The Grrrl Grows Up

Lavigne dismisses all this. What really seems to get her worked up are the accusations that have plagued her from the start: She's not a punk — for the record, she never claimed she was — and her albums have always been more pop than punk anyway. But the allegation that Avril is unprincipled, or untalented, is hogwash. Though she plays many of her own instruments — rhythm guitar, the piano, even the drums — for some reason she is still forced to disavow comparisons to Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera."My songs aren't bubblegum-pop dance songs," she says. "I don't have background dancers on every single song like them."

But Lavigne need not get worked up. She's in control of her career. And that's something she's defiantly proud of — even if it's in need of some salvaging these days. "I went in the studio, and I told my manager and my record company that nobody could hear anything until I'm done," she says. "I was literally in the studio, racking up studio bills for six months, and no one heard anything. I'm sure that made them very nervous."

Piling up big bills for the label? Bossing around corporate executives? Even Lavigne's detractors have to admit that there's something a little punk rock about that.