Britney Spears’ soaring highs and devastating lows one year since end of cruel conservatorship
Britney issued a shout-out to fans ahead of her memoir release. (Valerie Macon/AFP via Getty Images)
It has been one year since pop icon Britney Spears was released from her conservatorship, with the star since signing a $15 million book deal, making her return to music, and speaking out further about her “awful” ordeal.
Britney’s conservatorship, which saw her father Jamie Spears hold power over her finances, career decisions, and major personal matters such as the medication she took, was terminated on 12 November 2021 after 13 years.
The termination of the conservatorship that had governed her life since 2008 recognised Spears as a free woman for the first time since her 20s.
Britney’s lawyer Mathew Rosengart said after the legal arrangement was ended that he is “so proud” of her.
“Not only is this momentous for Britney, but she helped shine a light on not only this conservatorship which was corrupted by her father James P Spears, but she helped shine a light on conservatorships and guardianships from coast to coast,” he told press.
Her ordeal ended after a long and emotional #FreeBritney campaign, which saw fans marching in the streets across the world and imploring courts to bring an end to the legal arrangement.
Britney Spears supporters gather to protest at the #FreeBritney Rally in New York in September 2021 (Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images)
Since winning her freedom, Britney, 40, has taken to social media several times to make new claims about her 13-year conservatorship, sharing more details with fans about how she was treated during that time.
In a now-deleted social media post, Britney revealed several details about her “abusive” conservatorship, which she said left her feeling “demoralised” and “feeling like nothing”.
Britney alleged that the conservatorship saw her treated like a money-making “puppet”, where she was drugged and forced to use birth control against her will.
“He [her father Jamie] loved to control everything I did,” she said. “I remember the first day, he said, ‘I’m Britney Spears, and I’m calling the shots.’ And I’m like, ‘Alrighty then.’
“I didn’t even do anything wrong and he still did it.”
She added that she was placed against her will in a mental health facility in 2019, which she claims has given her permanent nerve damage.
Thank you to my fans for making my song number one for a week now ??? !!! @eltonofficial
?: @monalisaney81 pic.twitter.com/Nanm02d7F4
— Britney Spears ?? (@britneyspears) September 2, 2022
Britney has also used her freedom to return to her music career, announcing a new duet with Elton John in August, six years since her last studio album Glory.
The new single was a remix of Elton John’s 1971 hit single “Tiny Dancer” and his 1992 song “The One”, with a sprinkling of his “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart”.
“I think with confidence comes enlightenment,” she said of the song. “The last thing they wanted me to do was to actually be better, because then who would be in control?”
She also announced a memoir in what was reportedly “one of the biggest book deals of all time”, with sources confirming to Variety that the book was snapped up for $15 million.
“I’m writing a book at the moment and it’s actually healing and therapeutic,” Britney wrote on Instagram.
Unfortunately Britney’s life since leaving her conservatorship has contained some tragic moments, with the star announcing that she and her new husband Sam Asghari had suffered a “devastating” miscarriage in May.
Asghari spoke out to thank fans for their “support” after announcing the couple had “lost our miracle baby in the pregnancy”.
“We have felt your support,” he wrote. “We are taking things positively and moving forward with our future.
“It’s hard but we are not alone. Thank you for respecting our privacy. We will be expanding our family soon.”
The pair reportedly married in June in an “intimate” ceremony, after getting engaged in September 2021, that saw all but one of Britney’s family members banned from the event.
