Blake Shelton + Gwen Stefani Are ‘Picking Purple Irises’ and Teasing a New Duet [Listen]
It seems like a pretty safe bet that Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani's next duet is just around the corner. The couple teased a snippet of new music on Stefani's TikTok, after almost a week of vague social media teases.
"Now we're picking purple irises," Stefani captions her post of the new music tease, referencing one of the song's lyrics.
The clip shows Stefani and Shelton singing their respective parts in the studio, with other musicians and studio staff working behind the scenes to make the recording perfect.
"If someone comes along and tries to love you like I love you / Don't know what I'd do," the pair harmonize in one line.
"Wonder why you took a risk / On a broken heart you cannot fix / No, I never knew a love like this / Now we're pickin' purple irises," Shelton and Stefani sing together at the end of the clip.
It's easy to read the couple's real-life story into their new song's lyrics. They met when both were coaches on The Voice, and they became close after they each went through a highly public divorce from another superstar.
- Shelton split from Miranda Lambert in 2015; Stefani ended her marriage to Gavin Rossdale shortly thereafter.
- While Shelton and Stefani's friendship began during tumultuous personal times for both singers, their romance eventually blossomed, making them one of music's favorite cross-genre "it" couples.
- Shelton proposed to Stefani in 2020 and they got married the following July.
Previous teases have all revolved around purple irises: Stefani's first post showed a bouquet laying on a counter, plus a Polaroid of her and Shelton, "Never knew a love like this" written across the bottom in purple handwriting. A follow-up post shows the purple iris bouquet in a vase by a window, with a note reading "To: Pretty Girl. Love, Blake."
The flower theme also feels very true to life: Shelton and Stefani have both talked about their gardening hobby, and specifically, Stefani's love of growing flowers.
The couple have put out multiple duets in the past. Their first was "Go Ahead and Break My Heart," and they followed that up with two No. 1 country hits, "Nobody But You" and "Happy Anywhere." Shelton and Stefani have also recorded a holiday tune called "You Make it Feel Like Christmas."