Gwen Stefani looks to connect with fans on her latest solo outing

There is a sense of responsibility Gwen Stefani feels, taking the stage on her latest solo tour.

It has little to do with production values.

“At the end of the day, the whole show for me is not about what I’m wearing or even how I sing. It’s really about the connection,” Stefani said during a pre-tour teleconference in June. “My goal is to get out there and connect with people and to try to have this exchange of love.”

The tour stops in Fresno on Saturday, Aug. 27, at the Save Mart Center.

And the pop-music style icon and one-time No Doubt frontwoman said she’s not above slapping her audience around some – metaphorically speaking – to make sure that responsibility is fulfilled: “By the end of this, we’re going to be best friends; that’s it.”

The tour follows the release of Stefani’s third solo album, “This Is What the Truth Feels Like,” which topped Billboard’s Top 200 when it was released in March. It is her first recording in a decade and the first since her breakup with rocker husband Gavin Rossdale. The pair’s high-profile divorce was finalized in April and Stefani is now in a higher-profile relationship with country star Blake Shelton. There are rumors of a wedding.

In a way, the album parallels 1995’s “Tragic Kingdom,” the break-out album from No Doubt and Stefani’s first foray into songwriting. The two works definitely share emotional similarities and purity of purpose, Stefani said. “This Is What the Truth Feels Like” wasn’t written with the intent of creating hits singles or launching an arena tour, she said.

Those came later.

It was written as emotional catharsis, during a year when she “wanted to get under the covers and eat pizza and cry.” Instead, she went into the studio where she found a creative flow – sometimes writing two songs a day.

“That’s what I’m going to celebrate when I get on tour,” she said. “I’m just going to celebrate that I was put on this Earth to write these songs.”

Stefani last played Fresno in 2009, on the first leg of No Doubt’s comeback tour. She also stopped here as a solo artist in 2005 and 2007.

Here’s some more of what fans can expect this time around.

The clothes

Stefani has always brought her fashion to the stage, whether it was tank-tops and suspenders of the No Doubt days or the Japanese-club kid attire of her Harajuku Girls.

“I’ve always been, always cared about what I’m wearing on stage, whether it’s one outfit or not,” Stefani said.

So, expect at least a few costumes for the night, including several from New York fashion design duo The Blonds.

“You know that I’m going to go for it like mad,” Stefani said.

The production

The 46-year-old singer doesn’t need the high-tech production techniques that have become the norm for these kind of arena shows. It certainly wasn’t the focus when planning the tour. That said, Stefani is touring with an eight-person dance crew and promises the concert will have “cool lights” and other visuals. That includes several short-film video pieces created by Sophie Muller.

Muller is a longtime friend who has worked with Stefani for 20 years. She directed several videos for No Doubt (“Don't Speak,” “Sunday Morning”) and Stefani’s last two videos, including “Make Me Like You,” which was shot live at the Grammy Awards.

“It’s all about fun stuff production-wise … but it’s not really about that for me, this tour,” she said.

The set list

Unlike previous solo tours, the singer comes into this tour with three albums worth of material – not counting her catalog with No Doubt. Figuring out which songs to play was a treat, Stefani said.

“It makes it so much more fun to have all that music to choose from,” she said.

The band learned the entirety of the new record, but before the tour kicked off, she asked her Twitter followers what they wanted to hear her perform.

“I don’t want to, like, disappoint anyone,” she said.

Looking at reviews from the tour so far, the set list runs about 25 songs and spans Stefani’s career. Fans will hear the two new singles, some choice hits from her previous solo work (“Hollaback Girl,” “Wind It Up”) and a few No Doubt tunes.

Spoiler alert: In Houston, the encore included a rendition of “Just a Girl.”

Also, expect a guest spot (or two) from rapper Eve, who serves as the opening act and has been joining Stefani on stage to perform “Rich Girl.” The two collaborated on the song for Stefani’s first solo record.

“I couldn’t think of anybody else actually that I’d want to tour with, especially a girl. She’s dope. So I’m excited,” Stefani said.

This story was originally published August 24, 2016 at 4:00 PM with the headline "Gwen Stefani looks to connect with fans on her latest solo outing."