More than 20 years into her career, Britney Spears still sits on the throne as the Princess of Pop.
The former Mouseketeer burst onto the music scene in 1998 with her debut single, “…Baby One More Time.” After releasing three successful albums, 1999’s …Baby One More Time, 2000’s Oops!… I Did It Again and 2001’s Britney, she made her feature film debut in 2002’s Crossroads. She continued to top the charts with her next two albums, 2003’s In the Zone and 2007’s Blackout, before a series of personal struggles forced her to take some time away from the spotlight.
In 2006, Spears filed for divorce from her husband of two years, Kevin Federline, with whom she shares sons Preston and Jayden. In the months that followed, she made headlines for shaving her head, dating a paparazzo, checking in and out of rehab and ultimately being hospitalized on an involuntary psychiatric hold. A Los Angeles court placed Spears under a conservatorship in 2008, putting her father, Jamie Spears, and an attorney, Andrew Wallet, in control of her personal affairs and her multimillion-dollar estate.
Later that year, the Grammy winner shocked the world when she made one of the biggest comebacks in music history. She released another hit album, Circus, began touring the world again and landed appearances on TV shows including How I Met Your Mother and Glee.
The accomplishments did not stop there either. Following the release of her seventh album, 2011’s Femme Fatale, Britney judged a season of The X Factor in 2012 and secured her own residency in Las Vegas in 2013, paving the way for future headliners including Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez and Christina Aguilera.
Two more albums followed, 2013’s Britney Jean and 2016’s Glory, as did a pair of concert tours that brought the entertainer’s Vegas show, Britney: Piece of Me, around the world. But in 2019, she decided to take some time off again. Britney was still in the news during her indefinite work hiatus, however, as she sought treatment at a mental health facility and went to court in an attempt to take back control of her life from her dad.
After Wallet resigned as co-conservator, the “Gimme More” singer said in 2020 that she was “strongly opposed” to Jamie being in charge. In his place, she requested that a licensed fiduciary, Jodi Montgomery, and a corporate fiduciary, Bessemer Trust, oversee her personal life and her money, respectively. Jamie, on the other hand, continued to fight to stay on the case, as documented in a 2021 episode of The New York Times Presents titled “Framing Britney Spears.”
In September 2021, however, Jamie relinquished his power as conservator of his daughter’s estate. Two months later, Britney finally got her freedom when Judge Brenda Penny terminated the conservatorship after months of a highly publicized back-and-forth between the singer and her family.
“Good God I love my fans so much it’s crazy!!! ,” the “Perfume” songstress wrote via Instagram after news of the ruling broke. “I think I’m gonna cry the rest of the day !!!! Best day ever … praise the Lord … can I get an Amen???? #FreedBritney.”
Keep scrolling for a look back at Britney’s biggest achievements since 2008:
More than 20 years into her career, Britney Spears still sits on the throne as the Princess of Pop.
The former Mouseketeer burst onto the music scene in 1998 with her debut single, “…Baby One More Time.” After releasing three successful albums, 1999’s …Baby One More Time, 2000’s Oops!… I Did It Again and 2001’s Britney, she made her feature film debut in 2002’s Crossroads. She continued to top the charts with her next two albums, 2003’s In the Zone and 2007’s Blackout, before a series of personal struggles forced her to take some time away from the spotlight.
In 2006, Spears filed for divorce from her husband of two years, Kevin Federline, with whom she shares sons Preston and Jayden. In the months that followed, she made headlines for shaving her head, dating a paparazzo, checking in and out of rehab and ultimately being hospitalized on an involuntary psychiatric hold. A Los Angeles court placed Spears under a conservatorship in 2008, putting her father, Jamie Spears, and an attorney, Andrew Wallet, in control of her personal affairs and her multimillion-dollar estate.
Later that year, the Grammy winner shocked the world when she made one of the biggest comebacks in music history. She released another hit album, Circus, began touring the world again and landed appearances on TV shows including How I Met Your Mother and Glee.
The accomplishments did not stop there either. Following the release of her seventh album, 2011’s Femme Fatale, Britney judged a season of The X Factor in 2012 and secured her own residency in Las Vegas in 2013, paving the way for future headliners including Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez and Christina Aguilera.
[jwplayer 49sMWOAO-zhNYySv2]
Two more albums followed, 2013’s Britney Jean and 2016’s Glory, as did a pair of concert tours that brought the entertainer’s Vegas show, Britney: Piece of Me, around the world. But in 2019, she decided to take some time off again. Britney was still in the news during her indefinite work hiatus, however, as she sought treatment at a mental health facility and went to court in an attempt to take back control of her life from her dad.
After Wallet resigned as co-conservator, the “Gimme More” singer said in 2020 that she was “strongly opposed” to Jamie being in charge. In his place, she requested that a licensed fiduciary, Jodi Montgomery, and a corporate fiduciary, Bessemer Trust, oversee her personal life and her money, respectively. Jamie, on the other hand, continued to fight to stay on the case, as documented in a 2021 episode of The New York Times Presents titled “Framing Britney Spears.”
In September 2021, however, Jamie relinquished his power as conservator of his daughter’s estate. Two months later, Britney finally got her freedom when Judge Brenda Penny terminated the conservatorship after months of a highly publicized back-and-forth between the singer and her family.
“Good God I love my fans so much it’s crazy!!! ,” the “Perfume” songstress wrote via Instagram after news of the ruling broke. “I think I’m gonna cry the rest of the day !!!! Best day ever … praise the Lord … can I get an Amen???? #FreedBritney.”
Keep scrolling for a look back at Britney’s biggest achievements since 2008:
Credit:
‘How I Met Your Mother’ Cameo
Spears guest-starred as receptionist Abby on the CBS sitcom in March 2008. TV critics praised the “Ten Sessions” episode, which brought the series its highest ratings ever at the time with 10.62 million viewers.
Credit: Dave Hoganr/Getty Images
VMA Wins
One year after stumbling through a performance of her song “Gimme More” on stage, the pop star returned to the MTV Video Music Awards in September 2008 and received three honors: Best Female Video, Best Pop Video and Video of the Year for “Piece of Me.” The evening was highlighted in her documentary Britney: For the Record.
Credit:
Top of the Charts
In October 2008, “Womanizer” became Spears’ first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 since her 1998 debut, “…Baby One More Time.” It was the lead single from her sixth album, Circus, and later earned a Grammy nomination.
Credit: Adam Rose/FOX
‘Glee’ Cameo
The Louisiana native had her own tribute episode of the Fox musical dramedy in September 2010. Glee club member Brittany S. Pierce (Heather Morris) recreated some of Spears’ most iconic performances, while the star herself appeared in the students’ dream sequences. The episode was Glee’s third largest ever with 13.51 million viewers.
Credit: Jason Merritt/Getty Images
Vanguard Award
Lady Gaga, dressed as her male alter ego, Jo Calderone, presented Spears with the MTV Video Vanguard Award at the 2011 VMAs. When they almost locked lips on stage, the “Toxic” singer joked, “I’ve done that already,” referencing her 2003 kiss with Madonna.
Credit: Ray Mickshaw / FOX
‘The X Factor’ Stint
The Grammy winner replaced Nicole Scherzinger on the judging panel for season 2 of the U.S. version of the singing competition, joining Simon Cowell, L.A. Reid and Demi Lovato. She received a reported salary of $15 million for mentoring the teen category. Her final act, Carly Rose Sonenclar, was the runner-up.
Credit: Denise Truscello/WireImage
Las Vegas Residency
Spears kicked off Piece of Me in December 2013. She performed a number of her greatest hits, including “Oops! … I Did It Again,” “I’m a Slave 4 U,” “Stronger” and “Till the World Ends.” The show was named the Best of Las Vegas in 2015 and 2017. A revamped version opened in February 2016 with the addition of songs from Spears’ album Glory.
Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images
BBMAs Performance
The superstar wowed the audience at the Billboard Music Awards in May 2016 with a career-spanning medley that included “Work Bitch,” “Womanizer” and many more. She was then presented with the Billboard Millennium Award, which honors artists with exceptional achievements in the industry. Past recipients included Beyoncé and Whitney Houston.
Credit: Kevin Mazur/WireImage
VMA Return
Spears hit the stage at the VMAs in August 2016 for the first time in nine years. With some help from G-Eazy, she performed her song “Make Me…” before launching into a snippet of his hit “Me, Myself & I.” While the performance didn’t quite top her iconic past appearances at the awards show, she looked incredible in a yellow bodysuit and totally nailed her choreography.
Credit: Matt Baron/Shutterstock
GLAAD Honor
Ricky Martin presented Spears with the GLAAD Vanguard Award at the GLAAD Media Awards in April 2018 for the positive impact she has had on the LGBTQ community over the years. “I feel like our society has always put such an emphasis on what’s ‘normal,’ and to be different is unusual or seen as strange. But to be accepted unconditionally and to be able to express yourself as an individual through art is such a blessing,” she said during her acceptance speech.
Credit: Courtesy of Britney Spears/Instagram
Planned Second Vegas Residency
After Us broke the news that the Crossroads actress had signed a deal to stay on the Las Vegas Strip following the end of Piece of Me, she confirmed in October 2018 that she was working on a new residency titled Britney: Domination. She was reportedly expected to earn more than $500,000 per show, which would have made her the highest-paid act in Sin City, but she ultimately canceled Domination one month before its scheduled February 2019 launch to take care of her ill father, Jamie.
Credit: Denise Truscello/BSLV/Getty Images for Brandcasting, Inc
Vegas Residency Wraps
Piece of Me ended its four-year run in December 2017. The 248-show run grossed nearly $137.7 million. A source exclusively told Us at the time that “there wasn’t a dry eye in the house” when the residency officially concluded on New Year’s Eve.
Credit: Jason Szenes/EPA/Shutterstock
The End of Her Conservatorship
After a years-long battle to end the conservatorship she was placed under in 2008, Britney finally gained her freedom in November 2021. “That beautiful … nice … and warm f–king fuzzy feeling when you’ve been waiting patiently for 13 years to be able to live your life however you choose and it’s finally here !!!!” she wrote via Instagram two weeks after the court ruling. “Lighting my candles sure is a joy folks !!!”
Credit: Rob Latour/Shutterstock
Multimillion-Dollar Book Deal
In February 2022, Us confirmed that Britney inked a multimillion-dollar contract to publish a memoir with Simon & Schuster after being released from her conservatorship. “Britney will hold nothing back in the memoir,” an insider told Us in March 2022, adding that the pop star felt “extremely betrayed” following the publication of Jamie Lynn’s memoir. “She will lay out that without her, Jamie Lynn would have no career.”
