Avril Lavigne: What the Hell Meaning
![Album cover for What the Hell album cover](https://www.lyricinterpretations.com/imgthumbs/songthmb_8069_300.jpg)
What the Hell Lyrics
All 'cause I was making out with your friend (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
Love hurts whether it's right or wrong (yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
I can't stop 'cause I'm having too much fun...
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1TOP RATED
#1 top rated interpretation:Although Lavigne simply described the song as "a broad message about personal freedom",critics have interpreted the song in a number of different ways; Gil Kaufman of MTV.com suggests that the song is a "declaration of independence from a former teen star who is storming back onto the scene". Kaufman suggests Lavigne's public divorce from Sum 41 singer Deryck Whibley and friction between her and her record company are also possible themes within the song. Jody Rosen of Rolling Stone magazine calls "What the Hell", "an anthem about a good girl who goes on a crazy-bender, staying out late, swapping boys and exacting psychological revenge." Bill Lamb of About.com also suggests that the song is about Lavigne and Whibley's divorce, but goes on to say "the song leaves significant room for interpretation which does add to its intrigue." Heather McDaid of Stereoboard.com was critical of the song's theme being about Whibley, stating "with such an upbeat song it’s hard to envisage divorce as the underlying subject matter as you listen."Holly Thomas of Frost Magazine suggested that the lyrics are about being "starved of affection from the one she truly loves."
Lavigne describes the song as "more reminiscent of some of my old pop rock stuff" and calls it her "most pop track on the record" and the least personal song from the album. -
2TOP RATED
#2 top rated interpretation:The marriage didn't work out for reasons unknown and that has to be hard so this is her way of venting..she is a song writer/singer so i mean i think its a damn good way of getting it out! to the people out there calling her a "slut" because of the song what the heck is wrong with you? Haven't you ever been in a bad break up and you want to get revenge? Avril I LOVE the song and hope you make MANY more like it!
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I think this song basically means there is a girl who is in a horrible relationship and she makes out with her bf's best friend to get back at him and because of this the girls bf just gets worse, she goes on a lot of dates with other boys because he never calls or listen's to her anyway and at this point she doesn't care if he loves or hates her so she acts like him and all she wants is to be free and her bf wants her back but he's too late.
personally I think that the guy in the song deserved it he got Karma from acting that way
relationships are like glass sometimes it better to leave it broken than to hurt yourself trying to fix it
if someone has broken up with you I hope they look back and regret hurting you I mean WHAT THE HELL who would break up with an amazing person like you
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So, many people mention her actual relationship, or they think she's in a bad relationship and broke it off because she deserves better.
I only saw one comment that says something else, and it's what I first interpreted myself:
She cheated. She was making out with his friend and they were STILL TOGETHER:
"All cause I was making out with your friend."
"You're on your knees, begging 'please
Stay with me'
But honestly
I just need to be a little crazy"
Avril WAS making out with his/her friend, yet he/she IS begging to stay with her. That means they hadn't split yet, but she already made out with the best friend. All this with an upbeat tone and glorifying sleeping around, which is absolutely fine, IF SHE'S SINGLE.
I acknowledge that it might be that she was in a bad relationship and just wanted to split and go "a little crazy". But if that's the case then there is a glaring error in tense between those two lines. But I don't think that's what is happening here.
Cheating is wrong, always. -
This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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Love hurts even if it is right or wrong, like WHAT THE HELLLL??!!
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I think the song is about a boy who loves her but does not show it. She does not want to wait for him anymore so she makes out with his friends. Maybe she is trying to make him jalous. In my opinion she wants him to believe that he is not important to her as she can get a lot of boys and not only that one. ♡what do you think about it?
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Considering the music video, I think that what the hell is just Avril's way of getting back at her boyfriend for not "giving her what she needs" or like getting back at him for cheating or something. Or at least that's what I think
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The song is about being a slut, plain and simple. Sex sells now and that is what she has to sing about to keep up with the competion. The difference between girls sleeping around and guys, is that guys don't care if they are called sluts. "Oh, I'm going to go fuck a bunch of guys to get back at my boyfriend!" That's the stupidest way to get revenge and clearly not a good role model for young teens. What a whore
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To me, it sounds like it's told from a young girl, a teenager's point of view. She's probably frustrated with her boyfriend/girlfriend, and she's saying, "What the hell, man? I'm not putting up with this crap." Anyone else?
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Okay, I would rather not insult anyone, to the fans, to Avril Lavigne herself, or to any dude.
I think "What The Hell" is about when the spark in your relationship is practically gone, and actually being in it is sort of pointless. Plus the lover isn't actually doing anything for the relationship. So this song might actually just be a way, a very punky and "slutty" way to teach him a lesson. And also to vent some anger to the dude.
And finally, you learn the lesson, and that for now, try to find the fun yet true love in your relationships. And if there's still nothing, it's best to peace out. Whatever style you do, it's your choice: you know your goal. -
ya'll have it wrong...I understand how Avril must have felt when she sang this (assuming she wrote it and it had personal meaning to her).....basically her boyfriend is a total pussy who doesn't pay any attention to her and at that point it's like "why be little miss perfect for someone like that?"...or basically for the moment she's done trying to look for love and just wants to have a little fun for once in her life...ya'll don't have to be such uptight assholes...
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You guys are stupid! I'm guessing it means that she doesn't care if her husband cheated on her or if she is a slut she just wants to have fun
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It's about throwing your morale away because you were weak enough to let a man destroy you. If one man can mess you up so bad that it makes you want to sleep with countless men, then you are nothing more than a tool FOR men. A slut. As she clearly is. The song is a child-like celebration of sugar-coated, kid-friendly, fluid-swapping. What's scary is that it's meant to sound adorable, in an attempt to garner younger teen fandom. All this concluded, you can only assume that the song is a call to cocks, for all young girls to be sluts.
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This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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The song is about being a skank.
If your partner is cheating on you, you don't cheat back, that's just a terrible revenge.
Have some respect for yourself and leave the relationship, don't sleep with random people.
Horrible song for teenagers. -
it is a punishment in return to her boyfriend, she's seeking an attention that she never get. and for her boyfriend to show some care to her she's doing the worst she can be.
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