Avril Lavigne has teamed up with Simple Plan for a new single called ‘Young & Dumb’ – listen below.
The nostalgic anthem sees the Canadian pop-punk artist reunite with the Montreal rock band, who opened for her on last year’s Greatest Hits tour. They first hit the road together for Lavigne’s first-ever arena shows in 2003.
“This is such a full-circle moment,” she explained of her collaboration with Simple Plan, before reflecting on meeting the group at the start of her career.
“We were so young – just a bunch of kids from small towns in Canada who had just released our debut albums. We connected instantly and became friends.”
As for how the joint new track came about, Lavigne continued: “A few months ago, I called them up, and we got together in the studio to write ‘Young & Dumb’. We wanted to capture that special time in our lives – when everything was new, and we were chasing our dreams.
“This song is for our fans. It’s a tribute to the past, but also a celebration of the present. In our hearts, we’re still those same kids, and our love for music hasn’t changed. It’s about friendship, nostalgia and the way music has kept us connected through the years. I can’t wait to share it with you live this summer.”
Simple Plan said they were “so excited to finally release a song with [their] good friend Avril”, adding: “After years of touring and hanging out together, getting in the studio to work on this track was such a cool experience.
“She’s incredibly talented, and we’re truly grateful she invited us to be part of it and help bring the song to life. The lyrics speak to the special bond we’ve shared since we first toured together back in 2003. We became friends right away, and what’s amazing is how that friendship has only grown stronger over the years.”
They went on: “So many of our fans have been asking for this collab for a long time, and we really hope they love ‘Young & Dumb’ as much as we do. We can’t wait to hit the road again on the Greatest Hits tour this summer and play it live every night – it’s going to be a blast!”
In the first verse, Lavigne remembers “livin’ like a rockstar” and “trashin’ hotel rooms” in the early ’00s. Simple Plan then fast-forward to “20 years later“, telling listeners: “Somehow it feels like nothing’s changed.”
Simple Plan will join Lavigne at select dates of her 2025 Greatest Hits trek, which is due to kick off on May 18. The latter is also scheduled for slots at numerous festivals, including Bonnaroo and When We Were Young. Additionally, Lavigne will make her first-ever appearance at Warped Tour this summer.
Last year, Lavigne played a huge set on the Other Stage at Glastonbury 2024 as part of her Greatest Hits run. In a three-star review, NME described her first performance at Worthy Farm as “an unashamed nostalgia fest”. It added: “Even two decades down the line – she is still a force to be reckoned with.”
In other news, Lavigne recently joined forces with Billy Idol for a collaborative song called ’77’. Her seventh and latest studio album, ‘Love Sux’, arrived in 2022.
Meanwhile, she has teamed up with the skate shop Paliskates in a bid to rebuild it after the Palisades fire.
