“Slow Clap” by Gwen Stefani

Apparently the title of this Gwen Stefani song (“Slow Clap”) does in fact allude to a round of applause. And who is being applauded primarily would be the vocalist. And whereas the lyrics are by and large braggadocious, this isn’t just a simple case of Gwen Stefani biggin’ up herself. 

Rather she is doing so in the face of opposition, haters and doubters. The implication behind it all is that she considers herself to be indomitable. And let’s just say that she’s not afraid to show it.

Verse 1

So in the first verse for instance, the singer compares herself to “David” and her adversary to “Goliath”. Or looked at the other way around she knows that this person whom she is competing with has the advantage over her. But that does not mean that she is going to submit or allow herself to get bent out of shape. 

Rather it’s more like she’s cool with playing her position, because even in her lower standing she still excels.

Pre-Chorus

Then the pre-chorus takes on a different tone. The song kinda transform into more of a mutual-support kind of gig. 

In other words, the singer is “rooting for” the listener. And likewise she expecting such encouragement in return. That’s actually what leads to the titular clapping, a stylistic one as the vocalist encourages and instructs this action throughout. And overall, as she presents it, the “slow cap” is intended to be accompanied by dancing.

Verse 2

Meanwhile it is the second verse in which she comes off more like she’s actually bragging. But it’s not that she’s touting her superiority over others or anything like that. 

Instead, it’s more like the singer is celebrating the fact that she’s “been through hell” but is still here today, triumphantly dropping new music. 

Indeed the middle section of the passage can be interpreted as Gwen acknowledging that she took somewhat of a break – as elaborated later in the post – and is now making a comeback. And verily she’s coming hard, no apologies in hand. 

Or we can even say that this time around she’s not really out to impress anyone but herself.  

Bridge

But also, as indicated by the bridge, she’s not finna to go “to the back of the line” either. She has “put in (her) time”, experienced superstar levels of success and knows her worth. That’s part of the reason why she is able to “walk into the room like a boss”. Or stated alternatively, she knows what she drops is going to be hot regardless.

What “Slow Clap” is all about

So conclusively, the simplest way of describing “Slow Clap” would be as a dance song. But as for the meaning of the lyrics themselves, they are an exhibition of the singer’s high level of self-confidence. 

Indeed going back to the ‘David and Goliath’ analogy, it can be postulated that “Goliath” represents those in the music industry who are currently trending more than herself. But even if she is no longer A+ list at the very moment, Stefani is still isn’t going to back down.C

Creation and Release of “Slow Clap”

Interscope Records dropped this track on 11 March 2021.

It was written by Gwen Stefani alongside Ross Golan and Luke Niccoli, with Niccoli, a fellow American singer, also producing the track. And it was Ross Golan who originally conceptualized the song.

At the time of its issuance, this track is believed to be the second single from a forthcoming Gwen Stefani full-length. The title of the album remains unnamed at the time. But Stefani has stated that she “(does) have an idea what the title is”, and reportedly it is based on the name of a song she has released in the past. And the first single that was released from the project, in December of 2020, was “Let Me Reintroduce Myself”.

The audio style of the song is said to be reminiscent to that of No Doubt, a band from California, which Stefani has been a part of ever since they formed way back in 1986.

As of the release of this track, Gwen Stefani is 51 years old, and she’s been in the game now for well over 30 years. So in terms of the music she is concurrently releasing, the songstress has clarified that she’s “not trying to have a comeback”. Nor is she “trying to force (herself ) on anyone”. 

Rather at this stage in her career, she is primarily interested in putting music out that she actually feels. And just to note, the last studio album she came out with was “You Make It Feel Like Christmas”, which Interscope put out in October of 2017.

Moreover at this stage in her life, Stefani is preparing to get married. She and country music star Blake Shelton became engaged in October of 2020.

Gwen Stefani

In terms of when Gwen Stefani was actually at the top of the game, that would have been around the turn of the century. For instance, between 1997 and 2008 she actually earned 15 Grammy nomination. 

And she took home three trophies. Two of them were for No Doubt tracks, a band she leads vocally – “Hey Baby” (2003) and “Underneath It All” (2004). 

The other was for a song she was featured on, which was Eve’s joint “Let Me Blow Ya Mind” (Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, 2002). 

Stefani also won a plethora of other awards during the aughts, such as an AMA, four BMI Music Awards, two Billboard Music Awards, a BRIT Award, four MTV VMAs, etc.