FAST AND FUNSFlbAvril Lavigne mixes business and pleasure

By John Benson

The singer/songwriter has been having fun but still takes her music seriously.

111It’s a journey that takes most artists a decade to not only figure out but complete, yet this diminutive Canadian artist appears to be anything but commonplace. Not only did her 2002 debut album, “Let Go,” sell more than 16 million copies worldwide, buoyed on the success of hit single “Complicated,” but her latest album “The Best Damn Thing” is five times platinum in an era when selling 1 million records has been pretty much reserved for diva artists or the hip-hop elite.

“It’s kind of one of those things I don’t think about,” said Lavigne in a recent media conference call. “I’m not really in control of that. The music industry has kind of taken a hit right now, but I just focus on singing and writing, and I’m just going to keep doing it as long as I can and have fun with it.”

Having fun is something Lavigne has been doing a lot of lately. Recently she and Sum 41 hubby Deryck Whibley, whom she married in 2006, appeared on E!’s “Pop Fiction” show, which pulls pranks on the paparazzi. Lavigne, who is definitely not with child, walked in public wearing a prosthetic belly to appear pregnant.

One thing Lavigne apparently takes quite seriously is her music. Coming off her debut album, the pop artist was focused on showing more range. The result was 2004’s “Under My Skin,” which found Lavigne more mature yet still missing something. This led to the upbeat “The Best Damn Thing.”

“My inspiration for this record, a lot of it came from the live show and knowing what kind of songs I wanted to play live,” Lavigne said. “I wanted to play fast, fun songs. I love playing songs like ‘Sk8er Boi’ onstage because the crowd just reacts, and I love it when everyone is freaking out and jumping.

“My last record, ‘Under My Skin,’ was pretty midtempo and darker, so every song was like bringing down the audience. So I just wanted to rock, which is why I made a very up-tempo record.”

And now the up-tempo record is supported by a very up-tempo live show. Lavigne’s “The Best Damn Tour,” which comes to Pittsburgh’s A.J. Palumbo Center on Tuesday and Cleveland’s Wolstein Center on Wednesday, is the artist’s most adventurous production to date.

Audiences can expect to see dancers (so much for her punk roots!), a pink-sparkled drum kit and plenty of flags adorning the stage, as well as hear all of her hits and even a cover of Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation.”

While Lavigne is moving full speed ahead on her new tour, she hints a hiatus, albeit short, may be on the horizon to allow her to catch her breath, as well as attend to certain business interests.

“I’m going to be doing a fragrance and clothing line,” Lavigne said. “The clothing line is something I wanted to do for about three years. A lot of times people do licensing deals, and I didn’t want to do that. I wanted to own the company and really design and be creative.

“I’m excited because I love clothes, and I love anything visual. I look at it as something new to put my energy into and take a little break, even though I will still be writing. I’ll never stop.”