TORONTO - Surrounded by thousands of screaming fans, and more importantly her family, it has been a magnificent homecoming for Avril Lavigne.
The Canadian pop star is in the city for a whirlwind of performances and publicity, and found herself breaking down in tears when handed a fan-voted MuchMusic Video Award on live television over the weekend.
It was a rare moment in which the normally cocky singer offered the public a glimpse of a tender side, and the next day Lavigne admitted she was overwhelmed by the excitement of the day.
"I've never showed that side (of me) before but you can't really hide it when you feel like that," Lavigne said Monday of her tearful display.
"It was a really big moment for me, five years into my career, my third record and just to still feel so much support and love, especially from Canada, it was a very cool moment."
Despite her onstage bravado, Lavigne admits that public approval does mean a lot to her, especially when it comes from her hometown fans.
And stints like her five-day homecoming this week only highlight how far she's come from her humble beginnings in Napanee, Ont., - where she sang in church and county fairs and made up dance routines in her parents' backyard.
Through it all, the 22-year-old has brought her family along for the ride, enlisting brother Matthew as added security for a concert appearance on Sympatico/MSN's Orange Lounge series and bringing her mother Judy along to observe.
But maintaining a high-profile career has had its price, Lavigne says while curled up in an easy chair minutes before taping an online performance. She complains that life in Los Angeles involves too many run-ins with overzealous paparazzi.
Protecting the privacy of her homelife and new marriage to Sum 41 frontman Deryck Whibley is difficult when living in the epicentre of tabloid journalism, she notes.
"It's one thing to be working, to walk out of your hotel and you're about to go somewhere and there's a bunch of paparazzi and smiling for them but when you're like trying to go to the drugstore and the grocery store or you're doing personal things it's a little bizarre," says Lavigne, who created controversy last year when she spat at photographers.
"One day maybe they'll make a law, but I think if they were going to they would have at this point after Princess Diana was killed and after people like Lindsey Lohan have gotten in car accidents and stuff. I know I've been in some pretty scary situations where I'm driving a car by myself and I have like five SUVs following me. It's kind of weird because to me that's stalker (behaviour) and that should be illegal."
Her rocker husband agreed, saying later in a separate interview that there's a "hard, painful side" to fame but that he and his celebrity wife weather those trials together.
"We're just both strong people," Whibley says. "You can't make it this far and not be strong, not be a hard worker."
There's a hint of the romantic when Whibley is asked if that similarity is what brought the two Canadian rock stars together.
"I think that's just more of fate, I guess," says the spikey-haired singer. "But I think we're both the same type of person."
Family is important and helps keep them grounded, adds Whibley, admitting that he thinks about having his own kids with Lavigne one day.
When that happens, Whibley vows to be a great dad, noting that he was raised by a single mom on welfare and never got to know his own father.
"There's nothing that I do half-assed - if I do something I do it with everything I have and I do it the best that I can," says Whibley.
"Having children would be no different, I would do the best that I could."
Lavigne steered clear of any personal questions, noting that she ignores the gossip rags and their near daily reports of supposed spats with other celebrities.
"I'm a good kid and I'm just making music and having a good time, that's why I'm here. I don't let things really get to me," says Lavigne, dressed in a black V-neck sweater, black pants and black high-top runners.
"No one knows who I am really, and no one would know me unless they were my friend and spending real time with me."
Critics have been trying to label Lavigne since her quasi-punk debut album "Let Go." She later grew out of that image, eschewing her trademark neckties for high heels during a stint with the Ford modelling agency. Most recently, she's adopted the persona of a high-energy party girl with her latest disc, "The Best Damn Thing."
Lavigne explains her sudden shifts in style as her evolution as an artist and a general eagerness to try new things, such as collaborating with rapper "Lil' Mama" on a club-rocking remix to "Girlfriend."
Working with dance choreographers on her videos and her live shows was a wild turn even for her, Lavigne admits, calling it "a crazy step".
"I never would have thought that I would have done something like that," she says.
And what does Lavigne like to do while she's in Canada?
She admits she heads straight for the poutine and Swiss Chalet.
"I'm totally Canadian," says Lavigne.
"I think when you grow up in a small town you sometimes act a certain way ... it kind of stays with you and I definitely feel Canadian and am proud to be Canadian."
