Over the course of the past year, Britney Spears might have generated more headlines than at any previous point in her career.
Given how long she’s been on the A-list, that’s no mean feat.
Unfortunately, this latest explosion of interest in her private life is a rather dubious achievement, and Britney’s probably not taking any pride in it.
Rather, it’s the result of yet another controversy in a tragically scandal-plagued life.
By now, you’ve almost certainly heard about Spears’ conservatorship and her desperate fight for freedom against her scheming, opportunistic father.
The battle has been raging for years, but only in the past few months did it begin making headlines in mainstream media outlets.
That’s a result of several factors, including a pair of high-profile documentaries, and a recording of Britney’s testimony during a recent conservatorship hearing.
Several of the revelations that Spears and her team have made in recent weeks have driven profound public outrage among people who don’t normally pay much attention to the tabloids.
The two bombshells that seem to have elicited the most sympathy were the claims that Spears was forced to use an IUD against her will, and that she was made to take lithium and other potent anti-psychotics, which she feels were unnecessary.
Those revelations were almost too horrible to believe, but now, the latter has been confirmed by a former bodyguard of Britney’s, an ex-cop named Fernando Flores.
In a new interview with UK tabloid The Sun, Flores claims he was personally responsible for administering Britney’s pills.
“I’d explain [to Britney] what everything was — three anti-psychotic medications and birth control pills," Flores tells the outlet.
“She’d go from sane to talking about parallel universes.”
Flores says Jamie was a constant presence in Britney’s life — recording her phone calls, monitoring her comings and goings, and checking in on her non-stop.
“Jamie would call three or four times a day to check what was going on," says the 40-year-old father of four.
“If she wanted something, she had to ask his permission."
As for how Britney wiled away the hours of her virtual imprisonment, Flores says she passed the time as most people would.
“She spent her days watching TV, or working out," he tells The Sun.
“When down, she’d cry listening to [James Brown’s] It’s A Man’s World.”
Uncomfortable with his role in the oppression of a fellow human being, Flores quit the job after just eight months.
He says he still watches for updates about Spears, and he’s rooting for her in her never-ending battle for basic human rights.
Millions of others are rooting for the beleaguered singer as well, but unfortunately, the public consensus that Britney deserves her freedom is unlikely to sway the judge in her case.
There’s more legal wrangling to come, as Jamie Spears continues to drain Britney’s coffers to pay for his own team of lawyers.
The case could drag on for years, and the terms of Britney’s conservatorship will likely remain unchanged during that time.
Fortunately, Britney has already demonstrated a willingness of fight for her freedom for as long as it takes.