Mod Sun is looking back on his short-lived engagement to Avril Lavigne<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
“We\u2019re two different people, but I think I had a great influence on her,” the musician said of Lavigne on Bunnie Xo’s\u00a0Dumb Blonde podcast<\/p>\n<\/li>\n
The couple got engaged in Paris in April 2022, and called off the engagement less than one year later<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Mod Sun<\/a>\u00a0is looking back on his\u00a0short-lived engagement<\/a>\u00a0to\u00a0Avril Lavigne<\/a>.<\/p>\n On the Thursday, Nov. 6 episode\u00a0of Bunnie Xo<\/a>‘s\u00a0Dumb Blonde<\/a> podcast, the Scary Kids Scaring Kids musician, 38, reflected on his one-year romance with the “Girlfriend” singer, 41.<\/p>\n “We met through a truly awesome label making music,” the musician, born Derek Ryan Smith, said per E!<\/a>, as the podcast is currently behind a paywall. “It was lovely. She was a true talent being around. I write and produce songs for other artists, so it was amazing coming up with an idea and seeing someone so f—ing talented sing it.”<\/p>\n Mod and Lavigne met in January 2021 and released the collaborative single “Flames” within weeks. They were first romantically linked the following month and got engaged in Paris in April 2022<\/a>.<\/p>\n “We’re two different people, but I think I had a great influence on her,” he continued. “I think she couldn’t have had a more wonderful influence on me from the side of [helping me] grow up. Like now, I’m very secure of who I am, because I’ve been lost in the last three years of wondering, ‘Where do I fit in?'”<\/p>\n Frazer Harrison\/Getty for The Recording Academy<\/p>\n Avril Lavigne and Mod Sun in Las Vegas in April 2022<\/p>\n Less than a year after getting engaged, the two pop-punk musicians ended their relationship in February 2023, sources close to the couple confirmed to PEOPLE at the time<\/a>.<\/p>\n According to the “Karma” singer, he’s since been focused on trying to understand the split through an empathetic lens.<\/p>\n “I pray every single day, and in those prayers, I\u2019m like, ‘Just allow me to lead with empathy and be a shining light,'” Mod told Bunnie.<\/p>\n \u201cMy form of empathy is finally attached to being like, ‘Dude, you\u2019ve got to get outside of yourself. When someone does you wrong, stop thinking, “F— them, you did me dirty, and I\u2019m out for revenge.”‘ It started being like, ‘Step in their position,'” he continued.<\/p>\n The musician also added that he may not have been able to look back at his breakup from Lavigne in such a positive light a few months ago.<\/p>\n “If we had done this talk three months ago, I might’ve been like, ‘F— that person. I hope she hears this,'” he admitted. “But I\u2019m now just like, \u2018If I run into you? It\u2019s all love. I hope you’re well.'”<\/p>\n Cindy Ord\/WireImage<\/p>\n Mod Sun in Newark in August 2022<\/p>\n The \u201cSk8ter Boi\u201d singer has never publicly addressed the pair’s breakup. Lavigne was later linked to\u00a0rapper Tyga\u00a0<\/strong>in March 2023<\/a>, but the pair\u00a0split just\u00a0three months later<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mod Sun has been candid about the split in the past. In July 2023, he dropped a new breakup song called “Strangers<\/a>” that featured revealing lyrics about their romance, alongside a music video filmed in Paris \u2014 where\u00a0he had proposed to Lavigne<\/a>.<\/p>\n “Strangers” lyrics featured Mod reflecting on their relationship arc, as he sings about seeing the “Complicated” performer on television before they met, getting to know each other and quickly growing close.<\/p>\n![\"Frazer](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/02cd09325a31f4eeb17e656e665ba203.jpeg\"\/)
<\/p>\n![\"Cindy](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/14befa2c9e9a605df88cebb6fd82e88e.jpeg\"\/)
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