"Goodbye Lullaby" was released on March 2011 in the US. Avril said that the album as being about her life experiences rather than focusing on relationships and that it was easy for her to do a "boy-bashing pop song," but it was different to write about something "that's really close to me, something I've been through." Other than the album's lead single, "What the Hell", Avril described the songs on "Goodbye Lullaby" as different from her earlier songs. She said her music on this album was less pop rock than her previous material.