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Artist of the Month: Avril Lavigne
From the looks of her music videos, you might find Avril Lavigne pretty one-dimensional: just an angry girl who sings about heartbreak and bad boyfriends. But our Paisley Strellis found out that she's really just a normal girl who likes to play with makeup and buy new clothes. We caught up with the feisty singer to chat about her new album, Under My Skin, and get the real deal on all of those rumors about her diva fits. Listen and watch Avril's new single: "Don't Tell Me".
Does your strong public persona match who you are on the inside?
My image doesn't affect me in any way. You can't worry about what people think about you. That's dumb. But people do seem to think I'm a really angry person and I'm not. There was a rumor that I went to a radio station and tore down all these posters in a rage. What really happened is this: I was just sitting there laughing at a photo of myself on the wall with my guitar player, Evan. One of the DJs said, "Go ahead and take it down, if you don't like it." So I did and I threw it out. Then he made up this ridiculous story about me. Usually things like that don't bother me, but that really pissed me off.
Do you want to give your side of the story about the TRL controversy over your giving the finger?
How did you hear about that? I was just talking to Damien Fahey about the media and how they're annoying. It was funny, I was laughing and so was everybody else. I was joking around, but it's making me look angry!
So what are you really like when you're with people who are close to you, like your sister for instance?
We just hang out and are girls. I always give her a whole bunch of clothes. We try them on together. She also likes it when I do her hair and makeup. We just do normal sister stuff.
You wrote Under My Skin in a short amount of time. How did it come together so quickly?
I was on tour for basically two years. A week after I finished, I wrote 12 songs with my best friend [Canadian singer] Chantal Kreviazuk. I moved into her house in L.A. to record them. It was great because I also had a chance to do other normal things, too, like hang out, make friends, and work with new people and producers.
What's your favorite song on the album?
"Slipped Away" is the one that has the most meaning to me. I wrote it about my grandpa that passed away. "Together" is another favorite. It's about a person who was in my life and I just didn't think that that person needed to be there anymore. We weren't very good together and there was just that voice in my head telling me so.
You talk about breakups in some of your new songs. What advice would you give to anyone going through a tough breakup?
I'd tell her not to worry about it, because she's young and she's going to find someone else.
Listen and watch Avril's new single: "Don't Tell Me".
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