#FreeBritney: Everything You Need to Know
#10: Everything Started After a Paralegal Spoke Out
So what does this hashtag actually mean? Well, it all started in April 2019, when a Britney Spears fan podcast, Britney’s Gram, released an "emergency episode," in which they revealed a disturbing rumor. The podcast went on to play a voicemail they had received from a paralegal associated with Spears' conservatorship case. The voicemail dropped the bomb that Spears had not checked herself into a mental facility in April as had been previously reported. Rather, according to this source, she was being held in the facility against her will, and had been there since JANUARY. This news obviously rattled Britney’s fan base who quickly started the hashtag Free Britney, demanding the star’s immediate release. A source close to her team has since released a statement that Britney was committed out of fear for her life, but Britney fans remain sceptical.
#9: The Real Reason Her Residency Was Canceled
Britney’s involuntary admittance to an institution is not the only explosive piece of information the voicemail revealed. The paralegal also shed light on Britney’s now canceled Las Vegas residency. Britney was set to begin a new residency in February 2019. However, in January, the residency was abruptly canceled. The reason? According to Britney’s instagram, her father Jamie Spears’ health was in decline after having suffered a rupture colon. She thus made the decision to cancel the residency to be there for her ailing father. According to the voicemail received by Britney’s Gram however, this was just a cover. The source alleged that her residency was actually cancelled by her father after she refused to take her medication. He then reportedly instructed her team to blame it on his illness and had the singer committed not long after.
#8: Britney’s Has Been Under a Conservatorship for 11 Years
The Free Britney movement has made it its mission to not only get Britney out of the institution she is reportedly being held in, but also to end the conservatorship she has been under for 11 years. A conservatorship is a process that is often put into place with the elderly or mentally infirm, and sets up a person or persons to assist in running an individual's personal and financial affairs. That individual is then a ward to the conservatorship, and essentially puts everyday decisions in the hands of multiple people. Britney has been in this care since 2008, with her father and a lawyer as her conservators. Britney fans are now questioning why, over a decade later, the singer would STILL be under this agreement when she has proved herself to be capable enough to do a residency, tour the world multiple times and release 4 albums.
#7: The Conservatorship Was Supposed to End After the "Circus" Tour
Another interesting revelation from the podcast was that Britney’s Circus tour in 2009 was supposed to mark the end of her conservatorship. Spears was reportedly told that the conservatorship would be over after the "Circus" dates, but promoter Live Nation reportedly balked at insuring a follow-up tour, thus keeping the conservatorship in place. According to the source, “when that didn’t happen… Britney had another sort of mental break.” The conservatorship thus became a permanent part of Britney’s life, to the dismay of her fans who feel she should be in control of her own life.
#6: The Lawyer Involved With Her Case Recently Quit
Andrew Wallet is a lawyer who was a part of the Spears conservatorship, until he resigned from the position of March of 2019 after having just recently been given a substantial raise. The reason behind Wallet’s departure, according to the paralegal’s voicemail, is that he felt so uncomfortable with the treatment that Britney was receiving that he worried he would be disbarred were he to continue on the case. This lead fans to believe that the situation must be dire, if the lawyer involved were willing to give up his salary to ensure he had no part in what was going on.
#5: The Response from Those Involved
Britney fans have been bombarding everyone on Britney’s team, desperate for answers. Britney's ex-manager Adam Leber has played coy about the #FreeBritney hashtag, neither confirming nor denying the story, while Lou Taylor, her business manager, has fielded criticism from fans concerning her role in advising The Spears Family in favor of the conservatorship. She has not commented on the situation and has disabled comments on her latest Instagram post. Meanwhile, Britney’s current manager Larry Rudolph is under fire after Britney’s Gram’s anonymous source implied that he cares more about the revenue from the singer's Vegas residency than her mental well-being. He also has yet to comment on the allegations.
#4: Britney's Team Has Reportedly Been Deleting #FreeBritney Comments
News today doesn't just travel fast; it's immediate. As a result, all of the hoopla behind the scenes of the Spears estate has just added more fuel to the #FreeBritney fire. The pop icon still has legions of fans who grew up with her music, and who are devoted to her well being. However, those same fans have reported their #FreeBritney hashtags and comments have been routinely deleted from the singer's Instagram and social media presence, lending further credence to their fears that something fishy is going on.
#3: Britney Has Made Attempts in the Past to Get Out
Sometimes, being in a conservatorship is a necessary evil, for one's own good and well-being. However, it has become clear over the years that Britney is unhappy being in this position. There have been leaked voicemails attributed to Britney Spears where she expresses a desire to be free from the conservatorship, implying that her father Jamie threatened to take her children away, should she not comply.
#2: Her Team Censors Any Talk of the Conservatorship
Britney's team is notoriously tight with any and all of her public appearances and media. This extends to interviews with hosts such as Carson Daly, who have lambasted the team's insistence on pre-interview question submissions and editing. This effectively lets Team Britney control and spin the narrative as they see fit. Speaking of editing, a 2016 appearance on "The Jonathan Ross Show" made headlines when it was leaked early that Spears was due to discuss the conservatorship, but any commentary was edited out of the final broadcast.
#1: Her Mother Has Been Liking #FreeBritney Comments
Britney's mother Lynne Spears has been conspicuously absent from our conversation thus far, but we want to end this list with a bit of positivity. It's been Lynne's Instagram page which has proven to be a safe haven for fans who want to leave #FreeBritney comments without fear of deletion. Instead, Britney's mom has taken to acknowledging and liking many of them. This is something of a double edged sword: on one hand it adds a lot of legitimacy to what is a strange and sad story, yet it also offers hope that there will be light at the end of the tunnel for the pop princess. Her fans certainly hope so.