It’s official – Britney Spears is set to make her long-awaited return to music with an upcoming collaboration with Elton John.
Speculation had been growing online in recent weeks that the music icons had secretly linked up to record a new track.
Reports emerged last week that Spears had recently attended a recording session with Sir Elton at a Beverly Hills studio, joined by Grammy-winning producer Andrew Wyatt.
Sir Elton confirmed a new track was on the way early on Tuesday morning, sharing the single’s artwork on Instagram.
The post was short on details, but included the words Hold Me Closer, the rumoured song title, along with both singers’ favourite emojis – a rocket for Elton, and a rose for Britney.
Although the post didn’t include a release date, their fans won’t need to wait long for the highly anticipated track.
Reps for both artists confirmed the duet is due to be released in the coming days.
The song is reportedly a fresh take on John’s hit 1971 song Tiny Dancer, reportedly also featuring parts of his 1992 track The One.
John released a similar mashup track with pop star Dua Lipa and Aussie trio Pnau in 2021.
Sampling tracks Rocket Man (I Think It’s Going to Be a Long, Long Time), Kiss the Bride and Where’s the Shoorah?, the song was a smash hit, reaching No.1 on the ARIA charts Down Under.
The collaboration may seem left of field, but John is a long-time friend and supporter of Spears, having invited her to his glitzy Oscar bashes on numerous occasions.
The collaboration marks Spears’ return to releasing music since the conclusion of her 13-year conservatorship in November.
It will also mark Spears’ first music release since her 2016 album Glory, though a rebooted ‘Deluxe’ version was released in 2020.
Spears first hinted that she had returned to the recording studio in December.
‘‘Pssss new song in the works … I’m gonna let you know what I mean!!!!!, [sic]’’ she wrote in a now-deleted Instagram post.
The singer had teased a return to music earlier this month, posting a cover of 1999 hit …Baby One More Time, but instead using a much deeper voice than was heard in the original.
“This is me yesterday doing laundry and separating clothes,” she captioned the clip.
“I haven’t shared my voice in an extremely long time … maybe too long … and here’s me playing at my house with a different version of Baby.’’
Memoir on hold
Not only has Spears been busy in the recording studio, but she’s also been hard at work completing her memoir.
Spears landed a record book deal in February after a fierce bidding war. Publisher Simon & Schuster offered the singer as much as $US15 million ($21.4 million) to tell her story.
Six months later, the singer’s memoir is reportedly complete. However, its release has been held up by supply-chain woes.
The memoir’s release schedule has reportedly been pushed back due to a mass paper shortage.
Originally scheduled for a January release date, the singer’s memoir is now likely to hit shelves later in 2023.
Fans will need to wait longer for the memoir, but it sounds like it will be worth the wait.
The pop princess is set to open up about everything, from her 13-year conservatorship and her life in the spotlight, to her ongoing feuds with father Jamie, mother Lynn and sister Jamie Lynn.
