I'm in flux; or a quandary, if you will. I can't tell if we should embrace Avril Lavigne or despise her solely on principle.
Of course, there is no denying "I'm With You" is a tremendous song, and "Sk8er Boi" is so catchy I want to boogie down to the local skate park and rip off some killer grinds. "Com-plicated" touches me as well, 'cuz I was with this trendy mall girl once and she was, like, always really confusing.
Quantita-tive facts: Her debut album, "Let Go," has spent 35 weeks on The Billboard 200 and has sold more than 4 million copies. Any album that sells so much must be good.
So, the issue worth examining is not the quality of her music, but rather, the quality of her character. She is infallibly young, energetic and seriously enthusiastic about drinking alcohol to prove her rock star mettle to anyone doubting it.
In her biography from the Arista Records' Web site, she said, "I'm just coming out and I'm going to clearly be myself - I write what I feel. I never worry what others think." So what is she gonna do? "I'm gonna dress what's me, I'm gonna act what's me and I'm gonna sing what's me."
By now, we know she is fiercely independent and hates "people being fake" but likes to skate and is a punk. In fact, she is so punk she decided to rebelliously mispronounce David Bowie's name during the Grammy Awards nominations. She is also Canadian.
But, despite her ridiculous pretension, Avril has assumed a precise image with remarkably well-shaped and marketable qualities. By no mistake, she is becoming the "role model" for millions of estranged and alienated teenagers. Girls scattered across the world are wearing A-shirts and their father's ties, cut-off jeans and black Chuck Taylor shoes- and it's not necessarily a bad thing.
After the dissolution of the Spice Girls, the world has been lacking a true source of "Girl Power." Avril is picking up the slack as the prototype for the 21st-century's embodiment of teenage girly rebellion. Her management, handlers and agents have either instructed or constructed her to pose, thusly defining the behaviors of an "I can do it, too" generation. Even if she did write her own songs, every lyric from "Let Go" comprises "How To Be Yourself: The Avril Lavigne Teenage Handbook."
Very few girls will ever look like Britney Spears or Ashanti. Pop stars are just like pop music: glossy, fixed, perfect. Avril is not ugly, but she is not plastic. It's better for American teenaged girls to posture and play dress-up as pseudo-punks like her than turn themselves into club rats like Xtina.
The combined effort to show the preteen and early teen set how to "think for themselves" is deliberate and intentional, but it is not as reprehensible as we think it is. Preaching is preaching, but Avril's gospel of individuality is directed towards those who need to hear it.
Write to Allyn at aswest@bsu.edu
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