Gwen Stefani's older brother, Eric, is celebrating his birthday Thursday, and she knows just how to mark the occasion: with awesome throwback pictures of the two of them!
The musician, former "Voice" coach and future Mrs. Blake Shelton posted two adorable pictures of herself and Eric, who turned 54, on Instagram (be sure to swipe to see both):
"Happy birthday to my big brother @ericstefanimation we love u. wouldn't be me w out u," she wrote in the caption.
The first picture is the sweetest, showing the brother and sister holding hands, each only wearing boxer shorts (him) or cute little diaper panties (her). But a quick tap on the picture brings you to the classic suburban portrait studio shot of them much older (we're guessing high school). They're looking serious but serene, Stefani's makeup is spot-on, and check out those rarely shown roots!
The two are quite close, having both played in No Doubt together, and received a shared Grammy nomination for "Don't Speak." He focused on animation after leaving the band and worked on "The Simpsons" for a time.
As Gwen Stefani, 51, told Seth Meyers on "Late Night" last October, Eric was the one who "taught me everything I know" about music. She also noted that she was making new music and that he played on a new song of hers. "My brother is, like, my biggest hero," she added. "He's an amazing artist and talent."
This isn't the first time she's shared a throwback pic of her beloved brother and herself. Last year for his 53rd birthday Stefani shared a picture in which she held out a birthday cake and he was midway through blowing out the candles (and the message of "wouldn't be me w out u" was the same).
We're happy to take this trip down memory lane with them both!
CORRECTION (June 18, 2021, 8:37 a.m.): An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified Eric Stefani in a photo of No Doubt. The photo has been removed.