They’ve called it quits a little less than a year after announcing their engagement and they definitely seemed happy, so why did Avril Lavigne and Mod Sun break up?
Lavigne and Mod Sun, whose real name is Derek Smith, met in January 2021 and that same month, they released a collaborative single titled “Flames”. Shortly after, the two were romantically linked and announced their engagement in April 2022. In February 2023, Smith released his latest album God Save the Teen, which featured a track titled “Avril’s Song” as well as another duet with her called “Shelter”. In an interview with E! News that month, he described the lyrics of “Avril’s Song” as “dark and sweet at the same time” and that it’s “a total metaphor” for how the relationship has affected him. “I have found such a partner in this world to go through the chaos that life gives you. “I have found that person. I’m with a real grown woman who has gone through it all 10 times over and she makes me a better person.” In the song, he sings: “She is the only one who cared / That’s why I get so scared / That one day, I’ll wake up and she won’t be there.” How poignant. Here’s what we know about Avril Lavigne and Mod Sun’s breakup.
Why did Avril Lavigne & Mod Sun break up?
Why did Avril Lavigne & Mod Sun break up? The reason is unclear but Mod Sun is moving on. On February 28, 2023, the “Flames” singer posted on Instagram, “In 1 week my entire life completely changed…I just know there’s a plan for it all. I’ll keep my head up + always listen to my heart, even when it feels broken 💔 Being surrounded by love every night on tour has been an absolute blessing. I have the best friends in the entire world, thanks for always having my back. See you on stage.” Shortly after the breakup became public, Mod Sun’s reps told Page Six after Lavigne’s reps confirmed the breakup to the outlet, “They were together and engaged as of three days ago when he left for tour, so if anything has changed, that’s news to him.”
News of the two splitting were caused by rumors Lavigne may have cheated on him with Tyga (sparked by TMZ which photographed them together), a source set the record straight to say no infidelity had occurred. “Avril and Mod Sun have been on and off for the past two months, but are no longer together as a couple,” said an insider told People on February 21, 2023. They added in response to photos of Lavigne hugging the rapper Tyga after they shared a meal together that “Avril and Tyga are genuinely friends and nothing more. There was absolutely no third party involved in the split.”
TMZ reported on February 20, that: “Tyga, Avril and a few others grabbed dinner at NOBU Sunday night, where we’re told they seemed to be hitting it off. The two hugged it out after dinner in the parking lot, as if to say goodbye, but then left together in the same car.” The tabloid continued: “We’ve spoken to sources close to both Avril and Tyga who say they’ve been hanging out together a lot lately … though it’s unclear if things are at all romantic.” Of course, two people of the opposite sex can, in fact, have dinner together and there is nothing sexual about it.
As mentioned, Lavigne and Mod Sun met in 2021 and they bonded instantly over their mutual love of music. “We linked up through just talking about music,” Mod Sun told in February 2021, saying how starstruck he was when he first the pop-punk princess. “It’s hard to even say because it’s f–king Avril Lavigne but she was like, ‘I really like your song, I really like your music,’ and she was like, ‘Send me some other stuff that you’re working on.’”
Smith got down on one knee in March 2022 while the couple was vacationing in Paris. “It was the most perfect, romantic proposal I could ever ask for. We were in Paris on a boat in the Seine River. We had a violin player, champagne and roses. It felt like time stood still, and it was just the two of us in the moment,” Lavigne told People a few weeks later. In describing the ring, she said: “It has the words ‘Hi Icon’ engraved in it, which were the first words he ever said to me. And it has Mod + Avril on the inside.”
She continued: “He knew from the very beginning I wanted a heart-shaped diamond because on the day we met, we had matching heart-shaped paved rings on. We’ve worn them every day since, so it’s only fitting to have a heart-shaped engagement ring. I love it so much.” She went on to explain how their connection seemed instantaneous when they met while she was working on her latest album, Love Sux. “I knew we had a very strong unstoppable connection from the first week of writing and working together in the studio. Immediately. He made every day better. It was like I had known him forever. As time went on, things kept getting better, and it felt incredibly natural.” She concluded: I look forward to having fun, creating, working together, touring together, growing together. It feels good to have someone who can help celebrate the good times, hold you through the tough ones, and be there for all the moments in between.”
Avril Lavigne, Mod Sun Image: Lester Cohen/Getty Images
Lavigne, who broke onto the pop-punk scene with her hit “Complicated”, has been married twice before her engagement to Mod Sun. In 2006 to 2010, she was wed to Sum 41 lead singer Deryck Whibley and from 2013 to 2015, she was married to Nickelback singer Chad Kroeger. In addressing her split from Whibley, Lavigne said at the time: “Deryck and I have been together for six-an-a-half years. We have been friends since I was 17, started dating when I was 19, and married when I was 21,” Lavigne, 24, wrote on her website, per People. “I am grateful for our time together, and I am grateful and blessed for our remaining friendship.” Her split from Kroeger was also amicable. “Chad and I are super close,” she told People in 2019. “He’s just always been a cheerleader of mine and always been such a huge fan. He’s in my corner, he’s on my side, and he’s always been really great.”
For Mod Sun’s part, he had a whirlwind marriage to Bella Thorne in 2018/19. Speaking with TooFab, he said: “That’s what young crazy people do, bro. I got engaged, married and divorced in 15 months in Hollywood. That’s what we do out here in these streets. We out here putting rings on it, that’s what our generation does.” The gossip site mentioned that they never filed the marriage license but did have a ceremony and exchanged vows.
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