Female Punk Savior or Another Pre-packaged Popstar?

From Kiwibox.com

By: Jennifer C., Reporter Posted: 8/3/2002

In a world of blonde, blue eyed, preppy popstars, it's often a breath of fresh air when a true musician breaks onto the popular music scene. Musicians that play their own instruments, write their own songs, and march to the beat of a different drum are seen as saviors of teens everywhere that are stuck listening to hit radio stations. The teens that can be labeled "emo" or "punk" should be relieved and happy when a FEMALE of that kind of musician makes a bit hit.

Enter Avril Lavigne, a spunky 17-year-old singer from Canada. Her hit "Complicated" made her famous, and her new song "Sk8ter Boi" is climbing up the charts. To some, Avril is the savior of punk girls everywhere who need a role model and punk boys that need some eye candy befitting their style. However, is Avril really what she seems to be? Or could it be that she is another pre-packaged popstar with a different hair color and wardrobe? My personal opinion is the latter. It's up to you to decide your opinion of her though. Hopefully, my article will help you decide.

One look at Avril Lavigne and your brain screams "PUNK!." The smudgy black eye makeup, white tank top, black tie, baggy pants, and skater sneakers are clear indicators that the girl more than likely shops at Hot Topic instead of Abercrombie. She carries a guitar, claims she skates, claims she writes her own songs, and always refers to herself as a "skater punk" or "rock star." She says that she does what she wants and doesn't take crap from anyone. However, Avril is stretching the truth.

To begin with, clothes don't make a person "punk." While she has a punky skaterish style, Avril couldn't be farther from the label "punk" that she continually labels herself with.

Her first hit, "Complicated" is about as punk or rock as Britney's music. "Complicated" is a poppy fresh songs that is a girlish but twisted remake of Jimmy Eat World's "The Middle"--a song about being yourself. While the song is excellent advice, it's far from rock and definitely in the pop genre. In fact, most of Avril's CD is pop. It's not rock, it's not even pop-punk. It's pop with a little more guitar than usual.

Oh, that's right. Avril's a TRUE musician because she plays her own instruments and also writes her own songs. Actually, if you've bought her CD, you might notice that it states every song was co-written, meaning that someone helped Avril with the lyrics. Now, I'll admit that Avril might've penned some songs and then had to rewrite them with help from others. This still doesn't mean SHE wrote the songs. It means she wrote the first draft and some else turned it into the pop smash played on the radio. It's easy to write a song with helped, just pull out rhyming words and put them together. Singers do it all the time, but it doesn't make the song theirs.

Now, for the guitar. Avril has mentioned that she doesn't know the correct way to play a guitar, that she never bothered to learn and never will. Avril actually really can't play a guitar except for in one song. Go check her CD again. All of the music was recorded by someone else, and Avril only plays guitar in one song. Michelle Branch knows her guitar and knows how to play it. Vanessa Carlton knows her piano and knows how to play it. This makes them musicians. Strumming a guitar to one song and not even knowing how to really play doesn't mean you're a musician.

Another thing, that I believe, makes Avril a pre-packaged popstar is that is she's always labeling herself. She ALWAYS states she's a "skater punk" and makes sure everyone knows she a "rock star." Most musicians, much less singers, don't like to be labeled. And why would you? No one wants to just be put in a category. Avril does though. She works effortlessly to make sure she fits that "punk" genre. This seems fishy if you ask me. For a person that states she does what she wants and doesn't care what others think of her, this is unusual behavior.

There is more to consider about Avril Lavigne than just all of that. What about her sudden shoot to the top of the charts? Or the fact that she's a PRETTY, SKINNY singer? Truth be told, she doesn't wear skimpy clothes or flash her body all over MTV, but she is pre-packaged eye candy meant to be aimed at "skater punk" boys. Also, artists that are TRUE artists or TRUE musicians aren't usually at the top of the charts with their first CD. Take Jimmy Eat World, for example. While they are known for their newest CD and the hit song "The Middle," they did have three previous albums, all of which didn't make them famous on MTV. It's true that sometimes true musicians make it big with their first album. With Avril, though, there was tons of promotions for her first CD, and "Complicated" is a guaraunteed pop hit. Now, kids, what have we learned from Britney and Christina? Pop stars that are pre-packaged have bonified pop hits already in store, are picture perfect, and become instant successes as soon as their first song hits the airwaves. Avril Lavigne fits the mold perfectly.

In this article, I'm not saying Avril can't sing, or her songs aren't good. I'm saying that she's being praised for being something she isn't. She is a popstar--a popstar with a different wardrobe and different color hair than the norm. It doesn't make her a bad singer or a bad person, it just makes her the same thing we've been getting since Britney with a little different twist. I think we should all realize who these people really are as musicians and singers before we go along with the label their given.