Hello Kitty (song)

"Hello Kitty" is a song by the Canadian singer Avril Lavigne. It is from her fifth studio album Avril Lavigne (2013).

It was written by Lavigne, Chad Kroeger, David Hodges and Martin Johnson, while the song was produced by Kroeer, Hodges, and additional production by Brandon Paddock and Kyle Moorman. Musically, "Hello Kitty" is a bubblegum pop song heavily influenced by hard rock and pop punk, while featuring a dubstep-influenced drop. The song stands out as Lavigne's first electronic experimental track in her career to date. The song is about an "aggressive" love affair with the fictional character, where it includes Lavigne commenting on sleepovers, having fun and eating. The song was influenced with her obsession with all things kitty like

Reviews

Upon its flagship release with the album, "Hello Kitty" received polarizing reviews from contemporary music critics. Many found it interesting and compared the experimental production. But some dismissed this and criticized the lyrical content and felt that it failed to make a positive impression. The song charted at number 84 on the South Korean Gaon Chart. An official lyric video was released on Lavigne's YouTube account on January 19.

Background and composition

Three months after the release of Goodbye Lullaby, Lavigne announced that she had already begun on her fifth studio album, with eight songs written so far. Lavigne stated that musically the album would be the opposite of Goodbye Lullaby, with a rumoured released date of sometime in 2012. Lavigne explained, "Goodbye Lullaby was more mellow, [but] the next one will be pop and more fun again. I already have a song that I know is going to be a single, I just need to re-record it!" It was written by Lavigne, Chad Kroeger, David Hodges and Martin Johnson, while the song was produced by Kroeer, Hodges and additional production by Brandon Paddock and Kyle Moorman. The song was engineered by John Hanes, musical mixed by Serban Ghenea and additional programming was held by Paddick and Moorman.

Musically, "Hello Kitty" is known to be Lavigne's most experimental track to date, as its musical influences are inspired by bubblegum pop, pop punk and dubstep. In an interview, Lavigne said about her collaboration with Kroeger; "I have a song called [Hello Kitty], which I wrote about [Hello Kitty] because I’m obsessed, and it’s a really fun thing that I’ve never done before. It kind of has a kind of glitchy, electronic feel to it and it’s... the only one on the record that sounds like that. It’s really different and a lot of my friends I’ve played it for really like it. I’m having a lot of fun with that one." Lyrically, Lavigne told Digital Spy; "'Hello Kitty' was such an interesting topic and subject [...] It was really exciting for me. I didn't want it to sound like anything I'd done before. I wanted it to sound over the top so I ended up hiring a new producer to help me with it." She was later asked about the double meaning abut the song, to which she responded "Obviously it's flirtatious and somewhat sexual, but it's genuinely about my love for Hello Kitty as well." Additonally, she said at MuchMusic "It’s really fun [and] it’s about a slumber party and loving the kitty."

Entertainment Weekly's Nick Catucci exclaimed "Hello Kitty," a dubstep track that seems to acknowledge its own tokenism by adopting a "J-Pop American Funtime Now!" sheem (and whose title may or may not enclose a double entendre that in any case I’d rather not entertain) [...]" Craig Manning from AbsoultePunk said "The biggest leap of faith is made on “Hello Kitty,” a trippy patchwork of EDM and pop that pays loving tribute to Lavigne's sizable Japanese following." Muumuse's Bradley Stern had discussed the song in a lengthy review and explained; "Hello Kitty" is an offbeat EDM-infused stomper. Conjuring Gwen Stefani's lively Japanese-minded Love.Angel.Music.Baby (plus a Fashionable Dubstep Breakdown for good measure!), Avril lets her love affair for the beloved Japanese mascot go wild across pulsing beats and sputtering electronica as she shouts outs hilarious commands: "Like a fat kid on a pack of smarties / Someone chuck a cupcake at me!" He also referred Lavigne's nature towards the song as "insane".