Avril Lavigne

Avril Ramona Lavigne was born in Belleville, Ontario, the daughter of a working-class family. Her father, Jean-Claude Lavigne, who is of French Canadian descent, named her Avril after the French word for the month of April. At the age of two, Lavigne began singing church songs along with her mother, Judith-Rosanne "Judy" (nee Loshaw). Judy recognized her two year old daughter's talents after hearing her sing "Jesus Loves Me" in church. Avril Lavigne has an older brother, Matthew, and a younger sister, Michelle, both of whom teased Lavigne when she sang. "My brother used to knock on the wall because I used to sing myself to sleep and he thought it was really annoying." When Lavigne was five years old, the family moved to Napanee, Ontario, a town with an approximate population of 5,000. Although she struggled with paying attention in school, sometimes kicked out of class for misbehaving, her parents were supportive of her singing. Her father bought her a microphone, a drum kit, a keyboard, several guitars, and converted their basement into a studio. When Lavigne was 14, her parents would take her to karaoke sessions. Avril Lavigne also performed at country fairs, singing songs by Garth Brooks, The Dixie Chicks, and Shania Twain. She also began writing her own songs. Her first song was called "Can't Stop Thinking About You", about a teenage crush, which she described as "cheesy cute".