Sexy solo artist, fashion icon, actress, wife and mother. Jane Graham looks at how Gwen Stefani has become so much more than Just a Girl

She introduced herself to the world, as Just a Girl and her first smash hit presented her as a little girl lost, terrified of being abandoned by the man she worshipped, but Gwen Stefani has increasingly shown herself to have more tenacity and toughness than any woman in pop since Madonna. As a highly successful solo artist, fashion designer and actress in a happy marriage with a son, she is the epitome of desirable modern womanhood; powerful (but not threatening), sexy (but female friendly) and ambitious (but contented), she is adored in equal measure by men and women, both gay and straight.

Yet six years ago Stefani was best known for being the pretty blonde frontwoman for an increasingly unsuccessful band of boys, one of whom had very publicly broken her heart. The notion that she would leave them all behind and bounce back with such incredible aplomb occurred to almost no one. Except, of course, Ms Stefani.

Early interviews presented Stefani as a sweet innocent Catholic girl from California who fell into the rock industry in 1986 because her brother was putting together a ska-pop band and needed a singer. She has said about those early years in No Doubt, "All I ever did was look at Tony (Kanal, the band's keyboard player) and pray that God would let me have a baby with him." She got her man.

The band took six years to get their debut album together, by which time grunge was riding the zeitgeist and Stefani's pretty, pony-tailed, softer-edged persona didn't fit. The self-titled album made little impact on the charts and Stefani's relationship with Kanal started to fray, until the latter declared himself in need of 'space' and ended the liaison. Though Stefani was distraught, the trauma inspired Tragic Kingdom, the album that was to propel No Doubt from obscurity to megastardom. Their first international number 1 in 1996, Don't Speak, was a raw depiction of a woman so afraid to hear that her boyfriend had betrayed her she begs him to say nothing at all. The lyrics struck a nerve, as did the video, in which Stefani, reminiscent of Marlene-Dietrich, cast lonely, mournful looks at Kanal.

Don't Speak gave birth to the notion of Gwen Stefani as a beautiful, vulnerable heroine, a victim of unrequited love and loss. The song brought a depth to Stefani's previously fun, cartoonish character and awarded her new respect as a serious artist. However, rather than treasure Stefani's girlish susceptibility, it may have been more prescient to note Stefani's response to Kanal's rejection as evidence of her inner strength and ability to transform a setback into a longterm victory.

Ironically, the Don't Speak video proved to be prophetic - in it, Stefani is repeatedly isolated from her band by photographers, provoking jealous scowls from the three men, and expressions of panic and regret from their singer. In a few years' time she would work through those feelings pretty successfully.

As interest in Gwen Stefani grew, her confidence was further bolstered by a burgeoning relationship with Londoner Gavin Rossdale, whom she first met in 1995, not long after the split with Kanal. At that point Rossdale was the better known of the two, as frontman for the grunge rock superstars Bush, who had just enjoyed incredible sales and a massive tour in the States on the back of their debut album Sixteen Stone (their American success was never replicated in the UK).

As the better looking half of the coolest new couple of rock royalty, Stefani's stock rose ever higher. When the next two No Doubt albums sold relatively disappointingly while Stefani adorned more and more newspapers and fashion magazines, the move to go solo became inevitable.

Without the bother of including the three sulky, serious men in every press campaign, photograph and songwriting process, Stefani soared. Her poor husband - she and Rossdale married in 2002 - was to suffer the same fate as his old love rival, watching his own popularity wane in direct relation to his wife's increasing success.

Her first solo album in 2004, Love Angel Music Baby, sold seven million copies internationally, spawning hits like What You Waiting For? and Hollaback Girl, putting her among the A-list of solo female artists in the world. A collaboration with the painfully cool producer/rapper Pharrell, Can I Have It Like That, sealed her credentials.

The image of the sugary sweet, innocent persona who just happened to wander into the music industry had by now been ousted by that of a woman with a canny head for business.

Stefani's earlier claims to be distantly related to Madonna (she claimed her grandma's sister's mother-in-law was a Ciccone) suddenly seemed to make sense. Even the title of her album was a business tie-in, referencing as it did the fashion line L.A.M.B. that Stefani had launched the same year, just in case any one failed to make the connection and thus appreciate her growing empire. Her videos and live performances showcased the quirky L.A.M.B style, sassy and street, and within a year of its launch Stefani was being heralded by the likes of Vogue and Elle as a modern fashion icon.

2004 was a busy year, which also saw Stefani make her acting debut in Martin Scorsese's Oscar nominated The Aviator, in which she played blonde Hollywood siren Jean Harlow.

Something else happened in 2004 which tested properly Stefani's mettle. When a paternity test in 2004 revealed that Rossdale was the father of his god-daughter Daisy Lowe, the result of a liaison 15 years previously with model Pearl Lowe, she was said to be devastated and angry. Rossdale was allegedly cold shouldered while she pondered whether she could forgive and forget. When the marriage got back on track, Stefani joyfully announced her own pregnancy to the world. Daisy, on the other hand, has since seen her once close godfather shut down all contact between them, much to her mother's outrage. Stefani, there can be no doubt, is a woman who gets what she wants.

Stefani's current arena tour is her first round of UK dates as a solo artist. It offers trend-surfers a unique chance to see the music and fashion icon in person, her post-pregnancy waist having been squeezed back to its tiny size through what Stefani called "really hard work". In truth, the waist never stood a chance. If you get near the front, look into Stefani's deep brown eyes. If you're lucky, you might see a spark of steel.

Gwen Stefani plays Belfast's Odyssey Arena on Monday. Tickets £40/£38. Limited tickets will be available from the box office on the night. Tel: 0870243 4455