When Britney Spears burst onto the scene with her hit song "...Baby One More Time" in 1998, no one could've predicted the way that she'd change the music landscape forever—or the way that she would redefine the concept of tabloid scandal. Throughout her personal and professional ups and downs, she's remained one of the most influential entertainers in the world. Here are 80 little-known facts about the Princess of Pop, Britney Spears.
Britney Spears Facts
1. She Was Famous Before She Was Famous
Britney Spears was in the spotlight long before “…Baby One More Time” put her at the top of the Billboard charts. As many people know, she first appeared on the The Mickey Mouse Club with future stars like Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, and Ryan Gosling all the way back in 1992—and her time on the show made her grow up fast.
2. She Got Her Sex Ed From an Unlikely Source
While Britney and Justin might be the most talked-about relationship that resulted from the show, it was Ryan Gosling who said that feels responsible for corrupting a young Spears. He revealed, "[They] would come and ask me questions about sex, and I just told them what I heard—like positions and stuff. All the other mothers went to Disney and told them I was corrupting their kids.”
3. She Angered the Brits
Spears came under fire in 2011 for the music video for her song “Criminal,” which featured her and her boyfriend at the time, Jason Trawick, on the streets of London. British politicians took umbrage with the fact that they carried guns in an area that had been affected by the infamous 2011 London riots. Spears’ team responded by saying that the song had been written long before the riots ever happened.
loveyousave, CC BY-SA 2.0 , Wikimedia Commons
4. Someone Tried to Sell Her Hair
The hairdresser who owned the salon where Spears infamously shaved her head in 2007 actually gathered up the pop princess's locks, the Redbull can she drank from, and the cig butts she had put in the ashtray. The stylist then placed all of the objects on eBay for $1 million, although eBay took the listing down, because it was against their policy.
5. She Had Intense Drive as a Child
Spears' relationship with her parents wasn’t always contentious. Growing up in Kentwood, Louisiana with parents Jamie and Lynne, they always supported their young daughter's dreams—and she had big ones. Spears was ultra-ambitious, and her parents carted her around to dance, gymnastics, and voice lessons, as well as talent shows.
Rhys Adams, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
6. She Had to Struggle to Become a Star
This intense drive led her to take a chance and try for the reboot of The Mickey Mouse Club when she was just eight years old—with devastating results. After Spears and her mother drove all the way to Atlanta for the audition, she was rejected and told that she was too young for the show. However, there was a silver lining. The casting director recognized Spears' talent, and hooked her up with a talent agent.
7. Her Parents Went to Extreme Lengths for Her Career
Britney Spears' parents continued to be supportive of her dreams, and when her agent suggested a performing arts school in New York City, they upended their entire lives to move to the Big Apple and enroll her there. Spears, her mother Lynne and her little sister Jamie Lynn crammed into an apartment there, while Jamie and brother Bryan stayed behind in Kentwood.
8. She’s Had Some Weird Exes
Since her divorce from Kevin Federline, Britney Spears has mostly dated not-so-famous types, but there was a while where she was romantically linked to a number of high-profile stars—among them Colin Farrell, Jared Leto, and Fred Durst—although that last one has seen the source of controversy.
9. She Was Part of a He-Said She-Said Controversy
In 2003, at the height of both of their careers (arguably), Durst was asked to work on a song with Spears and they began a romantic relationship—at least according to him. For her part, Spears has always denied that they were involved. He says that he understands why she refused to admit to it, but that he’s “not a liar.”
Achim Raschka, CC BY-SA 3.0 , Wikimedia Commons
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10. The Second Time Was the Charm
After her initial rejection from The Mickey Mouse Club at the age of eight, Britney Spears auditioned again around the time she turned 11—and this time, she was cast. Her family moved to Orlando in 1993 to film the show. The show lasted for three years before it was canceled, but Spears wasn't ready to give up her dreams yet.
In 1996, the Mickey Mouse Club was canceled, so the family moved back to Mississippi.
Everett Collection, Shutterstock
11. She Had Non-Show Biz Jobs
Following her time on The Mickey Mouse Club, Spears and her family returned to Kentwood and led a pretty normal life for a few years. Her father Jamie had purchased a gym and turned it into a family business. Spears helped out there, and also got a part-time job working at her great-grandmother’s crawfish restaurant as a waitress.
Drew de F Fawkes, CC BY 2.0 , Wikimedia Commons
12. Her Normal Years Weren't Enough For Her
Even though Spears got a chance at a relatively normal upbringing at this time, Her mother was determined to make sure Britney had a career in show business, so she got a manager to help find new gigs. Spears experiences normal high school stuff like joining the basketball team, having a boyfriend, and going to prom, but in the back of her mind, she knew that something was missing and longed to get back to building her singing career.
13. Everyone Has Their Moments
While Jessica Simpson's "Is tuna chicken or fish?" may be the most iconic popstar brain fart moment, Britney Spears made a great contribution early in her career when she was quoted as saying "The cool thing about being famous is traveling. I have always wanted to travel across seas. Like, to Canada, and stuff."
Getty Images
14. Just Like Grandma Makes
In 2002, Spears followed in her granny’s footsteps and opened up her own restaurant in New York City called Nyla. The food is Louisiana-style Cajun food, just like what the pop star ate growing up. But just months after it opened, it all came crashing down. Spears walked away from the partnership after claiming that the other owners hadn't kept her involved in the business—but that wasn't even the worst part.
First, there was the crushing amount of debt that the business had taken on, not to mention the fact that the restaurant was plagued by a number of health code violations. After Spears pulled out, Nyla closed for a while before rebranding as an Italian restaurant. Ultimately, it ended up closing permanently anyway.
15. She Almost Fell Prey to a Notorious Scammer
If you wanted to be a popstar in the late 90s, you had to go through one man: Lou Pearlman, the notorious svengali behind acts like NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys. He wanted Spears to join a girl group that he'd been working on, but she'd always envisioned herself not only as a solo artist, and not even a pop act—something more in the vein of Sheryl Crow. By not working with Pearlman, she ended up dodging a bullet.
He was later sued for fraud and misrepresentation by most of the pop acts that he worked with—on top of being behind one of the largest Ponzi schemes in history.
Everett Collection, Shutterstock
16. She Had to Make Some Concessions to Become a Star
At the time, most record labels were looking to sign pop groups in the vein of the Spice Girls and the Backstreet Boys, but Spears was determined to go out on her own. For this reason, she was rejected by three different labels before she signed her deal with Jive Records in 1997. However, her dream of being a Sheryl Crow-esque singer went by the wayside in favor of a "pop princess" look and sound.
17. How Was I Supposed to Know?
It’s hard to imagine anyone else but Britney Spears singing the iconic song "...Baby One More Time," but it was originally written for the band TLC. The group rejected the future hit, proving that the saying "One man's trash is another man's treasure" is 100% accurate!
18. She Wasn’t Just a Pretty Face
When it came time to make a video for Spears’ first single, “…Baby One More Time,” the record label had envisioned an animated video. It was actually Spears herself who suggested the iconic Catholic schoolgirl look, and they agreed to go with it. It’s hard to imagine a world where that video looked any different!
Greg, CC BY 2.0 , Wikimedia Commons
19. She’s Experimented With Different Religions
Perhaps the idea had come from Spears’ background growing up in a very religious area of the US. She was raised in the Southern Baptist church growing up, and sung in the church choir. Later in life, Spears explored different religions, even taking up Kabbalah—like every other 2000s star—at one point.
20. She’s a Record Breaker
Honestly, it goes without saying that “…Baby One More Time” skyrocketed Spears into stardom and success—but we’ll get into some of the records that she broke anyway. Her debut album, also named …Baby One More Time, is the best-selling album by a teenage solo artist of all time, and she is among the top-selling teenage artists of all time.
She sold 37 million records around the world, all before she turned 20. But of course, the astronomical fame came at a dark price.
21. She Was Part of a Fairytale Romance
Before her album was released, Spears had reunited with the Mickey Mouse Club co-star Justin Timberlake when she opened for NSYNC on a number of tour dates. Soon enough, they began dating, and became one of the most talked about couples of the era, lasting from 1998 to 2002.
22. They Had Their Cheesy Moments
One of the most infamous photos of that era comes from the 2001 American Music Awards, where the pair wore matching distressed denim outfits—but that wasn’t their first brush with being cringeworthy. At a charity basketball game, they wore matching jerseys emblazoned with the nicknames they’d given each other: “Pinky” for her and “Stinky” for him.
23. She Had a Major Break-Up
For a celebrity couple, their relationship was surprisingly smooth—at least on the surface. That’s why fans were shocked in 2002 when it was announced that Spears and Timberlake had broken up. Soon enough, rumors began to emerge about what had caused the split—some darker than others.
Featureflash Photo Agency, Shutterstock
24. She Was (Maybe) Burned by Timberlake in a Video
Soon after Spears and Timberlake broke up, he released a video for the scorching hit song “Cry Me a River”—and fans immediately noticed that the female star of the video bore a more-than-passing resemblance to Spears. He’s never acknowledged who the real subject of the song is, although he did say he wrote it in a span of two hours immediately following a breakup.
25. There Was Rumored to Be Another Man
It was long rumored that the reason behind Spears and Timberlake’s breakup was infidelity on the part of Spears, and the “Cry Me a River” video seemed to allude to that. Spears was said to have cheated on him with choreographer Wade Robson, and that she tried to hide the affair from Timberlake—but he inevitably found out about it, sparking one of the more infamous celebrity breakups of all time.
26. She Had a Surprising Reunion
For years, neither Spears nor Timberlake acknowledged their romantic relationship or contentious breakup. In 2011, Timberlake said that he hadn’t spoken to her since then. But in 2020, Spears actually filmed herself dancing along to one of Timberlake’s songs, commenting below the post: “PS I know we had one of the world’s biggest breakups 20 years ago…but hey the man is a genius!!! Great song JT!!!!!”
Surprisingly, Timberlake actually responded with a series of emojis indicating his approval—marking the first time in two decades that the two actually communicated publicly.
27. She Had More Than Just a Bad Breakup to Deal With
In 2002, Spears was under intense public scrutiny following her contentious breakup with Timberlake—but then, the nightmare got even worse. After 27 years of marriage, her parents announced that they were getting divorced.
28. Her Songwriting Process Was Unconventional
For her first two albums, Spears and her record label hired songwriters for her material. She didn't really have a lot of time anyway, with all the rehearsals and touring that she did. It wasn’t until her third album that she began learning the songwriting process herself—and she had a peculiar way of keeping track of songs she wanted to write. She would call her house number and leave a message. She sang her idea, and it was recorded on her answering machine to listen to later.
One of the songs Spears wrote herself was "Not a Girl, Not Yet A Woman."
29. Her Attempts at a Crossover Didn't Exactly Go Well
In 2002, long before Shonda Rhimes was the queen of prime time TV, she was hired to write a film vehicle for Britney Spears titled Crossroads. It was described as a coming-of-age road trip movie for girls, but when it was released, Spears was in for a brutal surprise. While it was a smash hit at the box office, it was reviled by critics, who went for Spears' performance and called it nothing more than a vanity project.
Zoe Saldana, who was one of Spears' co-stars, later stood up for Spears and said that she considered the pop star's acting to be "very good."
30. She Almost Went Out With a Prince
When you're the biggest pop star in the world, a lot of people are going to have crushes on you—but not all of them are going to be royalty. Prince William had a thing for pop princesses in the late 90s—first with a crush on Baby Spice, and then there were rumors that he was trying to meet up with Britney Spears.
When she was touring the UK in 2000, the two were actually supposed to have a dinner meeting, but as Spears later revealed, he stood her up. Ouch, Wills!
31. She's Close To Her Family Through the Bad Times
Throughout the years, Spears has remained close to her siblings. She was there for her sister during her controversial pregnancy announcement—Jamie Lynn was just 16 at the time—and she bought her brother Bryan a $1.5 million loft in New York City, only to almost burn it down.
In 2002, Britney accidentally knocked a candle over and started a fire in it.
32. She Has a Connection to the Tiger King
During the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards, Britney Spears made an especially memorable performance of her song "I'm a Slave 4 U"—and there was a connection to the infamous 2020 documentary series Tiger King. During the performance, she danced with a 7-foot long albino Burmese python named Banana, among other animals.
Well, when she actually made her entrance, she walked out of a tiger's cage, and inside the cage with her and his tiger was none other than Doc Antle.
33. Her Performances Were Unforgettable
After the infamous 2001 performance, Spears had to top it somehow—and she ended up participating in a moment that scandalized the entire VMA audience. In 2003, one of the most anticipated performances at the VMAs was going to feature, Madonna, Spears, and Christina Aguilera. Well, it was a moment that few would forget.
In the middle of the performance, Madonna stopped to kiss both pop stars on the lips—but there was a lot more to the moment than just the kiss.
34. The Performance Had Some Interesting Reactions
The performance and the kiss followed on the heels of Spears' high profile breakup with Justin Timberlake. Of course, Spears was the first one to share a kiss with the Queen of Pop before she turned to Aguilera, but Aguilera didn't get as much attention for the stunt. Why? Well, the camera immediately cut to Justin Timberlake's face to gauge his reaction. He did not look happy.
35. What Happens in Vegas...
Following her breakup from Timberlake, Spears dated a number of men—some stars, some not—but nothing could've prepared fans or the tabloids for what happened next. In January 2004, news came out that Spears had spontaneously married her childhood friend Jason Alexander in Las Vegas. But like many Vegas weddings, it wasn't exactly built to last.
Anirudh Koul, CC BY 2.0 ,Wikimedia Commons
36. Her Marriage Was Just the Start of Her Problems
Just 55 hours after the quickie wedding, Spears filed for an annulment. The whole story was splashed across the tabloid pages, but few remember the actual reason given. A petition to the court said that when she married Alexander, Spears "lacked understanding of her actions." It would be a chilling omen of what was to come for the young star.
Getty Images
37. She Just Couldn't Win
Breakups and quickie marriages aside, Britney Spears was basically at the top of her game at this point in her career. She'd had way more creative control, including writing and producing credits on her album In the Zone, which was a huge hit—it was the album that featured both "Toxic" and "Everytime." After its release, she embarked on a huge tour to promote it, but just two months in, tragedy struck.
38. Her Injury Had a Terrible Aftermath
While filming a music video, Spears severely injured her knee. She had to have surgery and months of rehab to repair it, forcing the cancellation of her tour. All of a sudden, she was unable to move forward with her career in the way she had for the previous six years. No touring, no appearances, no dancing. The aftermath of the injury had dire consequences—it was during this time in her life that many of Spears' problems began.
U.S. Navy photo by Chief Warrant Officer 4 Seth Rossman, Wikimedia Commons
39. She Fell Hard and Fast
During rehearsals for the In the Zone tour, Spears became involved with a man she met at a club. He was a backup dancer, but not even one of hers—he had worked for LFO. You guessed it, it was Kevin Federline. By July 2004, when she was recovering from her surgery, they announced their engagement. They'd only been dating for three months—but that wasn't the only problem.
40. She Was the Rebound
Federline had broken up with actress Shar Jackson shortly before he began seeing Spears. The problem? At the time they broke up, Jackson was pregnant. With their second child. The whole mess drew a lot of negative attention from the tabloids to Spears' and Federline's relationship, but it didn't end there.
41. Their Wedding Was a Bit Weird
Spears and Federline were married on September 18, 2004, and their unconventional wedding got attention for a number of reasons. First of all, it was actually a surprise wedding—there were only 27 guests, who had all shown up expecting an engagement party. After the ceremony and dinner, the whole party went to a local club with many wearing matching sweatsuits—Federline's was emblazoned with the words "The Pimp" while his friends were "The Pimps."
There was just one problem—they weren't actually married that day.
42. There's Proof She Wasn't Totally Manipulated by Federline
After Federline proposed, Spears began working with a lawyer to draw up an airtight pre-nup that would protect all of her assets if they were to divorce. It was taking a long time to get finalized, and the paparazzi were hounding the couple. As time went on, Spears knew that the likelihood of wedding planning details getting leaked would be higher, so she planned an unofficial, non-binding marriage for that September day. It was technically a sham!
43. Their Marriage Was a Sham at First
Spears and Federline weren't legally married until October 6, 2004, in a secret ceremony—only after he had finally signed the extensive pre-nup that she'd had drafted.
Dooley Productions, Shutterstock
44. Their Reality Show Was Explosive
Less than a year into their marriage, Spears and Federline produced and starred in a five-episode reality show called Britney & Kevin: Chaotic. Before Spears had canceled the In the Zone tour, she'd collected footage of her tour prep and daily life as she began dating and then became engaged to Federline, and this footage formed the basis for the show, along with more filmed after they were married.
Immediately, the show drew attention for all the wrong reasons.
Featureflash Photo Agency, Shutterstock
45. Her Reality Show Was a Disaster
The show was particularly explicit, with Spears and Federline describing bedroom activities and making out on camera. In close up. Critics immediately came for the show, throwing around phrases like “career suicide,” “a horrifying train wreck,” and “an insult to common sense and decency.” At the time, the couple remained tight-lipped about the reaction to the show, but in 2013, Spears revealed that she thought of the show as “the worst thing I’ve ever done in my career.”
46. She Seemed High on Camera
One of the most disturbing segments of the series occurs when Spears appeared visibly intoxicated by an unknown substance—suspected by many to be of chemical original due to her grinding her teeth because she was “nervous” and rubbing her jaw, which she complains hurt. The cause for her erratic behavior was never addressed, but it left spectators worried about her well-being and scenes from it were splashed across the tabloids.
Joe Seer, Shutterstock
47. She Doesn’t Have the Best Taste in Men
Here are some words that have been used to describe Kevin Federline—some fact, some more simple opinion: high school dropout, self-admitted dealer of illegal substances—not to mention user of aforementioned substances, failed rapper, and father of six children with three different women.
48. She Was Born to Be a Mom
Spears had always been very open about her desire to get married and start a family, even when she was still dating Timberlake. In October 2004, she announced that she’d be taking a break from her career to start a family, and she delivered on that promise when she became pregnant in early 2005.
Featureflash Photo Agency, Shutterstock
49. She Gave Birth to Two Kids in a Little Over a Year
Spears gave birth to her first son, Sean Preston, in September 2005. By early 2006, she was pregnant again and in October 2006, she gave birth to her second child with Federline, Jayden James. Finally, all her dreams had come true—but they would soon turn into a living nightmare.
50. She Took Risque Pregnancy Photos
While pregnant with Jayden, Spears posed nude for the cover of Harper’s Bazaar magazine, emphasizing her baby bump. The scandalous cover was compared to Demi Moore’s infamous Vanity Fair cover from the 90s—but that was far from the most controversial thing that happened during her pregnancy.
51. She Got in Trouble for Her Parenting
In February 2006, Spears was caught on camera driving around with her infant son Sean on her lap. Immediately, there was a massive outcry from those worried about the safety of her baby. For her part, Spears claimed that she hadn’t had time to secure him in his carseat after paparazzi had descended upon her.
She apologized for the mistake, but it was a chilling sign for what was to come.
52. She Surprised Kevin Federline
Just a month after her second son was born, Spears filed for divorce from Kevin Federline, citing irreconcilable differences. Federline claimed to have received the news by text message and was absolutely stunned by Spears’ decision to break up their new family. While Spears had ensured that their pre-nup was airtight, their two children complicated things, and it all sparked a bitter custody battle that’s technically still going on today.
53. She Ran Away From Rehab
In 2007, it all fell apart for Spears, sparking one of the most bizarre series of events of the mid-2000s. First, Spears entered a rehab facility in Antigua in February 2007 for unspecified reasons—but then she suddenly left less than a day later. That’s when the proverbial you-know-what hit the fan.
Drew de F Fawkes, CC BY 2.0 , Wikimedia Commons
54. The Head-Shaving Incident
The week after she suddenly left rehab, paparazzi tracked Spears down to a hair salon in Tarzana, California. That was where she infamously grabbed the clippers herself and shaved her entire head. Paparazzi waiting outside caught the entire thing, and the disturbing photos were immediately splashed all over the internet.
55. Her Fans Are Rabid
Despite all of her issues, fans of Spears remain loyal to their favorite pop star. A young fan named Chris Crocker made a YouTube video in 2007 defending her mental breakdown and urging people to "leave Britney alone." Towards the end of the video, he becomes emotional and begins to cry. The video went viral, and was parodied widely.
56. Tatted Up
Spears got two tattoos immediately after shaving her head. When the tattoo artist asked her why she decided to shave her head, her response was heartbreaking. She told the tattoo artist, "I don’t want anyone to touch me. I’m tired of people touching me."
57. She Followed Up the Head-Shaving With More Erratic Behavior
In the weeks following the head-shaving incident, Spears was in and out of rehab. In between these stints, she was being followed by paparazzi one days when she finally decided she’d had enough. She attacked the cat of a paparazzo with an umbrella. Once again, it was all caught on camera, and once again, many who saw it became concerned with her mental state and well-being.
marcen27 from Glasgow, UK, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
58. She Lost Custody of Her Kids Because of a Mistake
The ongoing custody battle between Spears and Federline intensified in late 2007 when Spears was photographed driving her sons around with a suspended driver’s license. A judge decided to grant full custody to Federline, with scheduled visits for Spears.
59. Her Career Kept Moving—At First
In the months after the head-shaving incident, Spears had released her fifth studio album, titled Blackout, and many hoped that she would make a quick comeback from her personal troubles. She was scheduled to perform at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, a venue where she’d always made a splash. Sadly, this time it would be the wrong kind.
60. Her Performance Shocked Onlookers
In September 2009, Spears was scheduled to perform her song “Gimme More” at the MTV VMAs. It was supposed to be a great comeback, but it blew up in her face. Many were shocked by her appearance, her inability to keep up with her own choreography, and her apparent disinterest in performing. Not only had her comeback failed, but things would continue to fall apart for Spears.
61. She Dated the Enemy
Since her divorce from Federline, Spears had been plagued by paparazzi who had caught her every misstep on camera, and she had often pleaded for her privacy—so the world was stunned when she began dating a paparazzo named Adnan Ghalib. They were photographed together in multiple places, and the tabloids had a field day with their relationship, focusing on an alleged feud between her parents and Ghalib.
Oh, did we mention he was also married at the time?
62. She Lost Her Sons After a Strange Altercation
In January 2008, Spears was having a scheduled visitation with her sons. When it came time for them to return to Federline’s home, Spears allegedly locked herself in a room with her younger son, Jayden. Federline used this in his favor during their custody battle, and Spears relinquished full rights to him in July 2008—but there were even more dire consequences for Spears after the incident.
63. She Was Committed to a Psych Ward
During that incident, Spears was visited by police and hospitalized, and police reported that she appeared to be under the influence of an unidentified substance. She was put on a “5150,” which is an involuntary psychiatric hold—essentially, she was committed to a psychiatric ward. On top of that, she was put under a conservatorship, which meant that her father James would be in complete control of her assets.
As mentioned earlier, this conservatorship is still going on today—despite personal conflicts within the Spears family.
rhysadams from Derby, United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0 ,Wikimedia Commons
64. There Was a Fight For Control Over Her
During the rushed court proceedings that followed her 5150, Jamie and Lynne Spears applied for a restraining order again Adnan Ghalib and Britney’s manager Sam Lufti on her behalf, claiming that they’d tried to control her affairs and that they’d snuck her a cell phone when she was institutionalized.
65. Her Life Calmed Down...For Awhile
After her release, Spears quietly returned to work, making guest appearances on TV shows and working on her sixth album, Circus. She was eventually well enough to tour on behalf of the album, and made something of a comeback.
66. Her Next Relationship Had More to It Than Met the Eye
During this time, Spears began dating her agent at the time, Jason Trawick. After all the trouble with Sam Lufti and her parents, the relationship raised eyebrows, but he quickly made clear that he would no longer act as her agent as a result. Behind the scenes, things were a bit more complicated. At one point, Trawick acted as a conservator of her assets alongside her father.
The two were engaged but eventually broke up in 2013, and he was removed as conservator by her father.
67. She Finally Made Her Comeback
In the next few years, Spears made the comeback that her fans had been waiting for. She had an ultra-successful Vegas residency for many years, put out a number of hit albums, continued releasing perfumes from her best-selling line, and even made a triumphant return to the MTV VMAs—but sadly, trouble was still lurking in the dark for Spears.
Santiago Sebastian Vera, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
68. She Almost Lost Her Father
After ending her first Las Vegas residency, Spears had been slated to return in 2019—but then tragedy struck. Her father experienced a colon rupture which nearly killed him, and Spears pulled out of the Vegas shows in order to be with him—but then, a strange accusation was made by her father’s lawyer about the conservatorship.
Featureflash Photo Agency, Shutterstock
69. She’s Still Suffering the Consequences of Her Breakdown
It’s not a stretch to say that most people remember Britney Spears’ very public struggles from 2006-2007, including the infamous head-shaving incident. It was during this time that she was put under a conservatorship, where someone else is assigned to be in charge of her finances. What few people knew was that the conservatorship is still ongoing more than a decade later—and that’s not even the worst part.
70. Her Father May Not Have Her Best Interests in Mind
The conservatorship has been run by a rotating cast of characters since its inception—including one of Britney’s ex-boyfriends. The only figure who has remained constant is her father, Jamie Spears. Following a number of disturbing allegations against him in 2019, there have been questions about his character, but he remains in charge of her affairs.
71. Her Father’s Own Lawyer Worries About His Control
A lawyer named Andrew Wallet—how apropos—said that if the conservatorship didn’t end, the consequences for Britney Spears could be “Substantial detriment, irreparable harm and immediate danger.” When fans got wind of this, the controversy deepened.
Kathy Hutchins, Shutterstock
72. She Spent Part of 2019 in a Psych Facility
Following her father’s hospitalization and Wallet’s accusations, Spears was hospitalized in a psychiatric facility. The reason given was that she was under great stress from her father’s illness and near-death, but many suspected that it was much more sinister.
73. Her Father Controls Her Life
As part of the conservatorship, Spears is subject to a number of rules set by her father, some of which are said to include no driving and a strict regimen of medication. It’s alleged that when Spears broke those rules, he put her in the psychiatric facility against her will.
s_bukley, Shutterstock
74. When She Disappeared, People Noticed
Stories like these sparked a #FreeBritney movement which was amplified by a number of celebrities including Miley Cyrus, Paris Hilton, and Cher. There was even a protest made by fans outside of West Hollywood City Hall.
75. The #FreeBritney Movement Worked—But to What Extent
No matter what the real story is, Spears was released from the psychiatric facility soon after, and made a video assuring fans that she was alright. However, her relationship with her father remains as complicated as ever.
Featureflash Photo Agency, Shutterstock
76. Her Father Is Being Investigated
In 2019—more than ten years after her father was made conservator—a hearing was finally scheduled to review the matter. Whatever happened behind closed doors, the judge saw enough problems with the situation to order an investigation into the matter, specifying that anyone with control over Spears—meaning her father—would be under a thoroughly watchful eye.
77. There Was a Scary Altercation at Her Home
Somehow, after this, the situation with Spears’ father got worse. Spears’ two songs with Federline still spend most of their lives with him, and in August 2019, Federline filed a police report after Jamie Spears, alleging that he’d abused 13-year-old Sean—and the details are utterly chilling.
78. She Protected Her Kids From Her Own Father
It’s said that, following an argument between Jamie Spears and Sean, that the elder Spears was so outraged that he broke down a door to get to Sean. A terrified Britney immediately sent the boys back to their father, even though it was still supposed to be her time with them.
ET Drone Home, Shutterstock
79. Her Father Is No Longer Allowed to See Her Kids
Since the incident, both Sean and Jayden have been given three-year restraining orders against their grandfather.
Featureflash Photo Agency, Shutterstock
80. Her Father Got Another Win in Court
In early 2020, Spears' conservatorship was extended til at least April 30, 2020, despite all the problems with her father.
Kathy Hutchins, Shutterstock
81. She Was Heartbroken Before Her Breakdown
There’s a popular saying on the internet: “If Britney Spears survived 2007, you can survive this.” While many remember Spears’ erratic behavior, public outbursts, and eventual breakdown of that year, few know about the heartbreaking event that started off the year for the starlet. Spears had been particularly close with her aunt Sandra, who passed in January 2007 after a battle with ovarian cancer.
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