It’s “No Doubt” Gwen Stefani is trying to fit in
Gwen Stefani is trying to get back into the game. At the age of 45, this is a daunting task, though she has quite the resume. Stefani is the lead singer of the alternative rock band No Doubt, as well as having a successful solo career with hits like “Sweet Escape” and “Hollaback Girl”, which sold millions of copies in 2004 and 2006, respectively. But that was the past, and this is now; times have changed, and Gwen is struggling to keep up with her new single, “Spark the Fire”.
“Spark the Fire” is littered with “LOL”’s and “OMG”’s, which comes off as a mediocre effort to blend in with today’s culture; terms such as those are slightly ahead of Stefani’s time. Stefani also implements a common trope in pop music that hasn’t grown old quite yet: repetition. “Who’s got the lighter? Let’s spark the fire!” is repeated constantly for about the entire song, along with other repeated phrases. Her lyrics that aren’t repeated come off as odd as well, with lyrics like “
It is time for the girl species to grow
— Gwen Stefani
The beat and melody line are also similar to her past hits such as “Hollaback Girl”. Stefani is trying to get an air of familiarity in the song, but this still cannot take away the fact that she is desperately trying to pump out a hit and blend in with the new culture she’s living in now; something that doesn’t work in this instance.
One cannot help but “LOL” at her feeble attempt to blend with the crowd when popular groups like One Direction and individuals like Taylor Swift are dominating modern radio. If Gwen Stefani is truly attempting to “Spark a Fire” with her new hit, she’s failed.
Despite these errors, students at Osceola seem to enjoy the song. “It wasn’t bad; it was actually kind of interesting,” said student Carrie Harrington. Student Ryan Fehr agreed with this statement, adding that it was “very catchy”.
