This past Saturday, 26-year-old Avril Lavigne left the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team "extremely disappointed" by using the F-word after there was problem with the audio system during a performance at The Ray's stadium. Yelling "sound problems f***ing happen on a baseball field!", apparently it didn't matter to Avril that it was a family event because hey! (Hey! You! You! I don't like your girlfriend!) she was getting booed. Why keep your cool and behave like a professional performer when you can get all defensive and yell the F word 24,000 people instead?
Now, if this were a stand alone instance, I could forgive her for saying "fuck" in front of thousands of kids. Who hasn't done that?! But, more so, she did it with neon green highlights and with that brattish "OMG NO ONE UNDERSTANDS ME!" attitude she had when she was 17 and wearing those extra-small "wife beaters" with neck-ties.
Now 26 and divorced, Avril is still colouring her hair with highlighters, and still dressing like a disgruntled employee of Hot Topic. Plus, despite being a talented musician and songwriter, Avril's song "What the Hell" - the first single off of her new album, Goodbye Lullaby - includes lyrics such as "all my life I've been good but now, I'm thinking 'what the hell', all I want to do is mess around". The video features Avril being hilariously rambunctious and wreaking havoc. You know, as she did in the "Girlfriend" video in 2006, and in the video for "Sk8er Boi" in 2002.
It's high time Avril Lavigne grew up, hired a stylist, as well as a new publicist to help remind her that not only has she grown up, but so have her fans. If you were listening to Avril and rocking out to "Complicated" in 2002 when you were 13, you're now 22. And, hopefully, you're not exactly in the same mental or emotional state you were then. While musical tastes can span the test of time, you can't help but wonder if where Avril's career would be now if she just accepted that she's in her mid twenties. And not a student. And, that nobody likes a brat.
The whole angry teenager thing is just old now. It's boring, it's childish, and it's not exactly rebellious any more. Want to be rebellious these days? Get political. Take on a social issue. Fight for your rights, fight for women's rights, or organize a protest. Rebellion at 26 isn't saying the F word in front of kids at a baseball game while wearing fingerless gloves. That's just f@$%ing ridiculous.
Image via jiazi's Flickr