What's with all the different versions of Avril Lavigne running around in her new video? Or, for that matter, the multiple Christinas, Ciaras and Beyoncés in theirs?

Everywhere you look, it seems some pop diva has replicated herself so she's the star of her clip several times over. (Whatever happened to delegating? Surely their budgets can't be that tight) This is nothing new, actually Mariah and Madonna are old pros at it by now but the idea has been spreading lately like a video virus, with Avril just the latest to be infected.

Avril Lavigne's "Girlfriend"
Avril Lavigne gets to have it both ways in her "Girlfriend" clip she's the nice girl and the mean girl. "The redhead is the girlfriend, and the brunette is the bratty one who tries to steal the boyfriend," she explained. (The blonde, of course, is just the regular Avril.) Sure, the brunet Avril knocks the redhead Avril into a port-a-potty and bonks her on the head with a golf ball, but she's not that much of a brat — she's only hurting herself.

Christina Aguilera's "Candyman"
Like Avril, Christina Aguilera's has three different hair colors in her latest video. Her "Candyman" girls are a singing trio along the lines of the Andrews Sisters, and are supposed to look like sisters. But there also seems to be a multiple-personality thing going on. Just listen to how Christina explained to MTV News the differences between the three: "The brunette, she wanted to be naughty. She wanted to stir a little trouble. The redhead, she's looking over at the blonde, and she's got a little jealousy in her, like, 'Why aren't I singing the lead?' And the blonde is, of course, my side ... kinda sweet and sassy at the same time." Kinda confusing too.

Ciara's "Like a Boy"
Crossdressing — now that's an entirely different issue. It's one thing to try to imitiate yourself — or different aspects of yourself — but Ciara takes it to a new level when she expresses her masculine side in "Like a Boy". Not that she's lacking for any male companionship, since NFL star Reggie Bush makes a cameo, but Ciara had a point to make. "I'm a tomboy at heart, but I don't go full-out like I did in this video," she told MTV News. "I also wanted to take it a little bit further, saying, 'Yo, I can rock it like this too.' "

Beyoncé's "Upgrade U"
Beyoncé does an impersonation of her man Jay-Z for most of the "Upgrade U" clip. "I love it because it's completely out of my character," Beyoncé said, "or at least the character that people think I am. I'm sure people would be shocked to see that I even did it or that I even could act that way." But why did you have to? At first we thought, what, couldn't B get Jay to be in her video? But after he showed, we got the joke.

More on MTV.com