Avril Lavigne's Statement Regarding the Lawsuit Against Her, Currently Posted on Avrillavigne.Com and Myspace.Com/Avrillavigne

    LOS ANGELES, July 6 /PRNewswire/ --
 
     To my dear media, friends, and fans,
     You may have heard some news that two guys who wrote for some band from
 the 1970s I have never in my life heard of called the "Rubinoos" are trying
 to sue me. They have a song called "I Want To Be Your Boyfriend" that has
 no musical similarities to the song "Girlfriend" that Luke Gottwald and I
 wrote together. They claim that a small part of the lyrics are the same and
 are saying that I took these from them. I had never heard this song in my
 life and their claim is based on 5 words! All songs share similar lyrics
 and emotions. As humans we speak one language.
     Off the top of my head, two other songs that I can immediately think of
 with this type of lyric are "Hey, hey, you, you get off of my cloud" by the
 Rolling Stones and "Hey little girl I want to be your boyfriend" by the
 Ramones. Simply put, I have been falsely accused of ripping their song off.
 Luke and I have done nothing wrong and there is no merit to their claim.
     And slap in the face #2
     I was going to be the bigger person and not reply when I read Chantal
 Kreviazuk's article in Performing Songwriter magazine. Now that all the
 media have caught on to her little interview, I need to speak. Chantal's
 comments are damaging to my reputation and a clear defamation of my
 character and I am considering taking legal action. Chantal has accused me
 of taking a song idea from her because I happen to have a song on my new
 record with the same title.
     For the record, I wrote a song with Evan Taubenfeld, which
 coincidentally has the same title as a song Chantal had sent me a few years
 ago. Our songs have no similarities and opposite meanings, i.e. different
 lyrics, different melody, different genres. In Chantal's own words "the
 only similarity is in the title." I originally wrote this with Evan for his
 record and I ended up with it. Funny enough when I decided to put
 "Contagious" on my album we had to change the words from "she" to "he" in
 order for it to work on my record. There are hundreds of songs out there
 with the title "Contagious," 75+ on iTunes alone.
     Chantal has also made false accusations about my writing skills. I am
 so over this topic. This letter is not about this. I am not going to sit
 here and defend my writing skills. I don't have to prove anything to
 anyone. I know who I am and what I have done and accomplished and no one
 can take that away from me.
     My decision to discontinue working with Chantal after co-writing
 together on my second record was simply based on the fact that we had no
 hits together. That is why her name is not on this record, despite her
 numerous attempts to be included, which were always denied. From my
 perspective this is a clear case of bitterness. Chantal is upset that she
 didn't get to be a part of my record. She did email me after the article
 came out apologizing and I forgive
     her but I have to put the truth out there so my fans are not confused
 by these false accusations.
     Let it be crystal clear that I have not ripped anyone off or done
 anything wrong. I have never had to deal with anything publicly like this
 and surely never wanted to. I do not deserve this negative press and
 attention. I take pride in the songs that I write and appreciate the
 opportunities to work with some great writers and musicians.
     My fans have been so dedicated to my music and it is because of them
 that I have this amazing career. Thank you again to my fans for continuing
 to be so supportive. This is a very positive time for me in my life. I have
 a very successful career and I feel very lucky to have accomplished all
 that I have. I am so thankful every day.
     I would like to say more but my lawyers have advised me not to. Why is
 it when you get to a certain level people want to attack you?.... and now I
 have said my piece.
     Avril
 
 

SOURCE RCA Records