Avril Lavigne Talks "Goodbye Lullaby," Abbey Dawn, Fragrances and More
Avril Lavigne is a modern Renaissance woman. Despite her sassy songs, her girlish attitude and youthful energy, Lavigne isn't a girl anymore. She's an exemplary woman, an entrepreneur, an artist that has shifted more than 30 million copies of her albums in her career so far and a lady with a lot on her plate. Her fourth album, Goodbye Lullaby, is set for release on March 8th via RCA and the singer/songwriter/fashion designer/perfumer admits it's a "bittersweet" set of songs.
Goodbye Lullaby could be Lavigne's best, most personal album to date, thanks to the way she lays her cards on the table, unafraid to let her fans have a look-see over her well-clothed shoulder. Goodbye Lullaby is raw and personal in ways that other pop stars, whose names have been omitted to protect the not-so-innocent, can only dream about. Lavigne draws you in with her gutsy, Alanis Morissette and Joni Mitchell-inspired vocal delivery and she holds you there, captive, with her polished hooks and unforgettable melodies.
Lavigne has also expanded her empire, with her Abbey Dawn clothing line, formerly sold only at Kohl's, upgraded from a junior's line to something a bit more grown up and universally wearable. She has issued two fragrances to date, with a third on the way. Clearly, Avril, who has the best hair this side of Jennifer Aniston, is a busy gal, but she found time to chat with ARTISTdirect.com News Editor and makeup maven Amy Sciarretto and discussed her Lullaby and following her nose, literally, figuratively and fragrancefully!
You are immersed in music, fashion and perfumes. Does the creative process for each project meld into the others? Do they all relate in some way for you?
They all 100 percent tie into my music, which is why I am here. Abbey Dawn, my fashion line, ties into my music, since I am designing for me, creating what I want to wear at photo shoots, onstage, at video shoots, on red carpets or offstage. I am a chick, so I love clothes [laughs]. I get to design and make a cool line that I love and be creative there. It is nice to be able to do something outside of music. I just launched AbbeyDawn.com.
You've upgraded the line, it seems.
I made a huge change to my tees. It's not a tween or juniors anymore. It's more for girls and women now. It's better quality and will have a higher price point. I have a whole new team, from people I work with to the manufacturer. I started over and I am excited, since now it's international. I hurried to get it online, so it's out and I will be taking it into stores soon. It's revamped. It's going to include heels, like rock 'n' roll heels, flats, purses and other good stuff. I am so excited that I tattooed the name on my forearm. I love it so much. I went to Japan last week and got great ideas from all the Tokyo fashion.
They are always six months ahead of us when it comes to fashion trends, aren't they?
It is so dope. I love the jeans with rips and bold rock 'n' roll pieces and they have that there. You can find extraordinary rock pieces there when you can't find anything here. Everything is plain. So I get to make what I want to wear.
How are your fragrances a reflection of you?
'Black Star' is the first one and 'Forbidden Rose' is the second one. It's funny to talk about it, since each has a message and tagline; that is how we create them. Black Star, since I love pink and black and stars and studs…the bottle is a star with a studded ring and the tagline is 'Be Your Own Star' and the message is reach for stars, go for your dreams and believe in yourself. I wrote a piece of music for the commercial and that is the intro to my album. 'Forbidden Rose' has a message to dare to discover and be rebellious.
How much are you involved in the development of the scent? Are you sniffing vials that come over from the chemistry lab?
Believe it or not, it takes two years to create a scent. How it smells? That is the last thing that goes into it [laughs]. I spent a lot of time going over boxes, colors, fonts, messages, the story, consumer testing, etc.
Does that feeling of creating a scent match that of creating an album?
Outside of music, oh my god, I get so excited and then I have ideas when I get the product. When I see people wearing it or smell it on my mom and sister or friends, it's so cool.
'Black Star' opens the album and is like a pretty, lullaby. It has a fairytale, haunting emotion behind it and sort of sets you up for what comes next.
Yes! That is the intro. The last song is 'Goodbye,' and it has the same lullaby feel.
Then there is 'What the Hell,' which is sassy Avril. What got you into those headspaces for the mood of the album, especially since you just went through a public break up?
Well, 'What the Hell' is more pop rock and a lot of my sassy, like you said, style. It's lighter and fun and the rest of the album is more raw and vulnerable and it's deeper and stripped down. My vision, production wise, for this album, was that. I wanted acoustic guitars and for it to be stripped down with pianos. I wanted to go there more. All my records are pop rock and upbeat, and I was ready to do something a little different. As far as lyrics and the subject matter, it is a bittersweet. I didn't know what I was going to write; I just knew what I wanted the production to sound like and what I wanted the style to be. Then, the lyrics just come and it was bittersweet lyrically.
Do you think people see you beyond that whole 'Sk8er Boi' persona? Have you moved past that? Do you think you empower girls still?
It's been really nice and rewarding, over the years. I have had fan meet and greets and signings, and when I have fans come up to me, they've written me letters and have told me that my music has touched them or helped them, and then they get into specific details and hard situations, and say that my songs help them. When I hear that, I feel really happy that I could have an effect on someone. I hope this album inspires people and gives them strength.
Interview by: Amy Sciarretto
February 14, 2011
To see the whole interview click here: http://www.artistdirect.com/entertainment-news/article/avril-lavigne-talks-goodbye-lullaby-abbey-dawn-fragrances-and-more/8692773
A Conversation With Avril Lavigne
Mike Ragogna: Your single/video, "What The Hell," is an early slice of your new 15-track album, Goodbye Lullaby.
Avril Lavigne: I've been working on this record for about two years, and it's the most time I've spent on an album. I'm very proud of this record.
MR: Beyond being the artist, what were some of your duties on this one?
AL: I produced two songs for the first time.
MR: What was the writing process like?
AL: I've always written every song on my albums, I've co-written them all. On this record though, I wrote half of the record by myself. So, I'm very excited about that.
MR: Where did you record the project and what do you think of your new single?
AL: I recorded this record at my home studio. "What The Hell" is very spontaneous lyrically and it's a lot of fun. The rest of my album is very different from the single, it's very stripped down and raw.
MR: "Alice" also appears on the album, which is a track you did for the film Alice In Wonderland, right?
AL: Yeah! That's the first end credit song. That was a really awesome experience.
MR: In a nutshell, can you tell me what that's about?
AL: Basically, knowing that this was for a Tim Burton film, I went for a darker, moodier approach for the songwriting. So, I took to my piano and thought about Alice going into Wonderland, falling into this hole and tripping out, and her journey--her having to be strong and get through it. I'm really excited to also put this song on the album because it's the message on my record. It's about life's journey and finding inner strength.
MR: And there's your "What The Hell" video, what's the basic concept?
AL: The concept of the video is a guy who really likes a girl and is chasing after her around town, but she just wants to have fun. That's basically what the song is about so that's the concept for the video.
MR: Who directed it?
AL: Marcus Raboy
MR: Do you think Goodbye Lullaby represents a noticeable growth from your first album?
AL: A hundred percent. That's what this album is about, personal growth, moving forward, and opening a new chapter of life.
MR: Yet "What The Hell" is such a fun recording.
AL: The thing about "What The Hell" is that I'm promoting this album Goodbye Lullaby that's a deeper, more raw record. It's something that I keep talking about in depth...("What The Hell") doesn't sound like anything on this record, it's a full on pop-rock song, funny and very light. The record has a lot more depth to it. The purpose of ("What The Hell") was to come out after not having a song for a few years to bridge into the new songs. I'm looking forward to people hearing the new stuff.
MR: Now, you've also been in a couple of movies such as Fast Food Nation.
AL: My goal is I would love to be in a movie, but being a singer, I have to do it right and it has to be done cool. If I did a movie where I was a singer, that to me wouldn't be that cool. I would need to play something that was challenging as a character, I would love to do something dark and moody. At the same time, I totally think I could play a Valley Girl--a ditzy, funny, over the top girl. I've had the opportunity to do music videos, which I sort of get to act in. When I was younger, I did theater and was in plays, so it's cool. That's what I would want to do some day. Yeah I was in Fast Food Nation in which I was in 7 scenes. I also did a voiceover in Over The Hedge which was a Dreamworks animated film.
MR: And of course, you also have a fragrance line.
AL: I have two fragrances out at the moment--one is called Black Star and the other is Forbidden Rose. I give them to my mom's sister and my grandma loves them. I will give them to my friends and there is body wash and lotion, and my girlfriend will be like, "Oh my God, my boyfriend came out of the shower smelling like you today!" It's cool to have that stuff to give it to my friends and family, to have it for myself.
MR: And you've got another product line as well, right?
AL: One project that's really cool and I'm really excited about is my clothing line. It's called Abbey Dawn, I started it two and a half years ago. I just launched www.abbydawn.com which is a huge deal internationally because I travel a lot to Asia and Europe. It's been really cool because fashion and my music career go hand in hand. I design for myself, I wear all the stuff, and being a girl and getting to design clothes is super cool. I get so much inspiration from my travels and going to other countries, checking out different trends internationally.
MR: Sweet. What advice do you have for new artists?
AL: Make sure whatever you do and put out there really resembles and represents you. That's a part of you and that's a part of your identity and that's the rest of your life and career.
(transcribed by Theo Shier)
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