Gwen Stefani Talks Motherhood and Music in Harper’s Bazaar Cover Issue

No Doubt's first album of new material in over a decade is just around the corner, and the promotional machine is cranking into high gear -- which means we're going to be seeing lots and lots of Gwen Stefani. Somehow, we don't think you'll mind.

As part of all that press, Stefani is this month's cover girl at Harper's Bazaar, as well as the focus of a profile piece and behind-the-scenes video (embedded below). While she wasn't able to spend a ton of time with the folks at Harper's -- as the article notes, the interview consisted of a lunch date before Stefani darted off to purchase some Spider-Man-themed duds for her oldest son -- she did open up a bit about her take on motherhood, beauty maintenance and (of course) No Doubt.

"It's super fun being a mom, but it's hard too," admitted Stefani, who may have been referencing the band's long between-albums layoff when she added, "Finding that balance between work and family is the hardest thing I've ever done -- by far."

But while Stefani's domesticity might seem at odds with her brash onstage persona, she says she's always been much more "passive" than her songs might suggest. "I was never a rebel," she insisted to Harper's, adding that when she started dating her husband Gavin Rossdale, "I was still at my parents' house. Yeah, it's a little weird."

That grounded perspective has always driven No Doubt's music, according to Stefani. "We didn't even do it because we were trying to make it. Now everybody wants to be famous. It doesn't even matter what you do," she pointed out. "Let me tell you how that first record happened: My boyfriend had broken up with me and I was devastated, so I wrote all these songs. I didn't even know I could write. I was just a girl who was in love with this guy, then suddenly I'm a songwriter, and I've gotten you back so good. I went from being nothing, from being an ordinary, nerdy girl, to having power."

Watch Gwen Stefani's Behind-the-Scenes Harper's Bazaar Video