So Britney Spears is attempting yet another comeback, and while her music is (arguably) just as good (she’s certainly churning out the hits again, as she did in 2009) her stage presence just isn’t what it once was. Kaiser and I were e-mailing about this, and she said it’s kind of mean to point out how much Britney has changed, since she’s heavily medicated this time around. I think it’s to be expected and is fair, especially since Britney is putting on nationally televised concerts and is embarking on another tour. She’s just not bringing it like she used to, and if Madonna can put on a big tour and work it at over 50, Britney can bring a little more enthusiasm to her shows at under-30.
PopDust put together the above video of Britney performing in the past vs. now. As Popeater points out, it’s not like Britney is as bad as she was at the 2007 VMAs, but the difference is very noticeable. She’s always lipsynched, but she used to put on a better show and she used to really dance. It just makes you question whether this latest tour is her idea, or whether she’s being pushed to perform, yet again, by a large team of people who rely on her to bring in the money. I think the answer is clear.
this is mean. but yeah, she was awesome and in her prime around the time of that Madonna video. damn. Too bad
considering what the ticket prices will be, it’s a fair comparison.
watching that video made me feel very sad, like we could never truly understand the depth of her mental break.
Watching the video was heartbreaking. I never really appreciated how good she was back in the day because it just looked so slick and… easy for her. And Toxic is one of the top 10 pop songs of the 2000s.
I think she’s just become a money robot. Her handlers wind her up and put her on stage. I get the feeling that’s shes done with all of this…..
So is a heavy medication a valid excuse? I’m sorry but she doesn’t give a discount because of it and her fans sort of expect what they’ve already seen at her shows. Why should they be happy with less?It’s not as if her voice got dramatically better so I’d rather pay $ for a single online than $$ for such a show
There’s been talk of a past knee injury and I’m sure that makes a difference, but it’s more than that. The spark is gone. The joy she had in performing is dead now. I’m sure she’d like nothing more than to be done with all of it.
i agree w/ rose…sad..poor brit 🙁
this is sadness personified.
i’m gonna just say it.
the key to britney’s success is that she is a white girl who can dance/sing/perform as well as janet jackson (if not better).
there i said it.
she defied the whole ‘they ain’t got rhythm’ nonsense and could even hold her own on stage with the king of pop himself.
if her meds are mandatory & making her bloated (along with dad’s fried mayo sandwiches) and barely able to bring it in her dancing which is the very ‘thing’ that made her famous…then i think it’s curtains for this gal.
being a porker and sensually touching dancers on stage ain’t performing.
i mean hells bells, even liza minelli brought it on stage doing the ‘single ladies’ performance in SATC2 and she’s like 104!
pity. 🙁
Honestly, there’s people right now dancing in their rooms better than Britney. You go to her show, you spend high money on the ticket, to listen to her lipsynch and dance like shit? It’s disrespectful. If she doesn’t wanna do this anymore, just say it, don’t blame on pills or babies.
Madonna still bring it at 50, so all the others has to try better.
That’s sad. I think she should retire. She is over. I can’t believe that people still buy her. They are just delusional.
@Rose ITA, watching that was really depressing. She used to kill her performances. Her dancing was seriously up to par and now she just seems so out of it or at least not passionate about it. Very sad.
Um…she’s definitely a far cry from what she used to be. Now not only is she Lnyc but she cant dance. At least when she was dancing you could forgive the LS but now shes not even lifting a leg 60 degrees so now you cant help but notice she isnt singing…why the hell are people willing to lose cash for that?
Jesus! At least she appears to be awake on the right. Poor wreck.
qwe- While I am not a fan of hers, it is rather rude of you to call people who do like her “delusional”
It’s so sad to see her on stage. It’s embarrassing. If you look at her eyes you can tell her heart is not longer there. She is so medicated shes a robot doing what she has been told to do. She is only making money for k-fed, the boys and k-feds expectant girlfriend.
If she wants to last like Madonna she will have to work like Madonna not some drugged out puppet.
Good luck Britany.
I grew up to Britney videos and was always in awe of her incredible dance skills, more than anything else. It’s very sad to have watched the passion get sucked out of her year by year, but I suffer from bipolar disorder as well, and I completely understand the affects of medication and of the disease itself. I manage it well now, but there have been periods of time where getting out of bed was hard enough.
I cannot imagine being in her shoes right now, attempting to function on a world stage, especially with what she has to live up to. But as another commenter pointed out recently, this is all she knows. This is her equivalent of maintaining: getting up and going to work every day. The job just happens to be superstar.
Wow it’s pretty shocking to see the comparison side-by-side like that. I forgot how sharp & well executed her dance moves used to be. She used to have a passion for dancing and performing, and she was SO GOOD too, but now she looks like she can barely move at half speed. Not to sound harsh, since I know she is heavily medicated, but her dance moves today seem so lazy. Like, she barely moves. She really doesn’t seem like she wants to be there…
That being said, I’d rather have a tired, slow Britney than no Britney at all. I really like her recent music a lot. Just so sad that she has changed so much and obviously gone through such a hard time in her life. 🙁
Agree that people pay top dollar to go see her show, so the comparisons are fair, but good grief. She’s nearly 30 years old, which is a far cry from her heyday in her late teens/early 20s – for anyone.
I don’t know why people are calling this round a comeback…she didn’t fall again after Circus came out, and she’s putting out the same stuff she’s always put out so it’s not like this is a reinvention.
MTV ran a special on her last week called “I Am the Femme Fatale”. She did a sit down interview with a guy (don’t know his name but he did a great interview) and it seemed very clear that her heart isn’t in this anymore. She did say that she’s doing what she loves to do – there may be truth to that – but then he asked if he saw her doing this in her 50s, like Madonna, and she was very flip in her answer. Said something like, I don’t know…I hope so…but who knows…
It is sad to see a side by side comparison, knowing all of the emotional trauma she’s been through in the past few years. People root for Britney…if she were to take a few years off, out of Hollywood with her kids and her boyfriend, she’d be welcomed back with open arms whenever she really felt like coming back. Only she knows if she’s really out there now because she wants to be.
Also… who remembers the Britney/Justin night-club dance-off? That actually happened.
@Rose…agreed. So sad.
See what I mean about her eyes, though? They are all droopy now. They didn’t used to be.
Ugh, now I’m depressed. Poor girl.
SO MEAN
For the life of me I can’t understand why people would pay big bucks to go see her now. All you’re getting for your $100-150 is a drugged, slightly bloated woman lip synching and pretending to dance. She’s not into the “performance” at all, and in fact she looks like she’s not even there. The comparison between Brit and a robot is apt. It’s sad that her people keep pushing her out there, but truly, it’s the fault of the people paying for her concerts. If people stopped going to her shows, then they wouldn’t force Brit to get out there and pretend to perform anymore.
The whole situation is just sad. I don’t know if she has lost her mojo or if she is really more messed up than what we are led to believe. However, it seems to me that her dancers are helping her around, downstairs and stuff. She might heavily medicated and is just going through motions.
That video is very sad, however Brit needs to retire. Just last year she made over 45 million so she has made enough for a lifetime for herself and everyone that she employs.
@ 16 What Brit pays Kevin is a drop in the bucket compared to what she brings in every year. I am sure she has no problem paying it because he is a good father and has actually acted with dignity since her breakdown.
I guess for die hard fans it’s worth the ticket price but she’s def not the performer she once was.
The people who need to leave Britney alone are the handlers and managers who seem to be pushing her to tour when she obviously isn’t capable at the moment so that they can make cash. Let her get her sanity back and custody of her children before she tours.
If she’s still claiming she’s good and charging people to see it then this is completely fair.
And enough with the “she’s still good for her age/weight/lifestyle/medication/sun sign being in Venus. That very well may be, but it doesn’t mean we should all be grateful to see her waddle and shlump around stage at that level and praise her for it. Why should we celebrate an inferior product? If I go to a restaurant, I don’t give my compliments to the chef just because “hey–I didn’t get food poisoning! Bravo! It was passable as food!”
If you can’t compete, retire.
This makes me wonder if she isn’t on some heavy duty antipsychotics, to be honest. Perhaps it is more than just bi-polar that she is suffering from.
mln76 – she is obviously suffering from a mental illness. She will never get her sanity back, nor regain custody of her childen. Mental illnesses are something you manage and live with, not something you recover from.
The VMA where she did ‘hit me baby..’,she was so hot back then.She was so stinking cute and sexy.That VMA preformance will always be my favorite.She was still newish,and no one was excpecting her to bring it like that.I love Brit,and always will,but I dont like this album yet(could grow on me)and she should be ashamed of her dancing.
devilgirl
Brit is not able to do this anymore. She can’t sing, she barley move. She lost the “it factor” she used to have. People should leave her alone and stop pretend that everything is ok. It’s not. Can’t you see that this whole situation, new cd, videos, tour only make her look pathetic. And yeas people are delusional if they think that everything is just fine and she can bring them joy and fun.
its like someone killed Britney and now a fake is pretending to be her!!how can someone change that much?its not the weigh,the meds or the bad knee its the fact that she can’t move with the same confidence she used to have..she is under 30 and she could have it all…its just so sad 🙁
And her lame fans will still shell out hundreds of dollars to see her flop around like a drugged up rag doll on stage.
And the age thing is a bad excuse. Paula Abdul and Janet Jackson can still dance circles around younger performers.
She also used to wear apparel for dancing back in the day too – now she is always in heels and boots and corsets – not stuff you can move around easily in. I heart Britney – always have, always will. I love her music and just want her to be happy and healthy. I don’t think she should go on tour unless she wants to bring it like the old days though.
I’m not sure if this has even entered into the conversation but didn’t she blow out both knees? I know she had major knee surgery on at least one knee. That combined with her medication is certainly a valid excuse.
@mini Ts
Then she’d better learn to sing or go home.
She was so talented, besides she had the best body i have ever seen and (will see probably).- Ijust adore her, but altohugh she has improved she is not the same unfortunately
Bottom line- If people are going to pay the bucks to see her knowing what she brings to the table, then quit yer bitchin 😉
@Brittney, great insight to bipolar. People don’t understand the effects of the medication to keep her even. It’s why many bipolar people go off of it, they feel under water or numb and miss the manic highs they had. And, yes, I disagree with people saying she is a money machine for other people. She’s been off work for two years now as far as performing and will do a summer tour. She worked on the album, but since she didn’t write or produce it, it was probably fun for her to do since other people had the headaches. People need to work to feel fulfilled. For those who think she should stay home year after year, I disagree. If Britney didn’t want to do this tour, she wouldn’t. She’s done minimal promotion, so obviously calling the shots on how much she will do. And, yes, she has had to knee surgeries on the same knee to someone who asked above.
I wouldn’t pay to see her, but as the huge success of the Circus Tour shows, she has a legion of fans that adore her and her music and will go. Her fans for the most part loved the Circus Tour. Sluggish dancing and miming didn’t affect their joy at that concert. And Brit Brit put out a great album. Love Femme Fatale.
And how is CB calling this a comeback. The Circus Tour was a comeback and a huge success and so was the album. She already made her comeback.
I have only found one knee injury and not a crippling one-she had arthroscopic repair of cartilege.
It’s just a guess, but I don’t think she wants to be anywhere else or do anything else-this is what she knows. Can’t see her packing up her kids and moving to LA and living alone. Unfortunately, she can’t. Everybody remembers what happened last time.
SHhe is SOOOO slow moving now and honestly it looks like she is putting in no effort. I don’t know the reason WHY she would put in no effort– if her heart isn’t in it anymore or if she is heavily medicated or if its pop-star spoiled laziness. For her live shows she has done recently it looks like she BARELY knows the routine. Like, part of the slowness and dull movements is because she doesn’t know the choreography well enough to really kill it. Plus those embellished leotard type outfits she is always wearing now make her look heavy and over-the-hill.
*sigh* This is one of history’s great mysteries! LOL What happened to Britney!?
@MiniTs-why are you trying to bring sanity into this conversation? Yes, she had to major knee blow outs and major reconstructive surgery. Oddly, most 30 yr olds don’t dance like they did at 19, anyway, even if they don’t have kids, meds, and bad knees. Everyone brings up Madonna, but no one mentions that Madonna is a freaking freak. She compulsively works out and has such weird food issues, not everyone wants to live such a life.
@Crash2GO2 about the custody issue. I don’t know what her diagnosis is but it’s not necessarily true that she can’t ever get custody back. If she stabilized (through medication obviously) for a good period of time and wanted joint custody she could petition a judge. I’ve worked in the mental health field in the past and seen it done with people who have far less resources than Britney. More than likely if she has stabilized her managment is trying to prevent her from ending the conservativship which would need to happen in order to get custody. I didn’t mean to imply that mental illness can be ‘cured’.
I just want another perspective to the meds excuse. I’m bipolar 1, have two anxiety disorders, and a good bit of OCD. I was always active (yoga, running, etc), but when my breakdown (for lack of a better word) happened, yes, there was a strange period of time that I was essentially out of commission while I was too sick to function and then adjusting to meds. But I am more functional than ever now. I’m more active than ever. I do yoga for two hours every day (and not your basic yoga), I run five times a week, and I could dance my ass off if I chose. I take Lithium, Lamictal, Buspar, Wellbutrin, and Synthroid (for a low thyroid caused partially by the Lithium). I also have Risperdal on hand if I ever need it (a VERY strong anti-psychotic). The meds are not an excuse. You get used to them. They do NOT keep you in a daze or anything. That is more myth than anything else. They’ve woken me up.
I think the biggest problem for her is mental ennui and a lack of confidence. After all of this happened to me, I had to fight my way back, discover myself again, learn to be confident and loving toward myself. What I see is someone who is doing what she knows because it’s the thread of safety than runs through everything for her. She’s not confident anymore and she’s afraid to dance because she may fail in front of millions.
This is just my take, but I think people who don’t have personal experience with bipolar or the meds that come with it, may not be able to see it quite the way it is. When you are that sick, the meds make you free.
When I started the Lithium there was a two weeks or so period where I was sick as a dog and sleepy every minute of the day. But that only happens when you START it. If you don’t adjust to it, they take you off of it.
It’s not the meds. It’s what’s left after the trauma that is undermining her confidence in herself. She’s different now, sure, but she’s not ever going to go back to being 20, either.
Anyway, just another perspective.
(About bloating: That is not the norm. Some people gain some weight on these, a rare few gain a ton, but I personally lost a ton…)
Oh my GOD, sorry that was so long!!!
(And that video was pretty heartbreaking to watch.)
I’m a Britney fan even though her lipsyncing is ridiculous and I have no idea what her actual voice sounds like, but she needs to step up her game if she’s gonna charge so much for a concert ticket. I used to give her a pass because she was a crazy dance machine, but now there is really no excuse for her not to sing. Very sad indeed.
She seems uncomfortable with her body now, and I think she lost the passion for music and dancing.
Never thought she was a good dancer is there a big difference yes and because of what ticket prices will be, it’s a fair comparison people have the right to see what their paying for.
Mindy@ Maybe the excuse is she can’t sing like many have said all along.
I feel so protective about “my Brit.” I’m not a fan of her music but rather, as I’ve previously mentioned, a fellow bipolar sufferer. I get the criticism of her act–I watched the video. However, I still maintain that working/having goals is vitally important. When I was at my lowest the only hours that I didn’t spend in bed were those I spent at work. Therefore, I don’t buy the notion that not working would be good for her.
@Crash2go2–I’ve been on anti-psychotics for years. I’ve never had a psychotic break nor do I have any other illness other than bipolar disorder. It took a lot of years and 5 second opinions but my meds are finally balanced (and I make an effort to never skip talk therapy) so that I have enough energy and mood stability to completely engage in life. I don’t subscribe to your statement that Brit will never regain her sanity nor custody of her children. Never is a very long time.
People don’t understand mental illness and what the medication does to you. Britney’s grandmother was schizophrenic and there’s a tendency for grandchildren of schizophrenics to inherit a type of manic-depression that’s a nightmare. The medication’s side effects can be terrible and cause weight gain, a feeling of flatness or nothingness, and extreme fatigue. I feel so sorry for Britney. Very few understand what she’s going through and she’s going through it on a very public stage.
@DGO–
I get it. The meds make her old job hard.
But she is CHOOSING to do a job she now lacks the skill for, and doing it on a public stage. If she really must perform (really?) then she’ll have to put on a type of show that she CAN pull off.
This–very clearly– isn’t it.
Brit already has custody of her kids back whoever said she didn’t. She has half custody again and has had for like a year or I guess two years by now, actually, which is always the way it was between her and Kevin before the breakdown.
Sad…so sad. She is nothing like she used to be. There was fire and spirit…and now she looks soulless.
I really think that if she truly wanted it, she would bring it like she used to. Saying that she’s 30 and isn’t young is bullsh*t. Like someone else said in these posts….Madonna can bring it at 50 so Britney should be able to do the same at 30.
@Jayna she has visitation but K-fed still has custody. As long as she is under conservativship she will never be able to have custody of her kids. Which is why K-Fed is able to support his new family on Britney’s dime.
@ Zelda – I think she’s forced to do this, though. She is under her father’s thumb, and we all know she’s the family’s cash cow.
I think that if she wants to continue to be paid to perform, she should actually perform. She’s essentially just a vessel at this point…they put music with her b/c her persona still captures public interest enough to sell it.
I went to her tour a couple of years ago and was disappointed. She was totally disengaged it seemed.
I agree that bipolar is not the x factor here; I have a number of friends who are medded for that (I & II), and they are a far cry from zombies. Just leveled out, y’know?
I think we’re witnessing a programming breakdown, if you know what I mean. Used up little robot isn’t working like she used to, but her handlers’ll be damned if they’re giving up a penny they invested in her. WORK! *whip crack* DANCE! *whip crack* POSE!
@qwe – “That’s sad. I think she should retire. She is over. I can’t believe that people still buy her. They are just delusional.”
I don’t understand the need some people have to extend their opinion of Britney to her fans. It’s insulting to claim that anyone who likes her is ‘delusional’.
@Brittney – ITA. I do understand that medication can make it especially difficult to appear ‘enthusiastic’ & ‘energetic’.
There has been a big change in her performing ability since her breakdown. (including the ‘circus’ tour.) I don’t think she should be performing anymore, personally, because her heart really doesn’t seem to be ‘in it’ anymore. That’s not to say she couldn’t improve.
It’s sad to watch, & she should be free to live her life the way she wants to, raising her boys. Lord knows she’s not hurting for money.
I feel bad for Britney. She’s been doing this since she was a kid and just isn’t as physically fit now as she was 5, 10 years ago. Saying that, she has to step it up. She’s got Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Katy Perry etc. To compete with. Against them, why would people want to pay for her to lip sync and barely move? But maybe they will (and they do) because it’s Britney!
@junipergreen & Hannah, thanks for sharing. Your comments were very insightful and so honest. Good for you for finding your health. I’m encouraged by what you have said as I have a son who suffers from an almost crippling anxiety disorder. He is very bright with a great future ahead of him but I fear his anxiety will rob him of that. I’m afraid to answer the phone at times for fear of what bad news it may bring.
I used to LOVE her hot dance moves and dazzling costumes back in the day. Her body was smokin and there was energy.
But NOW? It’s just sad! The meds are very obvious, and the poor girl looks like she’d fall down if she even attempted to dance on stage. It’s like a totally diff person now.
The weight gain and bland dance costumes dont help her. I want to see her turn the ship around and BRING IT again just like she did before!
If not, then it’s time to retire because GaGa, Beyonce and Katy Perry will end up always kicking your ass.
poor poor girl.
@MiniT’s – I’ve had major reconstructive surgery on my knee. That was about a decade ago. In no way does it affect my activities, which includes dancing.
Does anyone remember or know what happened with her screwed up ”manager”, Sam Lutfi? There was some scary brain-effing going on there. I doubt she’s been going to (if any, then proper) therapy to cope with what happened. She is not allowed to discuss what she went through – the only time she touched on it was in that short documentary just before Circus came out. I’ve heard through a connection to one of her dancers throughout the entire Circus promotion they never worked directly with her, hung out, or spoke to her.
She’s closed herself off and very likely never received therapy outside of medication. I’m hoping I’m wrong, because what she went through could be healed with therapy, with the right person of course.
I’ve been on medium to large doses of fairly intense anti-depressants and anti-anxiety meds for many years, the main ones being Wellbutrin and Klonopin. For me it has mostly been a wake-up thing too. Almost all psychiatric meds do have an initial adjustive period, as Juniper explains very well. This goes on longer than usual, however, if you are kept on a medication that is not right for your brain chemistry.
I have known people diagnosed with bipolar disorder who were overmedicated, or for whom Lithium was not a good idea but they stayed on it for too long for whatever reason, and it sort of crushed their souls and brains until they changed meds.
But I agree with Juniper that that’s not what’s happening here. Brit’s difference seems a lot more fundamental and instinctive than that. The simplest and most superficial way to put the reaction I have is that she’s lost her personal awareness of and connection to her body’s movement, especially of her hips and her butt. I have experienced multiple levels of disconnection from my body, which I am normally pretty good at loving, when I have been deeply depressed. And if she’s as tightly caged as all the evidence is implying, all the meds in the world will not put the fun and the spirit back into her life.
omg cant you see?????!! in most of her old performances SHE WORE FLAT SHOES, so no wonder she could dance better!
And now she always wears super high heels and plus shes heavier, which probably affects her balance and coordiantion.
Honestly, most of you people on this site must be really, really young to think that a twenty-nine year old would be “washed up” in the dancing department. There is obviously something else going on with Britney, whether it’s her bipolar disorder or her lack of passion for singing and dancing – who knows? Point is, I don’t think her “advanced age” has anything to do with her lackluster performances, but there is certainly is a huge difference in her energy level!
Like @junipergreen mentioned, one’s body will become acclimated to the drugs. Britney has lost her motivation. Why should she have motivation…her tours are running like a well-oiled machine as everyone else is taking care of the details…all she has to do is go onstage and lip-synch.
As long as idiots pay the $$$, this will continue..why shouldn’t it? I just am saddened that Britney has lost her drive and is “okay” w/her sub-par performances. If I were in her position, I would push myself…much as @junipergreen mentioned. She’s lost her zeal and zest for life.
There is a huge void left in entertainment due to Britney’s lackluster performances. I really hope there is another beautiful, motivated, talented girl out there who will bring her goods to the table & blow Brit out the water.
Like another blogger mentioned…they could do better dance moves in their bedroom…and probably do because they LOVE the music, and it MOVES them. This is what the American public is hungry for…a seriously, talented MOTIVATED performer who can show them and Britney what they have now “settled for!!!”
I’m on meds for bipolar, and frankly, it’s insulting that there is this assumption that the meds must be the problem here.
I have been a “zombie” on certain meds, and within a few *weeks* of seeing if the symptoms would get better, my doctor changed my meds to something that works so well, people are not able to tell I have bipolar disorder or that I am on meds.
There are many different med options, not just individual meds, but the combinations, and of course different dosages, and it’s ridiculous to think that with the years since her diagnosis, and the money at her disposal, no doctor has found a combination of meds that works for her.
What I see that’s different is that her heart is just not in it anymore. I think having the conservatorship helped at first, because she got treatment, but she is obviously not happy with not being in control of her own life. I don’t think she wants to perform, and that’s why there’s no spark.
I really appreciate all the posters talking about their experiences dealing with their Bipolar diagnoses. I respect that it’s not easy dealing with this or any other mental illness. Let’s not forget no one knows what Britney’s diagnosis is and we are all making educated guesses.
My concern is the idea that this young woman lives on an allowance, has a legal guardian, and despite visitation doesn’t have custodial rights over her kids. Meanwhile she appears to be heavily medicated, is highly shielded from the media and is making millions (she doesn’t have full access to) for her management team. I think logically speaking it would do more for her self-esteem to have custodial rights over her children then to face the media scrutiny and go through a grueling tour she’s obviously not physically prepared for.
I’m just going to leave this here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvkbjzYT5aE
^Clearly trying harder and achieving more dance mastery than 2011 Britney Spears.
Sobering. Because it’s unquestionably utter shiite. But still, better.
@albeli I am glad you had a better expierence but I have seen first hand people who after months, and in certain cases years on certain meds had the zombie-look Britney displays in those cases many of them were on anti-psychotic meds though.
For for her outfits… I think that she is wearing corsets & super high heels to make up for the fact that she is no longer dancing like she used to. I don’t think that they are the reason that her dancing has changed.
Ugh..The ‘then’ part of the video doesn’t even include Britney’s best performances.. 30 is still very very young, so I don’t think it’s ‘she is not that fit anymore’. She could dance like that if she had the confidence and/or she wanted to. How energized and entertained she looked before, it’s just sad.
It makes me wonder how you could ‘lose’ a skill you already have.It must be all in your head.
Where do people get the idea she is caged and being led around? She lives with her boyfriend, just bought and/or is renting a new mansion, is out and about with him all the time, as photos show, and with her children, also traveling, going to dance class, made one of her best albums to date, gave a very chatty interview several weeks ago where she was personable and cute on the phone. She may never be old Brit because of her disorder but she is not some Zombie.
And, yes, she has had back half custody of her kids, same as before the breakdown, for a long time now. K-Fed never wanted to take them away from her permanently. Once she got help and was back on her feet, it was reported it went back to what it was, shared custody. All of the conservatorship was lifted, except for some financial overseeing still.
@Jayna-ITA. Where’s this paranoia and conspiracy theory coming from? And memory loss about what occurred when she was untreated and unsupervised?
@Jayna K-fed had primary custody (the reason she is still paying child support after all this time) she has 50/50 visitation even the court papers show her father Jamie Spears on all the paperwork as long as she is under conservativship legally speaking she will never have primary custody of her children.
http://www.radaronline.com/sites/default/files/Britney%20Spears%20MO%206-3-10%20Part%202.pdf
I, personally, would not to go her shows now. (I’ve never been to one, even in her prime, though I would’ve liked to.) In fact, I’ve only been to one concert before, & it was Gwen Stefani’s tour (a friend had season box seats, so we were in the perfect place, & served us drinks even though I was just 19 then).
I agree in regards to her bad choices of costumes… It looks more like she’s trying to hide in them, than anything. She had the most awesome body I’d ever seen a few years ago… I just about killed myself trying to live up to it. But these ‘onsies’ leave much to be desired. She has nice legs, but it makes her bottom half look way thicker.
@Zelda – You know you’ve hit bottom when Heidi Montag puts on a better performance.
Oh I just watched the new documentary thing, and she seems to dance well while rehearsing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-_j8PNgBfM
@Min, I meant she had back fifty/fifty physical custody of the kids, i.e., visitation. I mispoke when I said shared custody, which implies legally. I understand he will have custody legally until everything is fulfilled and the last part of the conservatorship is finished. But she has her children back the same amount of time she had them before the breakdown, which shows Britney has come a long way from having lost all custody of her children and then in the beginning, after getting somewhat better, just controlled visitation.
@Jayna sure she has visitation but the fact that she doesn’t have primary custody means she has only the say that K-Fed allows her in the big choices in these kids lives-and is incapable technically speaking of making any legal decisions about her own children. Also because of her conservativeship she is still financially supporting her ex-husband long after the terms of their pre-nup have expired.
oh PLEASE with this. she was never that great to begin with! her music was always mediocre and her performances were meh. everything about her was completely unoriginal and disposable… this girl was never destined to have some illustrious career like madonna or michael jackson and im embarassed for people that would even make those comparisons. the only thing she had going for her back in the day was her unbelievable hotness and the sensuality that she brought to the stage…which was subsequently obliterated by all the craziness of her life.
Watching that video made me remember that Britney never really was that great of a dancer….or maybe they should have picked better clips? In any case Janet, Chris and Michael could kick her butt any day. She just had high energy and sex appeal…neither of which she has now.
“femme fatale” means a mysterious and seductive woman whose charm ensnares her lovers in bonds of irresistible desire.
there was nothing seductive, charming, or irresistible in those dance moves.
they should call the tour “going through the motions”
Hey I am not a Brit fan, but I don’t think she should stop singing if that is what she likes to do. Definitely she should stop trying to be the pop-princess she use to be (as far as her fans are concern) and try something new.
Get with a more sophisticated sound and stop trying the old Britney dance routines. (Re-invent)
Brit never sang live or on tours and now even her dance is suffering
I definitely think she would rather be at home with her kids than being pimped out by her management team who she is keeping employed.
Is she actually really ‘heavily medicated’? I mean has it ever been officially stated that she is doped up to the eye balls these days?
Call me a cynic, but I’m not buying it. She looks more like lazy and just going through the motions if anything. *shrugs*
you forget that she had surgery on both knees! I think that has affected her Moves more than anything. The meds have affected her eyes!
So sad. I want to cry when I watch her old videos. How can someone’s personality just vanish? She’s been on medication for so many time. She probably goes to psychologists too. And still they can’t help to bring back her personality.
And someone blames her weight on medicine. No way. She had problems with weight long before she started to take pills.
Not all bipolars take “the gold standard” mood stabilizer lithium, a good many are on antipsychotics like seroquel (try dancing on that shit); anti-seizure meds and so on. Not everyone can tolerate medication typically prescribed for bipolar. A lot of bipolars are on several. Just putting that out there.
That being said, if she’s genuinely trying, she can’t be faulted for that. If people are pushing her to do this they should be pilloried.
Either way, it’s time for her to hang it up I think. She can’t go back. It’s sad really, and I think a lot of people judge her very unfairly.
People keep blaming her knees but I don’t think that’s the cause. Britney was still performing at a high level after her surgeries. Plus that doesn’t explain the lack of upperbody movement and bad lip synching. It doesn’t even look like she’s trying.
@mln76@: I too was going on the assumption that she has joint custody and assumed when you said ‘custody’ you meant full.
Interesting that her grandmother was schizophrenic. That sh*t definitely has a high hereditary component.
As for the meds, she almost looks like she is doing the Thorazine shuffle up there. Almost.
@Mokona – “Oh I just watched the new documentary thing, and she seems to dance well while rehearsing.”
I have to admit, she was being more active during the rehearsal. Perhaps a lot of people are right? That it’s more of a self esteem issue making her hold back, as opposed to medicine or her knees. She did good in rehearsal, because there was no audience to worry about.
I really think she’s not sure if she can do it anymore, & is grasping at straws trying to be the old Britney, who was 20 & at the top of her game. But it’s foolish to try when you’re 29. She should try something new, find comfort in another method.
There’s no joy left in her.
@Bill Hicks–you are spot on. Because the depression portion of my bipolar disorder is treatment resistant AND lithium causes my kidneys to fail, I’m on an array of other meds.
The anti-psychotic I take is Seroquel and as someone else indicated it is highly,highly sedating. I was on too high a dose for a few years and I was like Britney. When I changed another med I needed less Seroquel and my life became quite different. Although even now I have to take Seroquel by 9:30pm or I find it hard to get up for work.
The brain is very complex and this is a process. Whether anyone wants to spend money to see Britney is one thing but if this is something she wants to do I think she should push on through.
So sad
LOL all the introspective couch analysis going on and then @Red has to pwn you all with “IT’S THE SHOES!”
;0)
Honestly I think something is wrong with her back.. mainly lower. If you look at the differences in dancing she used to almost constantly shake and swirl her hips. She was a very dynamic dancer. Now it’s not just that she is “slower”, but her dancing is completely different in personal stye. I don’t know how she had her children, but I would guess that if she had an epidural she may have permanent back damage. I have known many women who have constant pain or numbness after having had an epidural. She just looks completely stiff in her back. She still does assisted backbends, but they don’t look anything like before… It’s almost as if she doesn’t have as much control in her core. Also, if she has problems with her core it would make sense as to why she is obviously much more unstable while walking down stairs and moving around quickly.
That’s like comparing videos of a 29-year old shark attack victim running with a prosthetic leg to videos of him running track in high school with two healthy legs. This woman is pushing 30, has had two kids and a MENTAL BREAKDOWN. That comparison is just kicking her while she’s down. She’s a human being, and she’s probably reminded every day of her life that she no longer measures up to what she used to be.
@Bill Hicks:
I’m on Lithium, Lamictal, Buspar, Wellbutrin, and Risperdal (this one as needed). I’m far from a zombie. FAR.
She’s no dancer and has all of these routines created and choreographed for her. The studios made her a star, even though her talent is mediocre.
@LBees – “LOL all the introspective couch analysis going on and then @Red has to pwn you all with “IT’S THE SHOES!”
Most of us here believe the more dramatic choice in shoes is something she’s decided to use to help the fact that she isn’t dancing as much if at all. I highly doubt she wears heels, if she knows it makes her (specifically) unable to dance. I believe the other causes people have shared have more relevance.
@Barb – “She’s no dancer and has all of these routines created and choreographed for her. The studios made her a star, even though her talent is mediocre.”
Just because YOU don’t care for her dancing doesn’t make her ‘no dancer‘. A lot of us here think she was quite a talented dancer back in her prime. Most people who do dance performances have choreographers to plan the routine. I think her talent lies more in being about to appeal to a lot of people, even though her singing is nowhere near Christina Aguilera. But you don’t have to care for it.
The main issue with this whole thing is her lipsyncing. Not singing live was understandable back in the day, because you cant dance like that and have the breathe to sing. Now she cannot dance and shes also isnt singing live. She needs to do one damn well. Singing isnt her thing it never has been. She is not known for her vocal talent.
I will never go to a concert to watch someone dance poorly around to their own music and not sing.
As long as people will buy tickets, she will be on stage. What will happen is the venues will get smaller and smaller. Then, perhaps a Vegas show.
As long as she can possibly pull in some bucks, her managers will keep booking her. And since this is all she’s ever done, she’ll keep on doing it – no matter how good or non-good she does it.
It is called business. And that is what she is, a business.
And yes, it is sad to witness.