No Doubt's live act began to attract regional interest, and Interscope Records signed them in 1991. The band's debut a year later, an odd fusion of '80s and ska, sank without a trace in the wake of the grunge movement. As a result, Interscope refused to support No Doubt's tour or further recordings. The band responded by recording on their own during 1993-94; the result was the self-released The Beacon Street Collection, much rawer and more punk-inspired than the debut. Eric Stefani left just after its release, later working as an animator for The Simpsons. By late 1994, Interscope allowed recordings to resume, and Tragic Kingdom was released in October 1995. The album's third single, Don't Speak, which although originally written by Eric was later altered by Gwen to document her breakup with bassist Tony Kanal. Tragic Kingdom went platinum and has sold over 15 million copies to date. As Tragic Kingdom obtained success, the band toured furiously until late '97.
After a long break, the band had prepared a more mellow, and powerfully dramatic album entitled Return of Saturn. It emphasized Gwen's encounters with men, her biological clock, and miscellaneous topics. Although the album had a completely different approach to it, the band was making rock music with less of a punk/ska flare. The album debuted at #2 on the Billboard charts in early April of 2000, and then declined to a flop. The public never did justice to the album, and it serves as a favorite for many die-hard fans.
While touring in Jamaica for Return of Saturn, the band wanted to try adding Reggae to their music, and making more of a dance rock record. 20 months after Return of Saturn debuted, the band was quick to jump on the creation of Rock Steady, released in December of '01. The singles Underneath It All and Hey Baby became international dance club symbols as top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. This album proved that No Doubt had not lost their potential with the public, and that they could appeal to various groups of people.
In 2004, No Doubt announced they would be going on hiatus after the release of the singles compilation The Singles 1992–2003, which contained one new song, a cover of experimental rock band Talk Talk's "It's My Life". Tony Kanal did several projects with Gwen and other artists. Adrian Young married and had a child; Tom Dumont formed a new band, Invincible Overlord, often plays with Matt Costa's band. Gwen embarked on a sucessful solo career which consisted of two albums - "Love. Angel. Music. Baby." and "The Sweet Escape". The first of these albums contains the single "Hollaback Girl", a song which was inescapable for most of 2005 and hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won her a Billboard Award for first track to reach 1 Million legal downloads ever. The self titled track off "The Sweet Escape" went on to become her most notorious calling card.
With the hiatus officially over in late 2008 No Doubt announced tour plans for 2009, kicking it off in Atlantic City. The tour concluded with four dates in Irvine, CA. In May, 2009, the band was featured as a fictional 80's band, "Snowed Out", on CW Network's "Gossip Girl" The band performed their cover of Adam and the Ants 'Stand and Deliver.'
The group entered the studio in May 2010 to start recording on their sixth studio album: Push and Shove which will be release on September 25, 2012 and its first single will be "Settle Down". Their first music video for the new album will also be for "Settle Down" and it will be directed by Sophie Muller (who previously has done numerous music videos for No Doubt). The whole album has been recorded with producer Mark "Spike" Stent (who worked on their previous album Rock Steady) but they have also collaborated with Major Lazer (now Diplo's solo project). No Doubt previously revealed they are taking influence from ska, 80s new wave and Jamaican reggae music for the new record.
Magics In The Makeup
No Doubt Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Faking it?
But I want to be myself
A counterfeit disposition
Can't be good for my health
So many different faces
Depending on the different phases
My personality changes
There's more then one dimension
I can fool you and attract attention
Camouflage my nature
Let me demonstrate...
Makeup's all off
Who am I?
Magic's in the makeup
Who am I?
If you bore me
Then I'm comfortable
If you interest me I'm scared
My attraction paralyzes me
No courage to show my true colors that exist
But I want to be the real thing
But if you catch my eye can't be authentic
The ones I loath are the one's that know me the best
My makeup's all off
Who am I?
The magic's in the makeup
Who am I?
The makeup's all
Off
Who am I?
If the magic's in the make up
Then who am I?
Magic's in the makeup
But I want to be the real thing
But the magic's in the makeup
And I want to be the real thing
My makeup's all
Off
Who am I?
The lyrics to No Doubt's song Magic's in the Makeup explore the idea of the different personas people present to the world and the struggle to find one's true identity. The opening lines "Can you tell I'm faking it? But I want to be myself, a counterfeit disposition can't be good for my health" speak to the fact that the singer feels the need to put on an act in order to fit in with different social situations, even though this false persona is not good for her.
The singer then explores the idea that there are different facets to her personality, and that she is able to fool people and attract attention by changing her persona to suit different situations. However, she is also aware that this camouflage is not sustainable, and that it prevents her from showing her true colors. She is paralyzed by the attraction of those who interest her, but is afraid to show her true self lest it be rejected by those she is attracted to.
The chorus of the song, "Makeup's all off, who am I? Magic's in the makeup, who am I?" is a recognition that the singer does not truly know who she is when she is not putting on a false front. She is struggling to reconcile her multiple personalities and find her true self, but she is afraid to reveal this self to others.
Line by Line Meaning
Can you tell I'm
Faking it?
I am not my true self and am putting on a facade.
But I want to be myself
I desire to be my genuine self rather than a fake version of me.
A counterfeit disposition
Can't be good for my health
Faking who I am is harmful to my well-being and authenticity.
So many different faces
Depending on the different phases
My personality changes
I'm a chameleon
There's more then one dimension
I can fool you and attract attention
Camouflage my nature
Let me demonstrate...
I have various personas that I switch to based on my environment, and I can alter my personality to gain approval or attention.
Makeup's all off
Who am I?
Magic's in the makeup
Who am I?
Without the facade and the fake persona, I am uncertain of who I am, and the magic came from my makeup, not my true self.
If you bore me
Then I'm comfortable
If you interest me I'm scared
My attraction paralyzes me
No courage to show my true colors that exist
But I want to be the real thing
But if you catch my eye can't be authentic
The ones I loath are the one's that know me the best
I am comfortable being unchallenged, but if you attract my interest, I become frightened, and my attraction for you makes me unable to present my genuine self. I do not show my true self to those who know me best. I long to be my authentic self, but I am unable to be transparent around those I crave the most.
The makeup's all
Off
Who am I?
If the magic's in the make up
Then who am I?
Once I am no longer wearing a facade, I am unsure of who I am since my magic was merely my makeup, not my authentic self.
Magic's in the makeup
But I want to be the real thing
But the magic's in the makeup
And I want to be the real thing
My makeup's all
Off
Who am I?
I have come to realize that my fake persona was where my magic resided, but I long to be my true self. However, since the magic resided in the makeup, I am uncertain of who I am now that I have abandoned it.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind