Britney Spears apologizes to fans for 'pretending like I've been okay'


Britney Spears got real with her fans on Thursday, writing on Instagram that based on the pictures and videos she posts, "my life seems to look and be pretty amazing," but she doesn't want people to "think my life is perfect because IT'S DEFINITELY NOT AT ALL."
During a public hearing on Wednesday, the 39-year-old singer spoke out against the court-ordered conservatorship she's been under for the last 13 years, calling it "abusive." The experience has been "traumatizing," Spears said, and she is depressed. Her father, Jamie Spears, is the conservator of her $60 million estate, while professional conservator Jodi Montgomery supervises her personal and health matters. Spears told the court they won't let her remove an IUD, despite her wishes to have a baby, or get married.
She referred to her court hearing in the Instagram caption, saying if "you have read anything about me in the news this week," you know that her life isn't all sunshine and roses. "I apologize for pretending like I've been okay these past two years," she added. "I did it because of my pride and I was embarrassed to share what happened to me."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Spears explained that "pretending that I'm okay has actually helped" her get through this challenging time, and she found that Instagram gave her "a cool outlet to share my presence ... existence ... and to simply feel like I matter despite what I was going through, and hey, it worked..." The caption was attached to an image of a child holding a teddy bear, and the quote, "If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclub
Speed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's ills
Speed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, Stallone
Speed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's view
Speed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talk
Speed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'
Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wife
speed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play