No Doubt’s Tony Kanal on Las Vegas Sphere Residency, Why They Haven’t Toured in Years and Whether New Music Is in the Works

Just before No Doubt took the stage for their inaugural performance at Las Vegas' Sphere—the first of an 18-date residency—bassist Tony Kanal was overwhelmed by emotion. "I had a good cry at soundcheck," he tells Variety, reflecting on the Wednesday night show that kicked off their run at the cutting-edge venue, which will continue through late May. "I'm glad I got that out of the way before the show, because I would have probably started losing it on stage." The Sphere, a $2.3 billion architectural wonder boasting a 160,000-square-foot immersive LED screen, first opened its doors in September 2023. Since then, it has transformed the landscape of live entertainment, hosting residencies from legendary acts such as U2 and Phish. For Kanal, this emotional release served as a vital prelude to a performance designed to chart the band's entire evolution.

Kanal, joined by vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, drummer Adrian Young, and longtime collaborators Stephen Bradley and Gabrial McNair on horns and keyboards, brought their shared vision to life in a two-hour retrospective. The show traces No Doubt's path from their humble beginnings to international fame, representing the culmination of talks that were finalized in September 2025. The band then embarked on an intense eight-month sprint to craft a four-act spectacle that captures the grit of their rise. "Every waking moment over the past eight months was about this show," Kanal explains. "So when you're finally doing the first show, it's the culmination of all this work and incredibly talented people that we got to work with. You're about to share it with the world. And it's overwhelming. You can't really grasp how time went by because those eight months went so fast, and we were so busy. It was just joyous." According to the bassist, this timeframe was considered the absolute minimum necessary to orchestrate such a complex production.

This residency marks a significant milestone for the Southern California band, which hasn't released an album since 2012's "Push and Shove" and has performed only sporadically in recent years. However, their two Coachella sets in 2024 reaffirmed their status as pop's enduring icons, showcasing cross-generational appeal with the same charisma they've displayed since forming in 1986. "Their Coachella performances demonstrated that their music resonates with both longtime fans and new listeners," notes music journalist Sarah Chen, author of 'The Ska Revolution.' Following the inaugural Sphere show, Kanal explains why they framed the performance as a love letter to their journey, why they didn't tour after Coachella, and whether new music might ever emerge. The band's history includes their breakthrough 1995 album 'Tragic Kingdom,' which sold over 16 million copies worldwide and spawned hits like "Don't Speak" and "Just a Girl." Notably, the album spent 54 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart, solidifying the band's place in pop culture history.

Kanal notes that the setlist had to be finalized months in advance, a departure from typical shows where changes can be made on the fly. "That's a weird thing because usually you can mix it up," he says. "You don't really have that opportunity [here] because so much of the content has to be created months ago." The band worked with Baz Halpin and his Silent House Productions team, who had previously handled No Doubt's 2009 tour and had experience with the Sphere from other projects. The final show was designed as a journey through the band's history, divided into four acts with interstitial explanations—an idea credited to Halpin. Kanal emphasizes the importance of balancing the Sphere's immersive visuals with the live performance itself. "I've seen shows at the Sphere and sometimes you get so involved in watching the content that you actually forget there's a live artist playing on the stage," he says. "We tried to thread that needle and find that balance, so you come away getting the full Sphere experience. But at the same time, you don't miss the fact that you're seeing No Doubt live." This careful attention to detail is essential, as the Sphere's technology can easily overwhelm the human element of a concert.

Reflecting on the band's dynamic, Kanal says they've always avoided taking themselves too seriously. "We would do absurd things and say silly things to entertain each other," he explains. "That's kind of our dynamic internally. Like, don't take things too seriously. So we're just doing what we've always done. We're wearing our hearts on our sleeves and we're sharing with people the trials and tribulations and victories and joys that we've experienced together for almost four decades now." Regarding the future, including the possibility of new music, Kanal is cautious. "That conversation always comes back to, are we on the same page about what we'd want to do?" he says. "I think until we get to that place, we would hold off until we're all on the same creative page about creating new music. I don't want to say it'll never happen, but I think for us, we'd like to keep the bar high." For now, the focus remains on the Sphere shows, though Kanal hints at surprises in how songs are performed. "It weighs on me a lot because it's been every part of my waking life for the last eight months," he admits. "When I say eight months, I mean eight months from when we decided we're doing it. There was a good year of discussions before that. So right now, No Doubt is everything that I'm eating, living and breathing. It's a beautiful place to be." This sentiment underscores the deep commitment the band has to this project, which may well define their legacy for a new generation.