Avril Lavigne is one of the dozens of acts performing at this weekend’s When We Were Young festival in Las Vegas, along with My Chemical Romance, Jimmy Eat World, AFI, We the Kings, Paramore, The All-American Rejects and more. But Avril says the fans won’t be the only ones getting nostalgic at the event.
“Umm…everyone,” Avril tells ABC Audio about who she’s most excited about seeing. “My Chemical Romance, AFI…I’m just looking forward to…performing and, like, watching everybody and chilling out at a festival and seeing friends in different bands.”
She laughs, “So, yeah, I guess I’ll just, like, run into all my friends! It’s gonna be like a high school reunion!”
The festival’s a huge blast of emo and pop-punk nostalgia, and Avril thinks she knows why pop-punk is currently making a comeback.
“‘Cause it’s f***ing good music!” she laughs. “And everyone knew it, and then, like, time had to go on, and then a newer generation had to discover it. And now they are and they’re appreciating it. And I think that’s just what happens with good s***…it always comes back.”
Among that “newer generation,” Avril says she’s a huge fan of Willow Smith — she even made a guest appearance on the young rocker’s 2021 album, Lately I Feel Everything.
“To see like a younger female artist like Willow Smith in this lane…I told her, ‘Dude, I love seeing you do your thing, crushing it as a young female with this pop-punk emo music.’ I love seeing that. She’s so amazing,” Avril raves to ABC Audio.
Avril says she’s loved seeing Willow “grow” from “when I met her and worked on a song with her,” adding, “”I’m just watching her develop into this, like, an incredible artist.”
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