rip up the receipt
But somehow it always finds its way right back to me
Thinking that nobody, nobody, nobody knows
But I got your number, I got your phone
This ain't my first time at the rodeo
Hello!
You slide and you slide on a slippery slope
Call the police, I'm on patrol
Got locked and loaded, I'm ready to go
"Me Without You"
There's more of me and you've seen nothing
Hey, you've done nothing that I can't repair
I can't repair
No, I don't need you
Not a little bit
To myself, I've finally admitted it
No, I don't need you
Not a little bit
Get rid of it
Now I'm me without you
And things about to get real good
Watch me breathe without you
And things about to get real good
This Is What the Truth Feels Like will be available everywhere on Friday, March 18.