Gay&Night Januari 2014

Britney Spears’ latest album
Britney Jean (taken from her
family nickname) is her most
personal to date. The new
record, executive produced
by will.i.am (Black Eyed
Peas), reminds us of her
well-honed musical roots
rather than her status as an
international tabloid fixture
since the late 90s.
The Mississippi-born star has endured
a turbulent life in the spotlight,
starting out as a Disney child star
(with fellow Mouseketeers Justin
Timberlake, Christina Aguilera and
Ryan Gosling) from 1992 until 1995. In
1999, she became a teenage pop icon
with ‘Baby One More Time’, followed
by ‘Ooops!... I Did It Again’ in 2000.
Her good girl image was quickly
eclipsed by the next phase of her
career as a trashy sex symbol whose
ubiquitous presence in the media
was often due to public meltdowns,
inappropriate fashion choices, rehab
stints, broken marriages, law suits and
motherhood. Approaching the next
chapter of her life as a hit-maker for
the second time around, Britney will
soon begin her two-year residency in
Las Vegas, which will net her a cool
US $15 million.
Britney Jean seems to be
much more personal than
your previous albums.
Yes, it is. I wanted to do something
that was a little more personal for
my fans, since I went through a lot
this year with the breakup with Jason
[Trewick, the talent agent Britney got
engaged to in 2011 – ed.]. I wanted
to share these personal moments
with them.
What was the breakup like?
It was a hard breakup. Not one of my
hardest, but I definitely had some
things to say on my album about it,
so you’ll see. During the production
of this album I was going through the
breakup, so that’s why I’ve written
about it a lot.
So was writing the album
like therapy in a way?
I would say working on Britney Jean
was somewhat like therapy for me,
yes. It kind of transformed me. As you
write something, your perspective
changes, so I this album my ‘good
therapy record’.
Why the title?
My full name is Britney Jean Spears
and when I do something bad and my
family gets mad at me, they always
shout ‘Britney Jean!’. I thought it
would be fun for my fans.
What was it like working
with will.i.am?
He is so much fun to be with. In the
studio, we would just throw out
anything and put our heads together.
It was like a scientific experiment.
He’s off the wall; he’s like a little kid
genius.
What was your idea
behind the song ‘Work
Bitch’?
‘Work Bitch’ is for my gay fans. I love
my gay fans and they always want
some term of endearment from me, a
street slang thing that they use. ‘Work
Bitch’ is a form of street slang.
How are you preparing
for the upcoming Vegas
stint? It must be physically
exhausting.
In the past four years, I’ve done
two tours and touring is so hard on
the body. Sometimes I look back
and I don’t know how I did it. It’s
so grueling being on the road and
staying in a different bed every night
and the schedule is insane, so I’m
really looking forward to just being
in one home and staying still. It gives
you a more stable environment and
Las Vegas is a fun place. There is so
much going on and the energy there
is incredible. You feel it walking
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TEXT: Sian Edwards / The Interview People | PHOTOS: Sony Music