Britney Spears and Kevin Federline: the toxic relationship that almost destroyed the Princess of Pop | LOS40 Classic

Although they staged it on September 18, 2004, the wedding of Britney Spears and Kevin Federline It was officially registered on October 6 of that year. This is stated, in fact, in the divorce papers, which the singer filed in November 2006. Yes, their marital union only lasted two years, and although it may seem brief, it could have been very long for Britney, since what began as a love affair passionate and dizzying relationship quickly led to a toxic relationship that, in turn, affected the mental health of the Princess of Pop, who later showed worrying signs of erratic behavior.

Britney and Kevin had met in July 2004 at a Hollywood nightclub called Joseph’s. There is no need to introduce her, who was 22 years old at the time; Of Kevin we will say that he was, at 26, a dancer of some prestige who had worked with Michael Jackson, Justin Timberlake, Destiny’s Child and Pink, inter alia. He had appeared in some music videos and acted as an extra in some movies. The star of the couple was, therefore, Britney, while Kevin adopted the role of prince consort. Two months after meeting, they decided to get married.

Curiously, it was Britney’s second wedding that 2004: in January she had married her childhood friend Jason Alexander; Their marriage was annulled 55 hours after it was celebrated when a judge determined that Britney had said “I do” in a state in which she was not responsible for her actions.

The singer was not going through her best moment, who had canceled the album’s tour shortly before. In the zone after injuring her left knee, which forced her to undergo surgery. He had opened a restaurant in New York (Nyla), from which he left five months after the opening. In the sentimental field, she had been related to Wade Robson (Justin Timberlake choreographer) and Fred Durstsinger of the rock group Limp Bizkitbefore the image of a kiss with Madonna at an MTV awards ceremony went around the world. When she started dating Federline, his ex-girlfriend was pregnant (they had already had a girl before), a fact in which the gossip press found tasty bait. The focus was on Britney, but not because of her music.

At first it seemed that everything was going well with the new couple, to the point that they agreed to star in the reality show Britney and Kevin: Chaotic for the UPN network, in May 2005. She explained that, in the face of gossip, she wanted to show her life as it was. Around that time he declared that he was leaving his career for a few months to start a family. And he quickly formed it: on September 14, 2005, their first child was born, Sean Preston. Almost exactly a year later, on September 12, 2006, the second came into the world, Jayden James.

When Britney shaved her head

By then the marriage was on its last legs. In November of that year, when Jayden was two months old, Britney filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences. At first they reached an agreement for custody of the children, but Federline pressed: he said that the support that Britney gave him for the care of the children was insufficient. Meanwhile, Britney began to ramble: In February 2007 he shaved his head, giving rise to one of the most delirious scenes in pop culture of this century. Days later he entered a rehabilitation center of his own volition.

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In January 2008, and as the singer skipped the child custody regime, the police went to her house and found her in a deplorable state. She was hospitalized, her custody rights were taken away, and a court placed Britney under the guardianship of her father Jamie Spears, giving you full control over your assets. The matter of paternal guardianship lasted until 2021, generated quite a few judicial entanglements and inspired the #FreeBritney movement. Finally, in June 2022, Britney married Sam Asghariher boyfriend of recent years (her first husband, Jason Alexander, tried to break into the wedding knife in hand and was arrested; a three-year restraining order was issued against him).

If anything good has come out of this drama, it is, of course, the children – who are now 19 and 18 years old – and, also, the albums that Britney has released during the long process. In particular, Blackout, from 2007, which without being the star’s best-seller, received excellent reviews. The failed relationship and everything that surrounded it marked the creation of this albumespecially the topic Piece of me, whose lyrics (“It doesn’t matter if I enter the scene or escape to the Philippines, they’re still going to put pictures of my butt in the magazine. You want a piece of me. I’m miss bad media karma”) can be taken as Spears’ response to severe scrutiny to which she was subjected by the tabloid press.