Podcast Summary: Call Her Daddy – The Real Avril Lavigne (FBF)

Host: Alex Cooper
Guest: Avril Lavigne
Release Date: January 14, 2026

Overview

In this highly anticipated throwback episode of Call Her Daddy, Alex Cooper welcomes pop-punk legend Avril Lavigne for her first-ever podcast interview. Over pizza, beer, and champagne, Avril shares unfiltered stories from her career, life on tour, her style evolution, songwriting, and personal journey. The conversation is playful, raw, and unexpectedly funny, peeling back layers of an artist whose music defined a generation.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Avril’s First Podcast & Tour Launch

• Avril brings pizza, beer, and champagne to the studio, setting a “chill, fun” tone (01:28).
• This is Avril's first podcast appearance. She explains she rarely does interviews, admitting, “I usually don’t really like interviews... but you seem super cool, so I’m happy to be here” (02:30).
• Avril discusses her Greatest Hits album and world tour (02:51):
  • “It’s, like, 22 years into my career now... And it’s pretty great to be going back out on the road and doing one of the biggest tours of my career this far... celebrating my catalog.”

2. Touring Then vs. Now

• Early tours: Played shows with only a few singles, felt pressure compared to bands like Green Day (04:23).
• Now: Every song in her set is a hit; she enjoys touring with friends, bringing favorite bands backstage for beer pong and skateboarding (05:23, 06:07).
• Tour bus “Home”: Outfitted with pink Hello Kitty decor and beer pong (“Usually my bus is the cool bus... and everyone just like after the show comes my way”, 06:47).

3. Stage Life & Pre-Show Rituals

• Avril is not a morning person; admits she’s “mellow as fuck” before gigs and comes alive at night (07:01).
• Her pre-show process is about balance: rest during the day, perform at night, party and then sleep late (07:52).
• “That tour bus—that’s my home... everything's just pink and fun” (08:54).

4. Signature Style & Early Influences

• Iconic fashion: Big hoodies, bondage pants, combat boots. The famous necktie and wristbands are considered for a comeback on stage (11:38, 12:35).
  • “I’ve been thinking about the tie a lot lately... Maybe I’ll wear the necktie on stage.” (12:50)
• Avril was often pressured by magazines to dress girly but fought to keep her style: “I had to always push for that. But it worked out pretty good.” (16:12)

5. Growing Up in Small-Town Canada

• Normal childhood: plant sports (hockey with boys’ teams until rules shifted), skateboarding, working random jobs like fried chicken shop (19:49).
• Fired from her job for taking time off to perform; later wrote about it in “My World”. The shop eventually posted her lyrics in the store (25:53).
• Early music break: Won a contest to sing on stage with Shania Twain at 14, instantly became “the singer girl” at her high school (28:40).

6. Songwriting: Emotions, Hits & Process

• Began songwriting at 14 after tiring of singing covers. Inspired by Green Day, Blink-182, and the electric guitar.

• Describes her process as spontaneous—“a song will channel through me” especially in tough times (43:45).

• Drew heavily on real-life and observed emotions:

  • “I’m a really big feeler... In high school, there's so much to tap into and to write about.” (33:02)

• Notable Songwriting Moments:

  • “Girlfriend”: Wrote the chorus in two minutes as she was leaving the studio (60:57).
  • “Breakaway” (for Kelly Clarkson): Originally about her own life—“growing up in a small town and taking a chance” (46:36).
  • “I'm With You” and “My Happy Ending”: Can feel the emotion live on stage two decades later (63:32, 64:38).

7. Mental Health, Fame, and Identity

• She’s at ease with fame, saying: “I would never complain about it because what I get to do is awesome... That means my music got heard.” (38:04)
• Addresses conspiracy theories (the “Melissa" theory):
  • “There’s a conspiracy theory that Avril Lavigne is no longer with us, and there is a woman named Melissa who took over... I am me. It’s so dumb.” (48:17)
  • Shows humor about it, not taking it to heart.

8. Love, Relationships, and Personal Growth

• Admits to being a “relationship girl” and always in major relationships (50:02).
• On heartbreak and healing: “If you’re not happy, you’re never gonna be happy... it’s okay to have like, time on your own in between if you need it... you’re better off on your own than someone draining the fuck out of you.” (53:03)
• On love advice: Compatibility and trust are key; values partners who are “sporty, a little rough around the edges, likes to have a good time, but is a solid” (58:59).
• All her tattoos are “drunk tattoos”; first was the Sk8er Boi star at 19 (51:05).

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On career longevity:
  “It’s 22 years into my career now... I feel, like, super stoked and lucky to, like, still be doing my thing and loving it more than ever.” (02:51)
• On fighting for her style:
  “I didn’t care. I was going to dress that way anyway.” (15:58)
• On her approach to fame:
  “What I get to do is awesome... That means my music got heard.” (38:04)
• On the Melissa conspiracy:
  “I am me. It’s so dumb.” (48:17)
• On relationships:
  “Have I been with a male before? Then the answer is yes [to being cheated on]... I’ve always just... taken the high road and kept it to myself.” (52:21)
• On songwriting:
  “When you write a song sometimes... you can be intentional... or you can just like wing it, right and just see what kind of comes out...” (45:52)

Standout Segments & Timestamps

• Avril’s studio entrance (pizza, beer, champagne): 01:28
• Announcing the Greatest Hits tour: 02:51
• Tour routines, making backstage fun: 06:07
• Iconic fashion talk (necktie, wristbands): 11:38–12:56
• Small town and early music jobs: 19:49–26:29
• Songwriting process, “My World”: 25:53–27:41
• Breakout moment with Shania Twain: 28:40
• Writing songs from emotion, not calculation: 33:02–36:18
• Dealing with Lyme disease, writing “Head Above Water”: 43:45–44:16
• Addressing “Melissa” conspiracy: 47:27–48:45
• On relationships and breakups: 50:02, 53:03
• Rapid-fire: Songs written, tattoos, ideal partner: 60:50–63:31
• Favorite songs to perform & tour excitement: 68:05

Closing: What the Tour Means

• Avril sees her Greatest Hits tour as a “celebration of life, our lives, and remembering all the good times... the power and beauty in music is, like, it can take you right back there” (66:26).

Top 3 Songs Avril Loves to Perform

1. Girlfriend
2. I’m With You
3. My Happy Ending (with mentions of “Sk8er Boi” and Green Day covers) (68:18, 68:57)

Tone:
Casually badass, relatable, sometimes self-deprecating, always direct. Avril reveals a mix of cool confidence and down-to-earth humility, and Alex keeps things real, funny, and occasionally fan-girly.

For New Listeners

This episode is a candid, nostalgic, sometimes hilarious look into Avril Lavigne’s real story—her music, style, humor, and evolution—presented in a way you’ve likely never heard before. For newcomers, it’s equally inspiring and entertaining, offering insight into one of pop-punk’s most enduring voices.