Gavin Rossdale has insisted that the sons he shares with ex-wife Gwen Stefani are not nepo-babies and are making music purely out of talent. The 60-year-old rock star is a proud dad to sons Kingston, 20, and Zuma, 17, while No Doubt icon Gwen, 56, is their mum. The former husband and wife are also parents to 12-year-old Apollo.
Rossdale's Views on Nepotism
Opening up on the And The Writer Is podcast, Gavin said: "People talk a lot about nepo babies and stuff like that. You know, no one gave a s**t about Jeff Buckley being a nepo baby. It just was so good. So I think that being good at stuff is the great equaliser and is the great thrust into whatever you’re doing. If the quality is lacking, then yeah, that’s an easy jibe."
Gavin went on to share details of his son's emerging musical talents. He revealed: "One boy has left school and he’s decided not to go to college. He’s recording songs, and it’s just really fun. He doesn’t want to hear anything from me, by the way. It’s just, no advice. It’s like, I can’t give him advice about anything. He just does not want it. I say, ‘If you want to be a musician, you want to be a singer, it’s so hard and I don’t know how you’re going to do it and good luck. But by the way, sing a lot and play a lot of guitar and take lessons’."
Family Background
Gavin and Gwen were married from 2002 until 2016, with the marriage falling apart amid reports that the Bush singer had been unfaithful. Gwen went on to find love again with American country singer Blake Shelton, 50, whom she married in 2021. Blake has taken Gwen's sons under his wing as their stepfather. Opening up about his role, he told People magazine in 2022: "Even though I’m a stepparent, I take that job very seriously. The kids see me as a very important person in their lives. [When they ask], ‘Why isn’t Blake here?’ I take that stuff to heart. I’ve made plenty of money, but you can’t buy time back. I don’t want any regrets."
Speaking of his marriage to Gwen, Blake said at the time: "The relationship that we have is so natural and so normal. This feels like the easiest thing I’ve ever been a part of. To me, she’s my best friend and everything that I need and lean on."
Children's Musical Pursuits
Reports in 2023 revealed that Kingston was beginning to make inroads for a music career, while Zuma made his country music debut at Shelton's Oklahoma bar when he was just 15 years old. Proud dad Gavin says his kids have what it takes to carve out successful careers of their own and has slammed the suggestion they are nepo-babies.
Earlier this month, Gwen took to social media to mark her wedding anniversary to Blake. Sharing snaps from their big day in 2021, she wrote: "5 years married to my forever @blakeshelton gx" - along with emojis of a bouquet of flowers and a wedding ring.
Gavin has reportedly been dating singer Xhoana X since 2024. As well as being dad to his three sons, the singer is also the father of British model Daisy Lowe, 37. While Daisy's mum is the singer-songwriter turned textile and fashion designer Pearl Lowe, 56, it was not publicly revealed that Gavin was her father until 2004 when Daisy took a DNA test when she was 15 years old. It was reported that Daisy and Gavin had not initially had a close relationship, but they built upon it following the revelation and she was photographed with her half-brothers in 2009.
