Britney Spears has recently been trending across social media with the release of her latest single featuring Elton John. However, it seems the headlines are now focused on the star's bombshell video that was released on Sunday (August 28).
In the 22-minute YouTube clip, which has since been deleted, the singer discussed her much-publicized conservatorship and the abuse she suffered as a result.
Per Variety, the video was only audio, showing no picture and no view of Spears' face. In it, she can be heard saying: "I woke up this morning and I realized there's a lot going on in my head that I haven't shared with anyone."
The 'Toxic' singer then reveals that she has had multiple offers to speak about her conservatorship, including one from Oprah, which she allegedly turned down.
"I've had tons of opportunities…but I'm here to open myself to others and shed a light on it [...] I get nothing out of sharing this…I have offers [for] lots and lots of money…to me, it's beyond a sit-down, proper interview," the star said.
Spears, whose latest track with Elton John marks her first music since the end of her legal battles, admitted that she's "always been scared of the judgment and definitely the embarrassment of just of the whole thing, period, and the skepticism and the cynical people and their opinions of what people would actually think," ELLE reported.
She also reveals that, despite this, she's "in a place now where I'm a little bit more confident that I can be willing to share openly my thoughts and what I've been through."
The mom-of-two was placed under a legal conservatorship in 2008 by her father, Jamie Spears, following her public mental breakdown. This left her father in complete control of her finances and personal life, eventually leading to a highly exploitative situation which galvanized the #FreeBritney movement across social media.
The singer says in the audio clip that it was this movement that caused her unethical conservatorship to be brought into the spotlight.
Referencing the strict conservatorship, Spears stated: "Honestly to this day, I don't know really what I did. But the punishment of my father, I wasn't able to see anyone or say anything…none of it made sense to me."
She continues by claiming both her mother and father "pre-meditated" the events that induced the need for a conservatorship, revealing that: "A woman introduced the idea to my dad, and my mom actually helped him follow through and made it all happen."
The 40-year-old recounted the night that sparked everything, saying: "There were over 200 paparazzi outside my house videotaping me through a window of an ambulance holding me down on a gurney. It was all basically set up. There were no drugs in my system. No alcohol. No nothing. It was pure abuse. And I haven’t even really shared even half of it."
In the months following her conservatorship, Spears continued working incredibly hard - releasing her iconic Circus album and even maintaining a Las Vegas residency. Commenting on this, the singer said in the video: "I'd never remember feeling so demoralized and just, they made me feel like nothing. And I went along with it because I was scared. I was scared and fearful."
"I was a f***ing machine. Not even human almost, it was insane how hard I worked," she added, per ELLE.
To conclude her jaw-dropping clip, Spears left a message to anyone in a similar situation: "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. You know, this, my life has been far from easy and you're not alone."
Fans of the singer have taken to Twitter to comment on the video, with one person writing: "Listening to #BritneySpears confessions about her conservatorship is breaking my heart. This poor girl was kept a prisoner by her evil parents!! #freebritney They should be in jail!!!"
Another wrote: "I am so proud of #freebritney fans for having a brain and being loud about what they think was going on with Britney we all put the fear of god into [Britney's] dad and mom."
After the video's deletion, Spears posted a series of messages to her own Twitter account, writing: "You can lose your individuality on a fake tale of how other people may [perceive] you and some idiots like me fall into the trap cause unfortunately I do care…but at the end of the day…," she wrote in one tweet.
"I have to honor myself and realize it’s not about pleasing others or driving yourself crazy on what other think ... to honor myself ... and value myself is the only way to something we all seek ... Self love … value of self , and passing that on to every person I encounter !!!" she added in another.