Sk8er Boi is Turning 22 This Year. How Does His Story End?
The early 2000’s was a wild time for millennials. The diverse pop scene, rise of the internet and birth of different subcultures – it was an era of experimentation and revolution for the 90’s babies.
Although a lot has changed since then, most influences from the 2000’s continue to hold out today — social media, Y2K fashion and influencer culture to name a few. Today we’re diving into one of the biggest bangers of that decade (that we probably played on repeat at some point).
2002
Co-written by Avril Lavigne and her production team The Matrix, Sk8er Boi tells the story of a punk rocker referred to as the “skater boy,” and an ex-ballerina who rejects him in high school because “he wasn’t good enough for her.” The song’s narrative takes a twist when after five years, skater boy becomes a successful musician and the girl is now a stay-at-home mom who regrets her decision to turn him down. With its catchy hook and edgy vibe, Sk8er Boi resonated with its young audiences all over the WUUUURUUURRRRLD.
Fan Theories
Over the years, Avril never outrightly revealed skater boy’s identity. Fans had no choice but to come up with some interesting takes.
1. If it isn’t anymore obvious, Avril and the narrator are one and the same.
Some fans speculate that it was about Avril’s real-life love interest and his high school crush. If we follow this theory with the song’s vindictive tone, we find that skater boy is still hung up on the girl who rejected him, and Avril is obsessed with her boyfriend’s past romantic interest. It’s sad but it makes sense given that this song was written by an angsty teenager at a time when girl on girl competition was especially common.
2. Skater boy is an immature creep.
Skater boy and the girl don’t date because she rejects him. The narrator comes later into the picture and dates him. He then tells her all about the ballerina and they make a song painting the poor girl as miserable. He’s already a superstar who felt the need to vilify someone who turned him down in high school, and the worst part was, he wrote a song about her with his girlfriend who didn’t know any better. Way to rock each other’s world!
3. The narrator is fantasizing about skater boy.
What if it’s all just a figment of the narrator’s imagination? The narrator is a teenage high schooler who’s one-sidedly in love with skater boy. She tries her hardest to stand out from the crowd and fit in to the boy’s interests — be edgy, listen to punk rock, wear funky neckties. But skater boy still ends up with the ballerina. The narrator, after being heartbroken, decides to fantasize of a world where she and skater boy end up together.
4. See you later, boi.
18 years later, someone wrote a response to Sk8er Boi from the point of view of the girl who did ballet, and she’s not at all miserable. Ashnikko also released her remake of the song called L8r Boi. As it turns out, the girl didn’t secretly want him. She saw his potential but still turned him down because they just had nothing in common. She’s an independent girl and he’s still not good enough for her.
Let’s Get Our Stories Str8
Before we go further down the rabbit hole, here’s what we need to know:
- Avril Lavigne co-wrote Sk8er Boi with The Matrix.
- The Matrix is a production company consisting of Lauren Christy, her ex-husband Graham Edwards, and Scott Spock.
- Back in February, Lauren released her own version of the song and had this to say about the making of Sk8er Boi:
I grew up doing ballet. My ex husband was a bass player and my parents definitely didn’t want me to be with a musician. Avril was a skater girl and had a crush on a skater boy. We combined our lives and our stories, and Avril and I were forever bonded as sisters now.
I am mind-blown to be kept in the dark all these years only to find out it was that simple! Can we absolve the song of its problematic undertones?
It was a bop and it still is, but it’s no longer 2002. We ought to outgrow the backward ideas that we’ve been told:
It’s possible to celebrate one person’s success without putting somebody else down.
People can proudly choose to become single parents and that does not mean they’re all alone. (And even if they are, it’s probably for the better)
Your worth is not measured by the outside validation you get from other people.
📻🎤♫
BRB. Head banging to Sk8er Boi. See you l8r on the next post!