Britney Spears is right on the cusp of turning 30-years-old; to be precise, she will do so in two weeks. In some respects, Britney still seems really young at heart, but she’s also been through so much in the past several years that it’s difficult to believe that she’s not yet 30. And in that vein of thought, Britney recently sat down with UK’s Stylist publication to discuss both her Femme Fatale tour and her latest perfume, which will probably be just as successful as all of her other fragrances. Honestly though, I have to wonder … exactly who buys these perfumes? Although I do adore Britney, there has been absolutely no moment in time when I’ve decided that it would be a great idea to smell like her. Sure, she claims to shower twice a day, but I’m not buying it. Just saying.

At any rate, Britney’s interview with Stylist (during which the interviewer notes that the pop star was “surrounded by a few close confidants“) isn’t so much illuminating in regard to new information as the impression that Brit has very much been looking inward lately. If her words are to be trusted, then Britney is attempting to find happiness within herself before she goes looking for external gratification. This is a good thing, right?

On Her Biggest Challenge: “Trying to get up and go work out in the morning. I haven’t worked out in, like, two weeks. Sometimes it’s hard to be motivated. But once you get up and do it you feel like you’ve conquered the world.”

On Her Favorite Foods: “Chocolate. Definitely chocolate. A lot of chocolate. I love Scores in the States, with the caramel in the middle, and every once in a while if I’m really hungry then a Snickers bar is good. And M&Ms are great, Hershey’s Whoppers are great, Raisinettes… Twixes are great too. And the new Hershey’s Cookies & Cream, too.”

On Being A Musician In 2011: “Well, it’s really cool because there are so many new, up-and-coming artists to look at and be inspired by. For me, I think it’s great to have a little competition because I feel it inspires us [Team Britney] and makes us want to do better. There are so many soulful singers, even the ones coming from London, like Adele and Jessie J, who are just amazing. It feels like a really cool time to be making music now. In the beginning obviously I was very young and I didn’t know the ins and outs of things; I was very instinctive in what I wanted to do, and I was very vocal with my input on things. I think as the years have gone by, and as I’ve evolved as an artist, I’ve put even more into my career, and after that amount of time you start to know exactly what you want. You feel a little bit more in your skin, in terms of who you are. And that just feels really nice.”

On What She’s Reading: “The Mastery Of Love [sub-titled A Practical Guide To The Art Of Relationship by Don Miguel Ruiz]. It’s basically an analysis of love and what it means to love. It goes through all the different aspects of love. Who you are as a person, knowing yourself before you even attempt to love anyone else’ that sort of thing. It’s really well-written and thought-provoking. It’s not so much about learning something; it’s one of those things where you already know this stuff, but it’s good to instil it in yourself again.”

On The Meaning Of Success: “For me, success is a state of mind. I feel like success isn’t about conquering something, it’s being happy with who you are.”

On Fame: “Well, in some situations I’d love to be able to, y’know, put a disguise on and go to a restaurant and not be noticed. But actually it’s been pretty cool on this tour, there haven’t been that many paparazzi and I’ve been able to get out with my children and go and see a lot of things.”

On Her Dream Vacation: “It would be with my children of course, and my boyfriend Jason [Trawick, also Britney’s agent]. and really that’s it. We’d probably just go skiing somewhere really beautiful and have hot chocolate, in a cabin…”

On Ryan Gosling, Her Former “Mickey Mouse Club” Colleague: “I’m a huge fan; I think he’s amazing. I think he’s a wonderful little actor. He definitely has that ‘something’ on film; on camera, which is really cool. So I’m very happy for him.”

[From Stylist.co.uk]

While there are several points worth noting here, I think the most obvious point to be made is that this interview seems (on its surface, anyway) to be far less scripted than most of Britney’s recent media interactions. She seems really candid with these answers and like she’s really buried herself in a lot of self-help books and techniques of late. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, of course, for Britney also comes off as far less medicated with these answers than we’ve grown accustomed to in the aftermath of her much publicized 2007 breakdown.

Also, it’s rather refreshing that Britney has embraced the notion of competition from up-and-coming pop stars. This attitude arrives in sharp contrast to one Christina Aguilera, who clearly expresses distain for all newcomers, including Lady Gaga, who Xtina thinks is copying her. Naturally, Brit is still flying (relatively) high, and Xtina is currently floundering as an “artist.” A lesson exists in there somewhere.

Photos courtesy of Fame