Gwen Stefani has many facets in her life of which she can be proud and her relationship with Blake Shelton is one of them.
On Wednesday night, the multi-hyphenate was honored at this year's New York Women in Communications' 52nd Annual Matrix Awards, held at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in New York City, for her trailblazing career, and was presented on stage by none other than her Grammy-nominated beau, who in turn was "very excited" and "extra proud" of his wife.
After a heartfelt speech made by the 10-time CMA Award winner, 46, Stefani took the stage to accept her award, first and foremost thanking her husband and music companion.
"Obviously, my favorite award ever, Blake Shelton, for marrying me. Wow, this is surreal — weird Blake talking about me like that. Thank you so much, you're such a babe, and you're so awesome," Stefani, 53, began her speech after giving Shelton a quick peck.
The No Doubt singer then got candid about her humble beginnings in Anaheim, California, where she kickstarted what would be her phenomenal trajectory.
"I cannot believe that I'm being recognized tonight alongside all these incredible honorees. When I think about it, I say to myself, 'Why me?' I mean, honestly, how did this happen to me? How did I get this blessed?" she said. "I didn't have big dreams – they were little teeny-tiny dreams — and I was very naïve," she continued, adding that even though she "barely made it out of high school," it was her older brother and No Doubt member Eric who "saved" her.
Stefani also got candid about her personal struggles with dyslexia and how it's impacted her career, saying, "Being dyslexic definitely has had challenges for me in my life and I will say the dyslexic advantage has probably made me who I am. The moment I wrote my first song — I had no idea that I could do that. It just happened — it unlocked something inside me."
The Grammy winner then joked how, despite her troubles with spelling due to her condition, she "went on to teach the whole world how to spell 'bananas,'" referencing her 2004 hit single "Hollaback Girl."
Shelton also had some sweet words to say about the GXVE Beauty founder, introducing her as his "fellow coach, turned-friend, turned-girlfriend, turned-wife."
"I am humbled and excited to speak about my wonderful wife and duet partner today, as she is honored for putting women at the forefront and championing women consistently throughout her prolific career," he continued. "Gwen is not just a wonderful mother, singer and entrepreneur – she is an icon."
The Voice mentors met on the set of the NBC series when Stefani first joined as a coach in 2014. The two then began dating in November 2015 and made their red carpet debut one year later at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party.
Four years later, the musical couple announced their engagement in October 2020 and wed in July 2021 during a ceremony in Oklahoma.
Ahead of the Matrix Awards ceremony — during which Shelton proudly watched Stefani command the red carpet — the "Luxurious" singer also opened up about the twosome's date night in New York, celebrating the anniversary of their first "get together" seven years ago.
"It feels exciting to be here in New York with Blake because the last couple of years, we just really don't go out very much, unless we're just at home or on the set of The Voice. So we went out to dinner last night, we had fancy food [and] wine, we're in a hotel room. It feels like a date night weekend for us," she said. "So a lot of reminiscing."
