Britney Spears burst onto the scene almost 25 years ago with the release of her smash debut album, "...Baby One More Time."  (We're guessing many of you just involuntarily started humming the chorus of the title song.)  She has since gone on to sell over 100 million records worldwide, while also being subjected to nearly non-stop tabloid coverage for that entire time.  Every step, or misstep she's made over the past almost-quarter century has been extensively documented for the world's judgement. 

The singer has long dealt with an invasive and hypocritical world that has treated her like a product, instead of a human being, for most of her life.  Sadly, that poor treatment also came from her family, who from her point of view, milked every last dollar they could out of her while never doing anything to support or protect her.  This eventually resulted in a 13-year long conservatorship, where Spears was placed under the control of her father.  He ruled every aspect of her life, like she was an infant, not a grown woman, until she finally found her way out of that nightmare in 2021.

After so many years of having others claim her narrative, Britney Spears finally tells her own story in her new memoir, Britney Spears:  The Woman in Me. (out now)  The singer makes it clear that she has been through hell and come out on the other side.

The story begins with her family history her childhood in Louisiana.  Multiple generations of her ancestors on both sides dealt with trauma, and its easy to see how that all played out in her life, right from the start.  There's a history around abusive men which makes it feel like much of this die was cast before Spears ever performed before her first audience.

Spears has a habit of just hitting the topline talking points about various issues in the first half of the book, and then to steal from Seinfeld, yada yada-ing to the end of the given topic.  At 275 pages, The Woman in Me could easily be another 100 pages long if she went into more detail.  We're not talking about satisfying a voyeuristic intent, but there are times where she almost doesn't give enough detail for the reader to get a full sense of her story. 

However, Spears still drives home the key points in no uncertain terms, including:  Her parents were awful from the start.  Justin Timberlake was generally useless when she became pregnant.  She was subjected to a complete double standard after their breakup, with Timberlake being portrayed as the wounded hero, and she the cheating slut.  Spears also makes it clear that her family was never there to support her during any time of difficulty.   It sounds like she's gone through much of her life with little to no safety net to fall back on, which is a painful way to live.  It's a sad and lonely account.

The book elevates to another level when Spears lays out the story of her 13-year conservatorship.  This court order attracted intense media attention at the time, but she makes it clear how completely dehumanized she was by the entire ordeal.  Every aspect of her life was controlled by others for over a decade.  Spears  provides such a gripping account of this suffocation, one has to be amazed that she survived it.  You also can't help thinking time and time again while reading the book:  No male celebrity would have been subjected to this treatment. 

Britney Spears:  The Woman in Me is a remarkable read about a woman taking on a male-driven world that pawed at her and used her for its own needs for decades, and a family that never seemed to care about her.  It's a story of intense pain, heartbreak, and loneliness.  It's also a fascinating and inspiring tale of hope and resilience.  Even if one isn't a huge fan of her music, after reading this book, you can't help but root for the best for her in the future. 

Long story short:  Britney Spears is a badass. 

You don't know the full story.  (pic via reuters.com)

This song hits differently after reading the book: