No Doubt

Background:

Musician, songwriter and record producer Tony Kanal is best known as the bassist of the American band No Doubt. The group experienced a huge breakthrough in 1995 with the Billboard 200 No. 1 hit album “Tragic Kingdom,” which has sold over 18 million copies worldwide. They went on to release the studio albums “Return of Saturn” (2000) and “Rock Steady” (2001) and the compilation albums “The Singles 1992-2003” (2003) and “Everything in Time” (2004), before taking a four year break. Kanal also co-wrote the No Doubt singles “Hey Baby,” (Grammy winner) “Spiderwebs,” “Ex-Girlfriend” and “Hella Good.”

When No Doubt was on hiatus, Kanal began his career as a record producer. Artists he has collaborated with include Gwen Stefani, Elan Atias and Pepper. Kanal and No Doubt vocalist Gwen Stefani began dating in 1987 but kept the relationship secret for a year. The couple split up after seven years. No Doubt's hit song “Don't Speak,” from album “Tragic Kingdom,” was about their breakup. After the separation Kanal offered to leave the band but Stefani wanted him to stay. They remain close friends to this day. Stefani's song “Cool” from her debut solo album “Love. Angel. Music. Baby.” (2004) talks about their friendship.

Currently, Kanal is dating the Los Angeles-born former model and actress Erin Reese (Erin Lokitz), who is 12 years his junior. They are expecting their first child.

Psychology

Childhood and Family:

Tony Ashwin Kanal was born on August 27, 1970, in Kingsbury, London, England, to Indian immigrants Gulab and Lajju. He was raised primarily in London, but spent part of his childhood in Toronto, Canada, and Indiana. When he was 11 years old, his family moved permanently to the United States and settled in Orange County, California, where his parents opened a store called Kanal's Gifts and Fashion. Tony majored in psychology at California State University.

On September 15, 2010, Tony and his girlfriend, Erin Reese, announced they were expecting their first child.

Record Producer

Career:

Tony Kanal was first encouraged to play the saxophone, which his father enjoyed. He later learned to play the bass from a classmate. His professional career as a bassist began when he joined No Doubt in 1987 after seeing one of the group's early shows. Shortly after, he and lead vocalist Gwen Stefani began dating secretly. The relationship would end peacefully seven years later.

On March 17, 1992, No Doubt released a self titled debut studio album with Interscope Records. Despite intense tours, the album had low sales and failed to enter any Billboard charts. Due to the commercial failure of the album, the label refused to finance the release of any singles from it. Therefore, the group released the single “Trapped in a Box” independently.

In March 1995, Kanal and the group resurfaced with the album “The Beacon Street Collection,” which they released independently via their own record label, Beacon Street Records. The album produced the singles “Squeal” and “Doghouse” and sold over 100,000 copies in 1995.

The third studio album, “Tragic Kingdom,” hit the music stores on October 10, 1995, and became a huge hit. Produced by Matthew Wilder, it rose to the top of the U.S. Billboard 200 and the Canadian Albums chart in 1996 and went on to make it to the top 10 in many countries, including the U.K. (#3), Belgium (#1), New Zealand (#1), Sweden (#3), The Netherlands (#2), Germany (#2) and Australia (#3). In 1997, the album was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Album, while No Doubt earned a nomination for Best New Artists. “Tragic Kingdom” was certified diamond by RIAA, platinum in the U.K. and triple platinum in Australia. No Doubt toured extensively for two and a half years to promote the album.

Seven singles were released from “Tragic Kingdom.” The lead single, “Just a Girl,” rose to No. 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 10 on the Billboard Alternative Songs, but achieved higher charting position abroad where it peaked at No. 3 in the U.K. and Australia. The single went platinum in New Zealand. The next single, “Spiderwebs,” which was co-written by Kanal and Stefani, debuted on the Billboard Modern Rock chart at No. 10 before peaking of No. 5. “Don't Speak” spent 16 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay, went to No 2 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks and No. 6 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary. The song was also No. 1 in Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Belgium, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom and became the group's most successful international single. It was nominated for Grammy Awards in 1998 for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Song of the Year. The remaining singles were “Excuse Me Mr.,” (#17 US Alt) “Happy Now,” “Sunday Morning” (#50 U.K.) and “Hey You.”

The fourth studio album, “Return of Saturn,” was released on April 11, 2000, to mixed reviews. It peaked at No.2 on the Billboard 200, No. 4 in Canada and No. 31 in the U.K. The album went platinum in the U.S. and Canada and was nominated for a 2001 Grammy for Best Rock Album. “Return of Saturn” yielded four singles with “New,” “Ex-Girlfriend,” “Simple Kind of Life” and “Bathwater.” The first three singles peaked at No. 7, No. 2 and No. 14 on the Alternative Songs chart, respectively. Kanal co-wrote the songs “Ex-Girlfriend” and “Bathwater” with Tom Dumont and Gwen Stefani.

On December 21, 2001, No Doubt released the album “Rock Steady.” It peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard 200 and was certified triple platinum by RIAA. It was also nominated for a 2003 Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Album. The lead single, “Hey Baby,” which Kanal co-wrote with Stefani, Dumont and Bounty Killer, rose to No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 1 on the Billboard Pop 100 and No. 2 on the U.K. Singles Chart. It won a 2003 Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. The second single, “Hella Good,” co-written by Kanal, peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play and No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was nominated for a Grammy in the category of Best Dance Recording. The third single, “Underneath It All,” featuring Lady Saw, won a 2004 Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. It peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 2 on the Adult Top 40. The fourth and final single from the album, “Running,” which was written by Kanal and Stefani, rose to No. 62 on the Billboard Hot 100.

In 2003, Kanal and the group launched the compilation album “The Singles 1992–2003,” which has sold over 2 million copies in the U.S. and 3 million worldwide. No Doubt covered Talk Talk’s single “It's My Life” for the album. No Doubt's version made the Top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the Top 20 in the U.K., and was nominated for a 2005 Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

After No Doubt went on hiatus in 2004, Kanal began a career behind the mixing console. Later that same year, he produced three songs for the soundtrack to the movie “50 First Dates.” The same year, he also produced and co-wrote three tracks on Gwen Stefani's first solo album “Love. Angel. Music. Baby.” He went on to produce “Together as One” (2006), the debut album of Elan Atias, and was reunited with Stefani for her sophomore solo effort, “The Sweet Escape” (also 2006). He also produced the song “Rent” for the Pepper's 2006 album “No Shame.” Remixes Kanal created include Stefani's “Hollaback Girl” and Gang of Four's “Ether”.

No Doubt was reunited in 2008. The group entered the studio in May 2010 to start recording their sixth studio album. Meanwhile, Kanal also continued his side projects and worked with Pink on the songs “Sober” and “Funhouse” for Pink's album “Funhouse” (2008). He then provided backup vocals on the song “Crystal Ball.” In 2009, Kanal played bass and co-wrote a song for Kimberly Wyatt's debut solo.

Awards:

• Grammy: Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group, “Underneath It All,” 2004

• Grammy: Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, “Hey Baby,” 2003