Avril Lavigne On Not Being A “Doormat” In Her Career

Those of us who donned jelly bracelets and neckties for Avril Lavigne concerts in 2003 for the tour of the seminal record Let Go are living for the singer’s press tour to hype her new album Love Sux, which was released February 25 on Travis Barker’s DTA records.

Her latest interview, in this month’s issue of Alternative Press, shined more light on her early career. Lavigne told Rico Nasty that she would often bring her own clothes to magazine photoshoots, refusing to wear the clothes stylists selected for her.

“There were times at photo shoots [where] they’d want me to wear girly clothes, and I was super tomboy. When I came out with my first album, I was fighting with people. I brought a book bag, and I’d pull out my clothes. They’re like, ‘You can’t wear your clothes. You have to wear what’s on the rack,’” she said in the interview. “It’s a pink blouse. I’m not f*cking wearing that sh*t! They would be like, ‘Do you want to be on the cover or not?’ I would have to fight a lot.”

While it’s certainly a little bit of a diva move, you have to respect the “who cares” attitude. After all, she did reveal earlier this year in an interview with Inked Magazine, she has the word “f*ck” tattooed on her body in three different places.

Lavigne went on to describe herself as “totally a f*cking b*tch*,” which she says is a “good thing,“ which is fair and mostly true, as long as she’s kind to her assistants. “It means that you’re not a doormat. You’re not a pushover, and you speak your mind.” She continued to outline ways she had to fight the music industry to make the kind of music she wanted — which, for a young girl to be singing pop punk in 2002 — “was a big deal.”

“I had to fight my whole career to write the type of music I wanted to write,” she said. “Sometimes labels would give me pushback and didn’t understand my vision. I had to always fight, and fight on each album to keep going in the musical direction I wanted to go, even if they’re trying to sway me another way.” And we’re so glad she did! (Except for the misguided Harajuku era — a time that was so sonically bad for Lavigne that it spawned a conspiracy theory that she had actually passed away and was replaced by a doppelgänger named Melissa.)

Nasty praised Lavigne for the influence she’s had on the music industry. “You created legendary sh*t,” she said. “Because it’s not just the music telling people to f*ck off — it’s also the way that you handle your legacy. You didn’t let nobody tell you differently. That is some iconic ass sh*t.”

For more from the pop-punk legend, read her NYLON cover story and see which of her songs you are based on your zodiac sign.