Episode 53: Avril Lavigne: An Investigative Report

So sorry, but: Why'd she have to go and make things so complicated? 

Avril is such a rare artist. She made a splash right away with Let Go, which had a rebellious yet old soul sort of vibe to it. And her early eras and albums are still so special to so many of us. She changed the moment, she was the moment, and, in some ways, she always will be. She opened doors almost immediately into 2000s alt rock and pop punk sub-genres in what used to be a far more monocultural world.

And yet, she hasn't evolved much herself as an artist over the last two decades. Instead, she regressed in some ways — at least from what we can see and hear and understand. The chaotically cool poetry in motion of Avril's Let Go and Under My Skin eras — the lyrics, sound, music videos, live performances, and core of who we thought she was — dwindled into something else later on. Her trajectory as an artist brings up all sorts of questions.

Questions about what artists can mean to us at a formative age; the validity of our expectations of them, consciously or not, as we all grow up; ageism, misogyny, the idea of a sellout and a label’s role in that; what makes a good gateway artist; what makes a good post-9/11 cultural void artist; what makes a conspiracy theory take off; can someone ever be cool again after marrying and divorcing the lead singer of Nickelback, even if she married and divorced the lead singer of Sum 41 first; and more. Join us as we pull on some of these threads...

Article and TV citations:

• CNN — Avril Lavigne: Teen rocker of 2002

• Nylon — How Avril Lavigne's Let Go Broke the Mold for '00s Teens

• People — Avril Lavigne Recalls Making 2002's 'Let Go' as a Teenager: 'I Didn't Even Know What Hollywood Was'

• Vanity Fair — “I’ve Always Had This Vibe”: Avril Lavigne on 20 Years Since Let Go

• MTV — Total Request Live interview, August 2002

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