The Tragic Life of Britney Spears

The Princess of Pop wasn’t always so “lucky”. Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re looking at The Tragic Life of Britney Spears. Most people know that Britney Spears got her start as a child star, finding fame on the revival of “The Mickey Mouse Club”. But while Britney may have projected an image of an all-American girl from a typical family, her real home life was much more troubling. Her father, James “Jamie” Spears, struggled with alcoholism, which created an unstable home environment. After her parents finally divorced in the early 2000s, Britney told People Magazine, “My mom and dad, bottom line, do not get along. When I was a baby, they argued. I wanted this to happen 10 years ago.” In mid-2000s, her father quit drinking and he and Lynne reportedly got back together by the end of the decade By the time Britney hit stardom as a teen, everyone around her pushed her to work harder and harder, despite what she may have wanted or needed. She was reportedly only given an hour off every day for down time due to her hectic schedule. A friend alleged that her team would bribe them with shopping sprees if they’d coax Britney out of her trailer and get her to perform. But she was always desperate for the approval of others, especially her parents, so she worked herself into the ground. During this time she questioned whether she was really on the right career path, saying, “Personally, I'm a shy person and I'm particularly not really made for this industry because I am so shy. It's not something I deal with so well.” Once she became one of the biggest pop singers in the world however, she had very little control over her own life and even dreamed of being able to live like a normal person. In an interview with Rolling Stone, she said, "I'm supposed to take six months off, but I probably won't. The whole point of me taking a break is to be out of the public eye and not see my face on TV, because I'm sick of myself." She craved an everyday life where she could walk into a Starbucks and order a coffee or even pump her own gas. But her fame made that impossible and the team around her was extremely strict about her image, reportedly choosing every aspect of her look down to her underwear to make sure she fit the image that they had crafted of her. Considering how much scrutiny she was receiving in the press, it should come as no surprise that her love life was considered to be part of the public domain. In the early aughts, Britney and Justin Timberlake were pop music’s power couple, but when the two split the gossip milled churned with accusations that Britney had cheated, drumming up drama wherever they could. Justin’s treatment of Britney post-breakup was less than favorable and sources closer to her claimed that things took a negative turn for Britney after this point. In early 2004, she spontaneously married an old friend in Las Vegas, and annulled the union just 55 hours later. Later that same year, she married again, to dancer Kevin Federline, and this one lasted a little bit longer. While the marriage was doomed to fail, it did bring Britney her two sons, Sean Preston and Jayden James. Of the relationship, Britney said, "I think I married for all the wrong reasons. Instead of following my heart and, like, doing something that made me really happy. I just did it because ... for just, like, the idea of everything." She filed for divorce in 2006, and what followed was an ugly custody battle for her children that ended in Spears having to give Federline $20 thousand a month in child support. All of this was leading up to the pop culture moment that everyone surely remembers: Britney’s breakdown. Following the death of a close relative, she shaved her head completely bald at the beginning of 2007, which shocked the press considering her blonde locks were an integral part of her image. What came after was a string of stints in rehab as well as increasingly erratic behavior. She famously attacked a car with an umbrella after asking for privacy from the paparazzi and, in a separate incident, was involved in a hit and run while driving without a license. Despite the initial custody agreements, in October of 2007 Britney lost custody of her boys and full custody was given to their father, Kevin Federline. Public opinion had turned on her because of her behavior, which by that point included driving with her one year old son Sean on her lap in 2006, a move which she defended. Losing her children was the last thing in a long line of events in her downward spiral. Shortly after all of this, Britney lost even more control of her life, even though she had become an adult. She entered into a court-approved conservatorship in 2008, which gave her father (and a lawyer) power over her spending. While this is typically reserved for the elderly or otherwise infirm, an exception was made due to Britney’s mental state. The aim was to protect Britney’s fortune from her potentially reckless actions. She initially opposed the conservatorship, but when she was convinced it was what would be best for her children, she agreed to it. In the late 2010s, some of her fans started the #FreeBritney movement, protesting at her court appearances on the basis of granting her independence from her family’s control. Even today though, the conservatorship is ongoing, leaving Britney without financial freedom. On top of that, in 2019 Britney checked into a mental health facility, and many of her supporters believed that she was not there voluntarily and was being held against her will. Through it all, Britney has always wanted to focus on being a good mother. Britney’s ex, David Lucado, said, “If anyone could see her interactions with her kids, they would know that there is no need for a conservatorship over Britney’s personal life.” And so, here’s hoping for the best for Britney, her family and her career in the near future.