The rumors surrounding Britney Spears have been coming fast and furious over the past few months. They’ve centered on everything from her marriage to her caffeine habits to her alleged behavior at restaurants, but on the whole, these whispers and reports have largely only included quotes from unnamed insiders and people on the periphery of the pop star’s life. That changed this weekend, however, as a lengthy piece was published that included quotes from the singer’s estranged father and ex-husband, the latter of whom said he fears Spears is on meth.
The story in question was published by The Daily Mail and is written from the point of view of Daphne Barak, who claims to have spent time with the family as part of a documentary. In the story, she quotes from both Kevin Federline and Jamie Spears as part of a larger narrative about the singer being out of control and her family allegedly worrying about her behavior and possible drug usage. Here’s a quote that ran in the piece from Federline…
I fear she's on meth – I've been praying someone would make it public and that she wakes up. It's terrifying. She is the mother of my boys.
The back-up dancer and DJ who has been divorced from Spears since 2007 also allegedly said he gets worried whenever the phone rings because he doesn’t want the boys to wake up to discover their mother “has taken an overdose.” The piece also includes comments from Spears’ father Jamie, who she is currently in a lawsuit with. He compared the singer’s situation to that of Amy Winehouse and said she “may die.”
The entire article, which is quite long, doesn’t read like your standard hit piece against Britney Spears. There are some rather unflattering things in it about Federline such as questions about where child support money went and very negative descriptions of the conditions his family allegedly lives in. It also includes accusations against Spears’ father related to bullying and controlling her during the conservatorship. That gives it a bit more of a feeling of credibility, but there are still reasons to be cautious about rushing to judgment.
By all accounts, neither Federline nor Jamie Spears has much contact with Britney these days. Jamie is currently being sued by his daughter for his usage of money, her money, during the conservatorship, and by most accounts, the contact between Federline and Spears these days is mostly done through lawyers. Neither one of them is accusing her of being on drugs directly because neither of them would have had any opportunity to see her on drugs or even see her at all, really. So, any judgments they might be making or accusations are either based on stories they’re hearing from other people or social media posts they’re interpreting.
And there are plenty of people who have something to say about Britney Spears right now. Her words and actions are dissected by millions of fans and turned into stories by a variety of media outlets. The truth is there likely aren’t a ton of people who know exactly what is going on with Spears right now and where her head is at. Sure, sometimes she drops some concerning social media posts, but being very honest about your personal feelings and emotions on social media is okay. Plenty of people choose to share all parts of their lives, even if they're messy or some people might have a problem with them.
Regardless, if Spears does have a problem, it’s not going to be solved by her ex-husband allegedly accusing her of being on meth to random journalists. Nor is it going to be solved by her father constantly dropping quotes about her behavior, usually as a contrast to how allegedly perfect her life was when he was in charge of her conservatorship. As a fan, all I want is the best for Spears. If that means she needs help, then I hope she gets it. If that means she’s totally fine and people are making things up, then I hope she’s able to find happiness even amidst all the unfair noise.
