Britney Spears posts 22-minute audio addressing conservatorship
By Elizabeth Joseph, CNN
Britney Spears, who last November celebrated a legal victory that freed her from a 13-year conservatorship that controlled her personal and professional life, is sharing more about her experience during that time.
The singer posted a 22-minute audio clip to YouTube on Sunday in which she addressed her conservatorship and the alleged abuse she says she was put through by her family.
“I was scared broken. I’m sharing this because I want people to know I’m only human. I do feel victimized after these experiences and how can I mend this if I don’t talk about it,” Spears said.
CNN has reached out to representatives for Spears to verify the authenticity of the audio message, which has been posted in its entirety on TMZ and other outlets.
In the recording, Spears says she’s had “tons of opportunities” to interview with media outlets, including Oprah Winfrey, that would have paid for her to “share the hardships and just really anything that’s going on in my mind.”
The audio recording also included a reference to a time where Spears says she was sent to a facility where she had six units of blood drawn on a weekly basis. In a tweet, she later clarified those comments, writing, “A reminder to some of you who may have gotten what I said confused … it was 6 small vials of blood not 6 gallons !!!”
Lynne Spears, the singer’s mother, seemed to respond to the audio recording with in a post on her verified Instagram account on Sunday night.
“Britney, your whole life I have tried my best to support your dreams and wishes! And also I have tried my best to help you out of hardships! I have never and will never turn my back on you! Your rejections to the countless times I have flown out and calls make me feel hopeless! I have tried everything,” she wrote. “I love you so much, but this talk is for you and me only, eye to eye, in private.”
Spears debuted her first new single in six years on Friday with the release of “Hold Me Closer,” her collaboration with Elton John.
“I have an amazing song right now with one of the most brilliant men of our time and I’m so grateful,” Spears said her YouTube post. “But if you’re a weird, if you’re a weird introvert oddball like me, who feels alone a lot of the time and you needed to hear a story like this today so you don’t feel alone, know this: my life has been far from easy and you’re not alone.”
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CNN’s Megan Thomas contributed to this story.
