Simply after POW reached their first anniversary, the rock-inspired Okay-pop boy band dropped a brand new EP, Boyfriend, whose lead single title monitor paid homage to one of many scene’s favourite artists — pop-punk princess Avril Lavigne.
For “Boyfriend,” the quintet reinterpreted Avril’s 2007 single “Girlfriend,” the Canadian celebrity’s first No. 1 on the Billboard Sizzling 100 and one of many 12 months’s greatest tracks. POW saved the unique’s stomping manufacturing and undeniably catchy refrain intact for the hybrid monitor with a brand new mixture of Korean and English lyrics.
POW members Jungbin, Yorch, Hyunbin, Dongyeon and Hong inform Billboard that the celebrity performed a major function of their musical backgrounds and made a track like “Boyfriend” occur.
“We’ve liked band sounds and Avril Lavigne’s songs had been all the time on our playlist,” the group says. “We predict she was the primary to point out how punk may be so interesting in pop music. We’re grateful she made it potential for us and so we’ve labored onerous to launch ‘Boyfriend.’”
“For this remake, I listened to all of Lavigne’s albums,” provides POW eldest member Yorch. “I used to be drawn to her timeless drum sounds and couldn’t recover from the rawness and funky beat of the drums. I lately obtained an electrical guitar and he or she’s opened my eyes to acoustic actual sound. And, it’s one thing Okay-pop also needs to look out for.”
When honoring each the sound and aesthetics from Avril’s debut in 2002, the A&R for POW’s report label, GRID Leisure, noticed their work as serving to join Okay-pop extra extensively to music tradition at present.
“We imagine that youth tradition is the essence of mainstream Okay-pop,” a consultant from GRID’s A&R says. “Rebellious, grunge-like, and youthful innocence defines Okay-pop and POW’s music is grounded in actual rock and band sounds. It nonetheless feels just like the 2000s period, a interval the place analog and digital collide. That’s the reason we discover Avril Lavigne’s music related, highly effective and resonating with folks of their teenagers, 20s, and 30s. It’s her best energy and the rationale her music evokes us for interpretation.”
From bands like POW, SEVENTEEN and Stray Children to solo superstars like BoA and former LOONA members Yves and Heejin, here’s a assortment of Okay-pop stars who’ve expressed their admiration for Avril Lavigne.
POW

With “Boyfriend,” the rising rock-pop band to look at delivered the Okay-pop scene’s most important homage to Avril Lavigne with this rework of her No. 1 Sizzling 100 hit, “Girlfriend.” Watch the brand new music video above.
Stray Children’ Felix


Stray Children have proven like to Avril up to now, like after they included “Sophisticated” on the playlist for his or her Apple Music present All About Stray Children Radio.
However Felix’s emotions for Lavigne go a bit deeper: The primary album he ever purchased was one in every of Avril’s unplugged releases, which he informed NME he purchased when he was simply 5 years previous.
SEVENTEEN’s Joshua


For a particular digital-only monitor from SEVENTEEN’s 2021 album Attacca, members Joshua and Vernon mentioned their preferences and love for pop-punk led them to create the duo monitor “2 Minus 1.”
“I listened to pop-punk; I keep in mind I used to hearken to loads of Avril Lavigne, so I used to be like, ‘Yeah, that is positively a means for us to precise feelings and the messages that we need to put out,” Joshua shared that 12 months. “Pop-punk was the proper model for that.”
MAMAMOO’s Photo voltaic
MAMAMOO’s powerhouse vocalist and chief uploaded a pitch-perfect “Sk8er Boi” cowl on her private YouTube channel in 2023.
BoA


Wanting like besties posing on the pink carpet, the worldwide stars hit the 59th Worldwide Cannes Movie Competition for the premiere of Over the Hedge, the 2006 animated movie the place Avril voiced the character of Heather within the unique and BoA dealt with it within the Korean dub. The duo mingled with different celebs like Bruce Willis and Japanese actor Koji Yakusho.
NMIXX’s Lily


As a part of NMIXX’s Re-MIXX digital sequence, the Australian native delivered a pitch-perfect tackle Avril’s debut single “Sophisticated.” Watch above.
Dreamcatcher’s Yoohyeon
In an ideal musical matchup, Yoohyeon of Okay-pop/rock outfit Dreamcatcher sang Avril’s “Sophisticated” throughout a livestream for followers and different pop songs by Taylor Swift and Little Combine round 2019.
ARTMS’ Heejin


The previous member LOONA member confirmed like to Avril through the U.S. leg of ARTMS’ first world tour with a canopy of the Billboard Sizzling 100 No. 1 “Girlfriend,” the place she accompanied herself on guitar.
Yves
Extra LOONA love for Ms. Lavigne: As one in every of her first strikes to reconnect with followers after leaving the lady group, Yves dropped this distinctive cowl efficiency of “Sophisticated,” amongst different tracks.
Suzy


For the Seoul, South Korea, date on the Avril Lavigne Tour in 2014, native information was fired up over studies that Suzy, then a member of miss A, would attend the present and meet the punk rocker backstage on the Olympic Park Olympic Corridor. We’re nonetheless holding out for photographs from the meetup.
TOMORROW X TOGETHER’s HueningKai


Whereas this listing proves the various Okay-pop stars which have plenty of love for Avril Lavigne, just a few have had the pop-punk princess truly acknowledge them. In 2002, Avril shared Hueningkai’s tackle “Sk8er Boi” on Twitter, writing that the TXT member launched an “wonderful cowl!”
The ever-humble TOMORROW X TOGETHER star later mirrored to NME saying, “I used to be actually stunned by her constructive suggestions — I nonetheless really feel honored.” Watch it above.
Seori
The singer-songwriter shared that “Don’t Inform Me,” the lead single from Below My Pores and skin, Avril’s first No. 1 report on the Billboard 200, is a track “that has all the time given me stability.” Within the curated playlist, Seori mentioned, “This music offers me peace of thoughts and jogs my memory of excellent recollections.”
P1Harmony


Whereas P1Harmony has collaborated with a variety of artists like Pink Sweat$, New Hope Membership and Christopher “Difficult” Stewart, the Okay-pop group informed Billboard that their dream collaboration is none apart from the “motherf***in’ princess” herself. Watch above.
VICTON’s Do Han Se
The boy band member named Avril hits like “Sophisticated” and the 2004 Prime 10 smash “My Completely satisfied Ending” as “refreshing” songs that symbolize autumn to him.
KISS OF LIFE’s Haneul


In a customized playlist shared early into KISS OF LIFE’s profession, youngest member Haneul selected “Preserve Holding On,” recorded for the soundtrack to the 2006 Eragon movie adaptation, in addition to Avril’s debut single “Sophisticated” to let followers get to know her higher.
BLACKSWAN’s Gabi
A real Avril stan, the Brazilian Okay-pop star names singles from completely different Avril eras as a few of her favourite songs, together with 2011 single “What the Hell” off Goodbye Lullaby, “When You’re Gone” from 2007’s The Greatest Rattling Factor, in addition to her 2002 anthem “Sk8er Boi” off Let Go.
Ladies’ Era


We have to convey it again to 2011 to the day Ladies’ Era and Avril Lavigne appeared each appeared on Japanese present, Music Station. The superstars mingled on digicam and GG expressed their hopes for Avril to doubtlessly write a track for the group in the future.
Additional exhibiting their fandom, chief Taeyeon shared that she had been an Avril fan since childhood and paid homage to the singer’s model and music on Korean tv. Member Sunny has additionally lined Avril’s “Sk8er Boi” and referred to as “Girlfriend” one in every of her favourite tracks.
U-Chae
Whereas U-Chae recorded this when followers knew her as Dajeong within the lady group PIXY, her Avril admiration is undeniably stable, as seen from this double-header cowl of “Sophisticated” and “Sk8er Boi.”