Concert Recap: Avril Lavigne's "Greatest Hits" Tour in Raleigh, NC (June 17, 2025)

While my lifelong love for classic rock, metal, and the modern alternative in-betweens have all been well-documented over the course of my work with Dead Noise, some may be surprised to hear that I have an equal love and appreciation for pop-punk as well — before I was even really into music at the level I am today, which is credited to my introduction to Rush, I was raised on the hits and albums of bands like Boys Like Girls, The All-American Rejects, Fall Out Boy, and Paramore. Two bands/artists from that time that really stuck out to me were Simple Plan and Avril Lavigne, who just so happen to be on tour together once again this summer, with Lavigne's "Greatest Hits" Tour currently on its second leg due to popular demand. Thankfully, this leg included a stop in Raleigh, NC at my favorite amphitheater, the Coastal Credit Union Music Park, and even in the midst of the summer heat, nothing was stopping these artists from keeping the energy up and giving the fans such a lively show from beginning to end.

Kicking things off were fellow pop-punk mainstays We the Kings, who had no problem interacting with the crowd and getting everybody prepared for the heavy hitters at the top of the bill. While the band has evolved sonically over the years in a similar fashion to that of Boys Like Girls, which leads to key changes with older material and things of that sort, their energy was still undeniable and their performance was still a lot of fun to watch. Being the first band, their set was short, but they maximized their time by playing as many songs as they could while still making time to interact with the crowd during and between songs, with their back-to-back finale of a cover of The Killers' classic "Mr. Brightside" and their own epic hit "Check Yes Juliet" ​getting the crowd on their feet and wishing they had more time to jam.

We the Kings Setlist:

1. When We Were Young
2. Skyway Avenue
3. Say You Like Me
4. I Feel Alive
5. Sad Song
6. Mr. Brightside (The Killers cover)
7. Check Yes Juliet

Despite the fact that I had listened to a lot of Avril Lavigne's music growing up, I would be lying if I said I wasn't especially excited to see Simple Plan live for the first time — their music was another big part of my life both in my youth and today as an adult, so the experience of seeing them live was long overdue.

To say the absolute least, seeing Simple Plan was well worth the wait, as well as a gigantic wave of nostalgia. I can't imagine how difficult it is for a band like them to come up with a setlist for a support slot because of how many hits they have, but they managed to fit in a decent mix of songs without making it feel like you were just listening to songs from one or two album cycles.

From the opening chorus of "I'd Do Anything" to the finale of "Perfect," Simple Plan had all the stage effects to match their musical prowess and energy, from confetti to cryo blasts to beach balls (along with actors in Scooby Doo costumes during the performance of the "What's New Scooby Doo?" theme song), and it had so much of that fun energy that the band and pop-punk in general is known for.

I'm not at all surprised that their musical performance was as great as it was, but I can't help but think in awe of the fact that vocalist Pierre Bouvier has literally not lost a single step vocally over the course of 20+ years with Simple Plan's music — even with the older material, he seems to effortlessly run around the stage while singing these songs perfectly, almost always in their original key, and barely even seems to get winded while doing so. There aren't a lot of vocalists, especially that far into their careers, that you can say that about, and I feel like more people need to point that out and give him the credit he deserves.

I could spend this entire writeup just talking about Simple Plan, but to sum it up, I've been wanting to see this band live for a long while now, and there's not an ounce of me that felt the slightest bit let down or dissatisfied from watching their set in Raleigh. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll have a chance to see them as a headliner soon.

Simple Plan Setlist:

1. I'd Do Anything
2. Shut Up!
3. ​Jump
4. Welcome to My Life
5. Can't Keep My Hands Off You
6. Addicted
7. Summer Paradise
8. What's New Scooby Doo?
9. Where I Belong
10. I'm Just a Kid
11. Perfect

Between riding the high of Simple Plan to the anticipation for Avril Lavigne, the excitement was palpable by the time the intro tape started playing — right out the gate, Lavigne kicked her set off with her lively hit "Girlfriend," and it was off to the races from there.

This wasn't your usual greatest hits tour, where the band only focuses on a popular era or only plays songs from their first couple releases — this was a proper career-spanning show that checked all the boxes and hit all the marks, both visually and musically. As an Alice Cooper fan, there's nothing I love more than a live show with production value, and this tour had a ton of it — from video screens/walls and cryo blasts to confetti cannons and immersive lighting, this tour had it all. Musically, it was a lot of fun to hear so many different eras of Lavigne's career and not knowing what would come next. With her own hits at the forefront, they even played songs that were written by Lavigne but performed/released by​ other artists, like Kelly Clarkson's "Breakaway."

Lavigne's voice was in fantastic shape, and her band was equally impressive. Another great thing about the show was that she gave her band time to jam out and show their skills, instead of just simply playing one song after the other. ​

Aside from the music and nostalgia, the one thing from this show that I came away with was the generational crossover with artists like Simple Plan and Avril Lavigne. I can still remember being a young child, listening to these songs and watching Lavigne perform "Girlfriend" live on TV when it first came out, and I was expecting the audience to be full of nostalgic young adults in my age bracket or slightly above. While there was a lot of that, I also saw a lot of kids in the audience who were experiencing their first concert, and young super-fans that had tears in their eyes when Lavigne first appeared on stage. I've always been aware of the age range for rock shows as a classic rock fan and seeing the music passed down from generation to generation, but to see it applied at this show was something I wasn't expecting, but it still made me so happy to see.

Avril Lavigne Setlist:

1. Girlfriend
2. What the Hell
3. Complicated
4. Here's to Never Growing Up
5. Rock n Roll
6. My Happy Ending
7. He Wasn't
8. Love Story (Taylor Swift cover)
9. Keep Holding On
10. Breakaway
11. Don't Tell Me
12. Young & Dumb (ft. Simple Plan)
13. Bite Me
14. Love it When You Hate Me
15. Sk8er Boi

Encore

16. Head Above Water
17. I'm With You

Long story short, Avril Lavigne's "Greatest Hits" Tour was a stellar show and fantastic lineup all around. For my first pop-punk show, I couldn't have picked a better one, and I'm looking forward to hopefully seeing these artists again in the near future.

To keep up with Avril Lavigne, click here.