There are some times I don't feel comfortable about speculating as to whom songs are about, but this is not one of them: Gwen Stefani's song "Used To Love You" is about her ex-husband Gavin Rossdale for sure, and I won't hear another word about it. Usually, I need a confirmation from the artist to be this sure, but, in Stefani's case, I'm actually convinced by the opposite — she's refusing to state the obvious, saying "what else can I say?" when asked about the song's inspiration. She's basically looking us dead in the eye and going, "Really? You really need me to tell you what this is about? We're all adults here."
Stefani filed for divorce from Rossdale in August after 13 years of marriage, and premiered this new song "Used To Love You" at a concert in October, so there isn't really anyone else this song could be about. But, just in case, she made things even more clear at the 2015 UCLA Neurosurgery Visionary Ball on Oct. 29, when People asked her about the song and its rumored connection to Rossdale, saying:
It's funny when people try to go deeper into a song that's already, like so spilling my guts. What else can I say? [...] I've never put music out in real time where I'm really going through stuff. I only wrote that song a few weeks ago.
I mean, yeah, for real, what else can she say? The biggest thing in her life right now is this divorce, so, if she's putting out a heart-wrenching song about how she used to love someone, there's a pretty solid chance that it's about her ex-husband. Just look at all she's pouring out in this video.
Yup, I'm totally convinced. I don't need the words "Gavin Rossdale" to come out of Gwen Stefani's lips to be sure that this song is about their relationship. I just hope that getting her thoughts out there in recorded form ends up being helpful, because if "I Used To Love You" is any indication, Stefani is really going through it right now. The fact that she put her tumultuous emotions into a song, so that anyone else out there going through even a modicum of what she is going through can hear it and feel like they are a little less alone is incredibly brave of her.
