Unapologetically original. Unabashedly in your face. Avril Lavigne's 2002 debut Let Go gave young women a defiant voice and set it to music they could rock out to. Fourteen million albums and eight Grammy nominations later, the Canadian chanteuse returns with Under My Skin but if you're expecting a whole lot of the same, you've got another thing coming. This is not a girl who rests on her laurels. Under My Skin opens with the dramatic tracks "Take Me Away" and "Together," which set the scene for the kick-ass guitars and radio-ready chorus of "Don't Tell Me," a song of willful female empowerment that picks up where "Complicated" left off. From there it's a one-two punch of three-chord guitar licks ("He Wasn't") and head-bopping optimism ("Who Knows") alongside swirling, brooding melodies ("Freak Out") and moody tracks ("Forgotten," "Nobody's Home") that reveal a darker side of Avril Lavigne. "I grew up so much in the past two years," admits the Napanee, Ontario, native. "I've been through a lot, I've learned a lot, and experienced a lot both good and bad. These songs are about all of that, and each is very personal to me." Working with producers, Butch Walker (of the Marvelous 3), Raine Maida (of Our Lady Peace), Don Gilmore (Linkin Park, Pearl Jam), Avril co-wrote the dozen introspective songs on Under My Skin in near secrecy. "I'd just come off my world tour and got back to Toronto and was writing right away," the 19-year-old says. "I had no idea what I was going to do. No one did. People wondered if I'd run out of things to write about, but it was the opposite." After a lunch date with fellow Canadian singer-songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk turned into a major chick-bonding session, Avril and Chantal sat down to write. The chemistry was ineffable. "We got together one night and all of a sudden we had a song," she says. "No one knew what I was up to, not my management, not my label." The duo got together the next night and wrote another song. "We did that for two weeks and wrote 12 songs." Momentum took over and by summer Avril was moving into Chantal and her husband Raine Maida's Malibu house to record. "I was only off my tour for a couple of weeks, and I was ready to record," Avril recalls. The California air provided a needed escape from Avril's frantic life. "It was a great time for me, living out there, being out of the public eye, and having my independence. And my friendship with Chantal evolved into one of the best I've ever had." Chantal and Avril would spend all night in the studio perfecting the songs. During the day, Avril learned the city by driving to and from the studio and wherever she needed to be. No photos, no interviews, no pressure. Eventually they recorded most of the songs in Raine's studio, and those songs appear unaltered on Under My Skin. The rest of the tracks, co-written with her guitarist Evan Taubenfeld (and one track with former Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody), were cut just up the road. "I was involved in every aspect of making this record. I'm very hands-on," she says. "I knew how I wanted the drums, the guitar tones, and the structures to be. I understand the whole process so much better this time because I've been through it. I'm really picky with my sound." Picking favorites out of her 12 hand-made babies is another matter. "They all mean so much to me, but I love ‘Together,’ which is all about being in a relationship and knowing it's not right. It's a song that basically says, it's not working out honey." A couple of other tracks mine dysfunctional relationships and have hooks as catchy as those on "Complicated" and real-life narratives (like "Sk8er Boi"), but what truly underscores Avril's growth are the more positive tracks, such as "Who Knows" and "Take Me Away." "I guess that's just the way that I am now," admits the former supposed attitude junkie. Deep, piano-driven tracks like "Together" and "Forgotten" reflect Avril's growth, maturity, and change since the release of Let Go. "I'm happy with what I'm doing and have faith that everything is going to work out for the best." She's also found a feminine side to offset her well-publicized tomboyishness. "I'm such a chick. I'm a hopeless romantic, and surprisingly old-fashioned," Avril laughs. "That's why I wrote a song about not giving it up to just any guy ["Don't Tell Me"]." Girly quirks aside, Avril's anxious to get the show on the road. "It feels so good to be singing new songs," she says. "I feel refreshed and I'm looking forward to the next thing." Optimistic or melancholic, Avril's two-year wild-ride on the rock-star express has shaped her world view and taught her a whole lot about balance. "The songs on Under My Skin are definitely deeper than those on Let Go," she says, "But I still love a good pop song. I'm basically just a girl who likes to write, who likes to rock out, and who wants music to be a part of my life forever." She's also just a girl with a bell-clear voice and the ability to bottle youthful anguish and enthusiasm into tidy, infectious songs. Avril Lavigne's Under My Skin is sure to get under yours.

全名: Avril R. (RAMONA) Lavigne
出生日期: September 27, 1984; 一九八四年九月二十七日
出生地點: Staten Island, New York 紐約
家鄉: Napanee, Ontario, Canada 加拿大
父母: 母親: Judy Lavigne; 父親: John Lavigne
兄弟姊妹: 兄長 Matt, 妹妹 Michelle - Avril 排名中間
開始學結他: 12歲 - 她爸爸的6弦管結他
首次作個人演出: 14歲
最喜歡的歌曲(Let go): Losing grip
最喜歡的音樂錄影帶(Let go): Sk8er boi
出道年份: 2001年 (由開始灌錄專輯起計); 當時AVRIL為16歲
首張個人專輯: "Let Go" 2002年6月4日美國發行
現時所屬唱片公司(Label): BMG entertainment
現時所屬唱片公司(Record): Arista

獎項

• 專輯"Let Go"連續22週美國專輯榜Top 10銷售
  　
• 專輯"Let Go"連續17週超過10萬張週銷售
  　
• 專輯"Let Go"全美5白金專輯(500萬張)
  　
• 專輯"Let Go"海外銷售高達450萬張
  　
• 專輯"Let Go"8個國家認證為多白金專輯
  　
• 專輯"Let Go"全球銷售量超過1000萬張
  　
• 專輯"Let Go"2003年英國、澳洲專輯榜冠軍
  　
• 專輯"Let Go"2002年全年度全美唱片銷售第三名
  　
• 專輯"Let Go"加拿大4白金銷量
  　
• 專輯"Let Go"榮獲2003年加拿大朱諾獎頒獎典禮「最佳流行專輯獎」
  　
• 單曲"Complicated"連續5週高距單曲榜首
  　
• 單曲"Complicated"2002年度全美電台播歌率第7
  　
• 單曲"Complicated"22個國家播歌冠軍
  　
• 單曲"Complicated"榮獲英國第48屆Ivor Novello音樂獎年度國際最佳歌曲
  　
• 單曲"Complicated"榮獲2003年迪士尼無線音樂獎「最佳原創歌曲」
  　
• 單曲"Complicated"令Avril榮獲2002年MTV音樂獎「最佳新人」
  　
• 單曲"Complicated"打入2003年MTV Asia Hitlist
  　
• 單曲"Sk8er Boi"2003年星加坡播放榜冠軍
  　
• 單曲"Sk8er boi"、"I'm With You"榮獲2003年Much Music音樂錄影帶典禮2項大獎「最佳音樂錄影帶」
  　
• 單曲"Sk8er Boi"榮獲2003年Much Music音樂錄影帶典禮「國際最佳音樂錄影帶(加拿大)」
  　
• 單曲"Losing Grip"榮獲2003年Much Music音樂錄影帶典禮特别增設的獎項
  　
• 2003年VH1全球最佳影音女明星提名
  　
• 第54屆美國格林美Grammy頒獎典禮5項大獎提名
  　
• 2003年MTV音樂錄影帶典禮3項提名
  　
• 滾石雜誌Rolling Stone選為2002年度風雲人物
  　
• 2002年MTV拉丁音樂獎「最佳國際新人」
  　
• 2003年加拿大朱諾Junno頒獎典禮「最佳新人」「最佳流行專輯獎：Let Go」
  　
• 2003年加拿大RMA音樂典禮多項大獎包括「最佳女歌手」「最佳新人女歌手」「最佳創作女歌手」
  　
• 2003年MTV亞洲音樂獎「國際最受歡迎女歌手」「國際最具突破女歌手」「時尚風格大獎」
  　
• 2003年Much Music音樂錄影帶典禮「最受歡迎加拿大藝人獎」
  　
• 2003年迪士尼無線音樂獎「最佳原創歌曲：Complicated」「最佳女歌手」「最佳藝人獎」「最佳專輯」 2002年多次高距香港HMV銷量榜top 5，至今仍未下榜(top 20)
  　
• 2003年香港電台主辦第14屆國際流行音樂大獎「全年國際至尊金曲」「最受歡迎國際金曲」「最佳銷量英文大碟」「最受歡迎女歌手」「最受歡迎女新人」等大獎