Avril Lavigne

Avril Ramona Lavigne (pronounced /ˈævrɨl ləˈviːn/; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, fashion designer, and occasional actress. Lavigne has sold more than 30 million copies of her albums worldwide.[4][unreliable source?] She is currently one of the top-selling artists releasing albums in the United States, with over 10 million copies certified by the Recording Industry Association of America.[5] Billboard named Lavigne the #10 pop artist of the 2000s as well as the 28th overall best act of the decade based on album sales, chart success, and cultural relativity in the USA.[6][7]
Lavigne broke into the recording industry with her debut album, Let Go, released in 2002. As of 2009, over 16 million copies were sold worldwide, more than 6 million of which were sold in the United States. Her second and third albums, Under My Skin and The Best Damn Thing, reached number one on the Global charts. Lavigne has scored five number-one singles worldwide, including "Complicated", "Sk8er Boi", "I'm With You", "My Happy Ending" and "Girlfriend". She is currently working on her fourth studio album, due in June 2010Early years

Avril Ramona Lavigne was born to Jean-Claude Lavigne, of French Canadian descent,[8] and his Franco-Ontarian[citation needed] wife Judith-Rosanne "Judy" Loshaw, in Belleville, Ontario, Canada. Her father named her Avril after the month "April" in French.[9] She has an older brother, Matthew, and a younger sister, Michelle.[10] Lavigne's mother was the first to spot young Lavigne's talent. A daughter of a working-class Catholic family,[11] Lavigne, at the age of two, began singing church songs along with her mother. The family moved to Napanee, Ontario, when Lavigne was five years old.
In 1998, Lavigne won a competition to sing with fellow Canadian singer Shania Twain on her first major concert tour. She appeared alongside Twain at her concert in Ottawa, appearing on stage to sing "What Made You Say That". She was discovered by her first professional manager, Cliff Fabri, while singing country covers at a Chapters bookstore in Kingston, Ontario.[9] During a performance with the Lennox Community Theatre, Lavigne was spotted by local folk singer Steve Medd, who 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 2000 album, My Window to Music career

In November 2000,[A][12] Lavigne was signed by Ken Krongard, an A&R representative to Arista Records, who invited the head of Arista, Antonio "L.A." Reid, to hear her sing at the Manhattan studio of producer Peter Zizzo.[9][13] Signed as a singer, Lavigne was pitched with songs written by others. However, she dismissed them, insisting she wanted to write herself. For a year, Lavigne and Arista had conflicts in musical direction. She collaborated with the production team The Matrix, and the ensuing album became Let Go.[14]
Because her songs have evolved, covering a variety of styles of music, Lavigne is not easily defined by only a few genres. Her music has been described as rock,[15] pop rock,[1][2] alternative rock,[2][16][15] pop,[15] pop punk,[3][2] alternative pop,[15] post-grunge,[2][16] teen pop,[15] and powerpop.[17]
Lavigne's influences are varied, and include Courtney Love,[18] Goo Goo Dolls, Green Day, and Janis Joplin.[