As Avril Lavigne gears up for a brand new World Tour following the release of her latest album Love Sux, attention has once more turned to the bizarre conspiracy theory that the Canadian pop star is in fact dead.
She isn’t, of course, but that little fact will do little to deter the most ardent conspiracists.
Conversation is once more turning to the bizarre discussion as many fans look to scoop up tickets for her tour, which will see her performing across Canada, the US, Japan and Europe, including the UK.
Over the years, the theory has inspired memes galore and prompted scores of fans to look for subtle differences in Avril Lavigne’s early work and her latest songs.
But where did the theory come from?
It’s thought that the weird claims began back in 2011, with a Brazilian blog titled “Avril Esta Morta” or “Avril is Dead”. Others contest that it began all the way back in 2005.
According to urban legend, the pressure of her overnight fame and the tragic passing of her grandfather sent Avril into a deep depression and the theory claims she was found dead after taking her own life.
These events apparently took place shortly after the 2002 release of her debut album.
(Image: Avril Lavigne/Youtube)
Those behind the theory say that a lookalike ‘clone’ named “Melissa” was hired while Avril took a step back from the limelight and that when she died, the body double was taught to sing and perform just like the musician.
In order to keep the money coming in “Melissa Vandella” recorded all of Avril’s music from 2002 onwards, they say. Fans even reckon they have evidence to back it all up.
The theorists claim there were appearances and disappearances of various skin blemishes in photos and in one photo shoot, they say that Avril had written the name Melissa on her hand.
By 2012, online forums such as ATRL found other conspiracies gaining traction including one where Avril may actually be alive and simply hiding from the public.
(Image: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic via Getty Images)
Others claim that there are messages about what happened in Avril’s album Under My Skin and that on the 15th anniversary of her hit single Skater Boi, a high school student sent the theory viral once more.
That time, they claimed that Avril had been killed in a snowboarding accident, saying that the singer’s skin, jawline had changed, as well as her fashion style.
More people seemed to be believe it when BuzzFeed reporter Ryan Broderick picked it up in 2015. Some fans claim that music produced later on used pre-existing recordings of the “real” Avril Lavigne.
However, the BuzzFeed reporter came to the conclusion that the purpose of the blog “Avril is Dead” was just to “prove how easy it is to start a big internet conspiracy theory”.
The singer has issued a response to the bizarre theory, stating that it was a “dumb internet rumour” and that she was “flabbergasted that people bought into it”.
She regularly posts on social media and is engaged to musician Mod Sun, posting a video of their ‘pre-wedding’ wedding.
Avril recently joined pop star Olivia Rodigo on her SOUR tour, to sing her smash hit Complicated.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
