The Untold Truth Of Gavin Rossdale
Brit Gavin Rossdale was always meant to be a musician, and he has carved a niche for himself in the world of grunge. According to All Music, he managed to make a strong impact with his band, Bush, in the 1990s. His career in the music industry has been a bit of a rollercoaster: for example, Bush decided to stop creating music in 2002; however, they decided to regroup later (via The Guardian.)
When he was asked about a possession that he values the most, Rossdale immediately knew the answer. He said, "My 1967 purple Jazzmaster guitar. I made my first record on it, and Joe Walsh from the Eagles played parts of 'Hotel California' on it." He told The Guardian in 2020 that he felt proud about the fact that he was still creating new music. It's his greatest passion.
Even the most loyal fans may not know that Gavin Rossdale was a gifted football player in his youth. According to Kerrang!, he was simply more drawn to music, which is why he didn't pursue the sport more seriously. He said, "I played in central midfield and I had trials for Chelsea, but I'm not sure I was ever destined to be professional. I got injured while we were recording 'Sixteen Stone.' Someone elbowed me in the mouth during a game and my bottom lip was hanging off." This discouraged him and made him consider sticking to music. This is the untold truth of Gavin Rossdale.
Gavin Rossdale had a rough childhood
According to MTV, Gavin Rossdale was born in London on October 30, 1967. His childhood was complex and full of hurdles. For example, he could not communicate until he was 4 years old. According to Balance, his early years were rough and chaotic. His parents were separated which meant that he mostly spent time with his father. Meanwhile, Rossdale's mom shifted base to Belgium followed by Tampa, Florida and wasn't around for him.
While things weren't great, Rossdale was optimistic later in life when he reflected on the past. He said that he was quite "self-sufficient" back then and added, "It was life ... I grew up with a single father who was a workaholic." Also, he was often bullied by other children in his area because he was not a student at the state school. He went to Westminster School instead which wasn't a positive experience for him either. The problem was that Rossdale didn't like the place or his peers and often skipped his classes in a bid to escape.
He was a lonely kid
Per Balance, Gavin Rossdale was isolated during his school years because he couldn't find a sense of belonging anywhere. When he was 16 years old, he started gravitating towards authors like Jean-Paul Sartre and relying on literature to expand his perspective. Sadly, he was on his own a lot: even when he was around his doctor dad, he'd find himself killing time as his father looked after patients. Rossdale said, "He worked five days a week, 8am to 8pm, and he would visit patients on Saturdays. My version of spending time with him was sitting in the back of the car going to see patients."
Plus, he also had to deal with a plethora of setbacks in terms of his health, per News 24. Rossdale had ear issues and also suffered a ruptured appendix when he was 9 years old. The former issue forced him to be in a hospital for one year. He recalled, "I lived in a room the size of a prison cell even though it wasn't a prison cell."
The musician struggled at first
Even when Gavin Rossdale decided to become a professional musician and took a leap of faith, he needed to be patient and wait for things to work out. According to All Music, he first figured out how to play the bass by observing his sister's boyfriend and taking lessons from him. His first music group, Midnight, didn't do very well. In 1992, he came across guitarist Nigel Pulsford and the two bonded over music.
Soon enough, Gavin Rossdale was recording music with Pulsford, bassist Dave Parsons, and drummer Robin Goodridge. They called themselves Bush. They weren't really noticed in the U.K., but they saw a better response when their demo tape made it to Los Angeles. A radio station picked up one of their songs, "Everything Zen" and listeners loved it. After that, Bush bagged a contract with a music label and Rossdale started gaining recognition as a grunge musician. Per Rolling Stone, Rossdale shifted base to the U.S. when he was still an aspiring musician. In order to make a living, he would accept gigs as a production assistant for music videos and stay at friends' places or in budget motels.
Gavin Rossdale was irked by audiences in the U.K.
For Gavin Rossdale, it was disappointing to see that Bush never quite achieved a lot of success in the U.K. According to The Guardian, this was a huge blow for him as a musician. He said, "Sometimes it was disappointing not to have the fan base at home in the U.K. that we had elsewhere." Per NME, in the 1990s, it was fairly obvious that listeners in the U.K. were not as fascinated by Bush and didn't mimic its fans in the U.S.
The band managed to sell more than 10 million records in the United States. According to the Spin, journalists from the BBC once pointed out that many people had no idea about the band in the U.K. and that its album, "Sixteen Stone," could only be located at the back in a record store. Additionally, Rossdale told Kerrang! that bad press probably played a role in discouraging people from giving Bush a chance. He noted, "The only thing is that some of that press did keep people away, and I believe we could have been even bigger in England. But you've got to look at your life on balance. It would be ridiculous to have any complaints. Of course there's some frustration, but so be it." He admitted that back then it was a lot more difficult to cope with the negativity.
Critics really disliked Bush
Sadly for Gavin Rossdale, critics weren't too happy with Bush and didn't hesitate to lash out at the band in reviews (via Greensboro.) The musician said that it was obvious that the public loved listening to the band's music and could find a way to connect with their songs. Their album sales were pretty good, after all.
Rossdale also said something unexpected. He believed that because he was a decent chap, people in the music space didn't hesitate to bring him down. He said, "It would be so much easier to be really rude to people, be a real [jerk], and the people will think that there's something deep and dark and mystical about you." Per Loudwire, Gavin Rossdale thought that it was unreasonable for his band to receive so much criticism (via The Consequence of Sound.) He added, "I think it was pretty unfair. But so many great things have happened that it feels disingenuous to complain about a couple of writers in 1994 and their perspective."
Gavin Rossdale's solo venture didn't work out
In 2008, Gavin Rossdale decided to attempt something of his own and released his album, "Wanderlust." According to a review by CBS News, the album was bittersweet at best. Per the reviewer, some of the songs were "sloppy" and "repetitive." As a whole, the album failed to make a strong impact. As far as Rossdale was concerned, one of his major regrets was that it took a long time to release the album (via The Rolling Stone.) He said, "I mostly wished the business moved quicker. I made this record and had to wait months before it came out. I always idolized bands that would make a record a year."
Also, in terms of "Wanderlust," Rossdale realized that there were fans who were unhappy that the songs were so different from what Bush had done earlier while others believed that Bush in general was not a great band. Rossdale said, "If I had made an album that sounded like Bush, it would have been dismissed. And now I'm reading reviews from people who killed me five years ago who are saying that Bush was a really great band."
He has also worked as an actor
Gavin Rossdale has worked as an actor as well as a musician in his life. However, music has always been his priority. That said, he did enjoy being in front of the camera and told Kerrang! that he genuinely loved acting. He was spotted in several films such as "Constantine," The Bling Ring," and "Habit." He said, "It's really magical making words come to life up off the page."
However, he later decided to take a step back from Hollywood and focus on spending time with his kids. "I don't mind traveling for music when I'm away for a few months across the year, but if you're an actor, you've got to commit to making movies in Romania for four months or something, and I can't do that," he explained. Rossdale went on to add that he didn't mind making exceptions for the right roles and being a part of a film that appealed to him.
Gavin Rossdale had a high-profile marriage to Gwen Stefani
Per Hollywood Life, Gavin Rossdale hit it off with fellow musician Gwen Stefani when he first got to know her in the 1990s. They dated for a few years and decided to get married in 2002. However, their relationship didn't last, and they called it quits in 2015. Back then, they said that while they were going to go their separate ways, they would still be "partners in parenthood" and prioritize their children. Of course, their relationship and subsequent split received a lot of media attention.
The divorce was hard for the couple. Per Screenrant, Rossdale allegedly cheated on Stefani with their nanny and their affair was only revealed when Stefani found out about intimate texts and photos that they had shared with each other. She later told People, "I wish it didn't happen – I wish that all this wasn't happening ... but at the same time, I feel like it was part of my life journey."
Gavin Rossdale admitted later that the breakup was humiliating for him (via The Guardian.) When asked to talk about his most embarrassing memories, he said, "The gross and lopsided specter of the crumbling of my marriage."
He was rumored to have been with Courtney Love
In 2010, Courtney Love made a shocking confession about Gavin Rossdale. Per The Huffington Post, Kurt Cobain's widow spoke at length about her past relationship with Gavin Rossdale on the Howard Stern show and said that he had been intimate with her when he was still with Gwen Stefani. She also said that they had spent eight months together and she even had a "vision of marrying Gavin Rossdale one time." Additionally, she said that Rossdale was "lovely."
Per Courtney Love, Rossdale was cheating on Stefani with other women as well. She implied that their relationship was casual. She said, "We didn't have a lot of pressure on each other, but we did like each other quite a bit." Per Hello! Magazine, they really got along. However, Gavin Rossdale never really spoke about these claims and stayed mum about the relationship.
Gavin Rossdale got into a controversy with Pearl Lowe
Per People, Gavin Rossdale was in for a rude shock in 2004 when he discovered that he had a love child. This update was rather overwhelming for his then-wife, Gwen Stefani. Back then, DNA tests had been conducted to establish whether Rossdale was the father of a teenager called Daisy Lowe. They actually knew each other well already and until that point, Gavin Rossdale was, in fact, her godfather.
Daisy Lowe was born in 1989 after Rossdale had a brief fling with designer and musician Pearl Lowe. A source told People, "Gavin was reluctant to do the test as he didn't think he was Daisy's dad. They were good friends, but it has all become slightly awkward now." Per Hello! Magazine, Rossdale was eventually able to bond once more with Daisy. However, things remained strained between him and Pearl Lowe. The latter was grateful that Daisy got the opportunity to develop a rapport with her father, though.
In 2019, Gavin Rossdale put up a rare picture of himself with all his four children including Daisy (via US Magazine.) They got together for the musician's 54th birthday celebrations. The singer wrote that he was in heaven that day and was "grateful for these 4 miracles." Meanwhile, Daisy posted a special message for her father on his big day and wrote, "Happiest birthday dad. We all love you with all our hearts and we are very lucky you made us."
The musician dated Peter Robinson
One thing is for sure: Gavin Rossdale has dealt with many controversies in his life. He was allegedly in a relationship with pop singer Peter Robinson, also referred to as Marilyn in the 1980s (via The Guardian.) At some point, Marilyn got into legal trouble when he was found with heroin by local cops. At the same time, his relationship with Rossdale apparently reached its conclusion and the breakup left him gutted.
Several years later, when Rossdale was accused of cheating on Gwen Stefani with his nanny, Marilyn decided to speak up. Per The Inquisitr, Marilyn felt that Rossdale was the "love of his life." He went on to add that he has always loved Rossdale but really wished that he and Stefani would be happy with each other. Speaking about their relationship, he simply said, "We were very close for a very long time. How do I say this without saying it — we were very, very close."
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Gavin Rossdale wants to be good dad
At this stage in his life, it's very important for Gavin Rossdale to be proactive as a father and support his kids in every way possible. According to Balance Media, Gwen Stefani and Rossdale both have custody of their kids and have decided to co-parent their sons. Rossdale believes that his primary job is to be a good father. He has made a conscious decision to ensure that he doesn't spend more than 15 days away from them no matter how hectic his work schedule may get.
Stefani and Rossdale have figured out a method that works for them as parents. The kids get to see the best of both the worlds. He said, "It's weird the way it's worked out, because when they're with Gwen, she has a huge team of people so the kids are always entertained ... then with me, it's just me." Also, he likes to make sure that his children are a part of his routine. Here's an example: he has a rowing machine, a bike, and a treadmill in his home especially for the kids. There's also a table tennis table on the premises. As Rossdale said, "I'm all about being really physical with them. I want my house to be the fun house."
Per Today, the singer tried to stay connected with his kids during the pandemic with lots of video calls. He said, "We do a lot of FaceTime. I find myself in my kids' pockets a lot."