Avril Ramona Lavigne (
pronunciation: /ˈævrɪl ləˈviːn/; born 27 September 1984) is a
Canadian singer-songwriter,
fashion designer,
actress, and
philanthropist. She was born in
Belleville, Ontario, but spent the majority of her youth in the small town of
Napanee. By the age of 15, she had appeared on stage with
Shania Twain; by 16, she had signed a two-album recording contract with
Arista (now
RCA Records) worth more than $2 million. When she was 17 years old, Lavigne broke onto the music scene with her debut album,
Let Go, released in 2002.
Early life
Avril Ramona Lavigne was born in Belleville, Ontario,[1] the daughter of a working-class family.[2] Her father, Jean-Claude Lavigne, who is of French Canadian descent,[1] named her Avril after the French word for the month of April.[3] At the age of two, Lavigne began singing church songs along with her mother,[3] Judith-Rosanne "Judy" (née Loshaw).[1] Judy recognized her two year old daughter's talents after hearing her sing "Jesus Loves Me" in church.[4] Lavigne has an older brother, Matthew, and a younger sister, Michelle,[5] both of whom teased Lavigne when she sang. "My brother used to knock on the wall because I used to sing myself to sleep and he thought it was really annoying."[4]
In 1998,[8] Lavigne won a radio contest to perform with fellow Canadian singer Shania Twain at the Corel Centre (now Scotiabank Place) in Ottawa, before an audience of 20,000 people.[3][6] Twain and Lavigne sang "What Made You Say That",[3] and Lavigne told Twain she was going to be "a famous singer".[6] During a performance with the Lennox Community Theatre, Lavigne was spotted by local folk singer Stephen Medd. He invited her to contribute vocals on his song, "Touch the Sky", for his 1999 album, Quinte Spirit. She later sang on "Temple of Life" and "Two Rivers" for his follow-up album, My Window to You, in 2000. In December 1999, Lavigne was discovered by her first professional manager, Cliff Fabri, while singing country covers at a Chapters bookstore in Kingston, Ontario.[3][6] Fabri sent out VHS tapes of Lavigne's home performances to several industry prospects, and Lavigne was visited by several executives.[11] Mark Jowett, co-founder of the Canadian management firm Nettwerk, received a copy of Lavigne's karaoke performances recorded in her parents' basement,[12] and arranged for Lavigne to work with Peter Zizzo in New York during the summer of 2000, where she wrote the song "Why?". It was on a subsequent trip to New York that Lavigne was noticed by Arista Records.[11]
Music career
2000–03: Let Go
2004–05: Under My Skin
2006–08: The Best Damn Thing
2009–present: Goodbye Lullaby
Other work
Film career
Lavigne became interested in appearing on television and in feature films. The decision, she said, was entirely her own. Although her years of experience in making music videos would be to her advantage, Lavigne admitted that it was the singing that actually removed any fear of performing before the camera. She specifically mentioned that the video "Nobody's Home" had the most amount of actual "acting" in it.[72] Her first television appearance was in a 2002 episode of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch,[84] performing "Sk8er Boi"[85] with her band in a nightclub.[86] She later made a cameo appearance in the 2004 film Going the Distance. The main characters bump into her backstage at the MuchMusic Video Awards[87] after her performance of "Losing Grip".[88]
Lavigne's feature film debut was voicing an animated character in the 2006 film Over the Hedge, based on the comic strip of the same name. She voiced the character Heather, a Virginia Opossum. The process of recording the characters' voices was devoid of interaction with other actors. Lavigne stated, "All the actors went in individually, and [director] Tim and [screenwriter Karey] and directors were there with me every time I went in, and they made it go so smoothly; they made me feel comfortable.... That was the interesting part, going in by yourself, with no one else to kind of feed off of."[92] Lavigne found the recording process to be "easy" and "natural", but she kept hitting the microphone as she gestured while acting. "I'd use my hands constantly and, like, hit the microphone stand and make noises, so Tim and Karey had to tell me to hold still.... It's hard to be running or falling down the stairs and have to make those sounds come out of your mouth but keep your body still." Lavigne believed she was hired to perform Heather due to her rock star status. "[The director] thought I'd give my character... a bit of attitude".[72] The film opened on 19 May 2006, making $38 million over its opening weekend. It went on to gross $336 million worldwide.[93]
Filmography
Entrepreneurship
In July 2008, Lavigne launched the clothing line Abbey Dawn, featuring a back-to-school collection.[13] It is produced by Kohl's, which is the brand's exclusive U.S. retailer. Named after Lavigne's childhood nickname, Abbey Dawn is designed by Lavigne herself.[100][101] Kohl's describes Abbey Dawn as a "juniors lifestyle brand",[13] which incorporates skull, zebra, and star patterns, purples and "hot pinks and blacks". Lavigne, who wore some of the clothes and jewellery from her line at various concerts before its official launch, pointed out that she was not merely licensing her name to the collection. ""I actually am the designer. What's really important to me is that everything fits well and is well-made, so I try everything on and approve it all."[102]
Backing band
- Current members
- Al Berry – bass guitar, backing vocals (2007–present)
- Rodney Howard – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2007–present)
- Steve Ferlazzo – electronic keyboard, backing vocals (2007–present)
- Jim McGorman – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2007–present)
- Steve Fekete – lead guitar, backing vocals (2008–present)
- Sofia Toufa – backing vocals, dancer (2007–present)
- Lindsay Bluafarb – backing vocals, dancer (2007–present)
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- Past members
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Discography
See also
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