Britney Wants You to Own a Piece of Her

The following italicized article is from www.eonline.com:

Britney Spears is selling herself on eBay.

No, the "Piece of Me" singer isn't hard up for cash; she's auctioning an autographed portrait of herself for a good cause.

Spears and her family donated the 5-by-4-foot oil painting to the Promises Foundation, which provides behavioral health services to low-income women and their children. The painting, titled "Mixed Media Painting of Britney Spears," was done by California artist Daniel Maltzman.

Bidding started at $10,000 and ends Sept. 20. The winner also gets a letter of authenticity from the artist and a signed ownership letter from Brit's father, Jamie Spears.

Check out the eBay listing to place your bid and see pictures of Britney with her portrait.

Source: E! Online

B.Y.O.B -- Buy Your Own Britney!

The following italicized article is from www.tmz.com:

In a very strange twist of events, Britney Spears can now tell people that she is, in fact, the poster child for mental health.

An original painting of Brit is being auctioned off by the The Promises Foundation on eBay. It was donated to the charity by the Spears family, and was autographed by the popwreck herself.

Source: TMZ

Troubled Britney Spears Plans Comeback Gig In Las Vegas On New Year's Eve

The following italicized article is from www.mirror.co.uk:

For nearly two years Britney Spears has battled her demons as the showbiz world looked on in disbelief.

Public meltdowns, divorce, rehab, drug problems and a bitter custody battle – it’s fair to say Brit’s life had become a total mess.

Now I can reveal she is preparing to put the past well and truly behind her and make a spectacular live comeback in Las Vegas on New Year’s Eve.

The show at the Pearl Theatre in the Palms Resort And Casino will tell the world Britney’s back. It will also kick off a world tour that I’m told will be bigger and better than anything she’s done before.

A few months ago, if someone had told me Brit was going back on the road, I’d have fallen off my Jimmy Choos in surprise.

But I saw her looking amazing as she collected three gongs at last week’s MTV awards, and I was convinced she’s finally sorted herself out. My spies tell me she has been discussing the show and tour with pal George Maloof, owner of the Palms. The plan is that Britney will go on stage just before midnight, and she’s told George she wants a cast of burlesque dancers and as many fireworks and special effects as he can afford.

Celebrities and industry bigwigs will be invited to fly in from LA to witness the extravaganza.

A source told me: “Britney has been recording her sixth album at Palms and she is good friends with George from way back. They are cooking up the idea of making a big bold statement by making her comeback on New Year’s Eve. It’s going to be the hottest ticket on the planet.”

Britney has seen in the New Year in Sin City before but with disastrous consequences.

At the Palms resort back in 2003, she went on a bender with then boyfriend Jason Alexander and ended up tying the knot with him – the marriage was annulled 55 hours later. And in 2006 Britney collapsed and had to be taken home before she could host a party at Caesars Palace.

Source: The Mirror

Info On Britney's New Promo Video

Australian dancer Shannon Holtzapffel, has been dancing with and for Britney Spears in Los Angeles. They have been filming the promo video for a track yet to be released- from her new album, which is still in production.

Source: Shannon Holtzapffel.com

Britney Spears Portrait Auctioned for Charity

The following italicized article is from www.usmagazine.com:

A portrait of Britney Spears is being auctioned to raise money for the Promises Foundation, which provides assistance for low-income mothers and their children.

The 5-by-4-foot oil painting was created by Daniel Maltzman. Spears also autographed the artwork.

The portrait depicts the singer in a bikini with her eyes closed and her arms crossing her chest. Spears' famous belly button ring is visible.

The painting is being auctioned on eBay with a starting bid of $10,000. The winner will receive an ownership letter from Spears' father Jaime.

The auction ends Sept. 10. As of Saturday morning, there were no bids.

Source: US Weekly

Bit Of Info On "Mannequin" Rehearsal

The following italicized article is from www.news.com:

BRITNEY Spears has hand-picked Sydney dancer Shannon Holtzapffel to be her dance partner in an upcoming video clip.

The 23-year-old finished filming the clip for Spears' song, Mannequin, in Los Angeles this month and spilled the beans to Insider on his return home to Australia.

"It's documentary style of us all in a rehearsal studio with her (Spears),'' said Holtzapffel, who dates Channel V presenter Renee Bargh.

"I get very close to her. There's one part where we rest heads together and I'm resting on her neck before she pushes me away.

"When it's released, it'll be showing she's back in the game. She has a new album, new music and a new future.''

Holtzapffel met Spears' choreographers in LA and they invited him to a training session with the singer, who was impressed and asked him back to be her dance partner for the video shoot.

With tight security helping to keep paparazzi at bay and little information released about Spears' new album, it was a strange experience for Holtzapffel.

Dancers were played just two songs from the album, which Australian Kaz James has reportedly been working on.

"When we were finished rehearsing, they'd take the CD and put it in a safe,'' Holtzapffel said.

"I've never experienced anything like it before.''

Originally from Queensland, Holtzapffel is now based in Sydney but travels the world for months at a time.

He runs a production company, Project Moda, and has worked with pop stars including Fergie, Kelly Clarkson, Delta Goodrem and Dannii Minogue.

Holtzapffel's next project is a video clip for Swedish singer Emilia de Poret.

Source: News.Au

Hayley Williams On Britney

'i even congratulated britney face to face! i was so stoked! she looked gorgeous and it was nice to have the biggest female pop artist back in the game. i’m ready for her to take over again, man. no shame.'

Source: Paramore's Official Website

Meet The Man Who Transformed Britney From A Shaven-Headed Monster To The Star Of The MTV Awards

The following italicized article is from www.dailymail.co.uk:

What a difference a year makes. Twelve months ago, Britney Spears was a lost cause - a tragic figure of fun who lost custody of her two young sons in a blaze of flashbulbs and disastrous publicity.

Her shambolic appearance at the MTV Video Music Awards last September - described as a 'car crash' by critics - was widely regarded as the death knell of a once unstoppable career.

As the great and the good of the music industry watched agog, a paunchy, glassy-eyed Britney stumbled blindly through a rendition of her latest record, having lost the ability even to mime convincingly.

Coming after months of erratic, often drug-fuelled madness - including a lengthy stint in a rehab clinic - it marked the moment when the public perception-of Britney Spears shifted from hilarity to tragedy.

Not any more. This week the MTV awards returned, and stealing the show was a bronzed vision of health and vitality who was utterly unrecognisable from the shambling figure of 2007.

Britney, 26, launched the event with a short comedy sketch alongside Hollywood actor Jonah Hill, before taking the stage to a standing ovation.

Looking every inch the toned, polished megastar, she swept the board. She had previously been nominated 16 times without winning a thing, but this week her dazzling smile said it all as she picked up the best video, best pop video and best female video awards.

The song, Piece Of Me, was released at the height of her troubles, and the furore surrounding her public meltdown ensured respectable sales, with top ten chart positions all around the world.
(It was not, however, vintage Britney and many have seen the recognition given to the song as evidence of a poor year for pop music.)

Before taking to the stage to collect her awards, Britney stopped to hug a slim, crop-haired man with a neatly-trimmed goatee beard. To the millions of fans watching on television he was just another meaningless backroom boy. To those in the know, however, he was the person who should have been receiving the plaudits.

Larry Rudolph, the pop guru who made Britney a global star, is back in her life - and he might just have saved her life, too.

Russell Brand, the controversial host of MTV Video Music Awards, demonstrated a typically tasteless turn of phrase in describing Britney as a 'female Christ' - but as showbusiness resurrections go, it was certainly impressive.

This, remember, is a woman who just over six months ago was forcibly strapped to an ambulance trolley and dragged off to the psychiatric ward of a hospital.

She was sectioned twice in a month after doctors diagnosed her as being manic depressive with a borderline personality disorder, concluding that she was 'a danger to herself and to others.'

So what is behind this extraordinary change in her fortunes? Could this really be the same young woman who used to drive around Los Angeles in a shocking pink wig, popping prescription pills like they were going out of fashion while an army of paparazzi recorded her every move?

She may not have done a great deal more than smile and thank God 'for blessing me like this,' but as far as her fans and the American media are concerned, the transformation is complete.

In gratingly over-the-top terms, the LA Times hailed her return as a 'triumph of the Olympian kind,' while the Washington Post headline declared: 'Spears is MTV's Comeback Kid.'

But perhaps it is Perez Hilton, the leading gossip columnist whose online blog is read by tens of millions every day, who sums it up best. 'That's what people want - they want to see her smiling,' he says. 'Even if all she does is smile and wave, I say that's mission accomplished.'

Even that simple achievement, however, has not been achieved without a rehabilitation campaign of military intensity.

Britney has been under virtual house arrest ever since emerging from a mental health unit in the spring. It is thought to have been a voluntary arrangement, but the star has become painfully aware that her life had to change.

She was, after all, mentally ill, and there were people all around her taking advantage of that fact.

After her ex-husband, Kevin Federline, won custody of their two young children in February, she didn't sleep for four days and finally ended up in hospital getting the help she so desperately needed.

Having been virtually estranged from her parents, Britney is now described as being 'incredibly close' to them again, so much so that her father, Jamie, now has official control of her assets.

This represents a major turnaround, since at the height of her troubles Britney publicly blamed her woes on her father and Larry Rudolph.

Now, Jamie says of the reconciliation: 'We've grown a lot. I've been able to come back into my daughter's life, and that was an adjustment anyway, because I'm an alcoholic and it's the first time we've really been able to share.

'It's wonderful. It's new for both of us. She sometimes calls me 50 times a day and asks me things that light my life up. But, like all daughters, she is very cunning. So she gets what she wants a lot.'

At the beginning of his stewardship of Britney's assets - shared with her lawyer Andrew Wallet - Jamie gave up his career as a chef to care for his daughter around the clock at her home in California's San Fernando Valley.

Along with her trusted advisers, however, he remains uncertain of her ability to cope on her own, and her affairs are likely to remain in the hands of others at least until the end of the year.

'I would hope that it stands until the end of the year, and then we'll sit back and evaluate where we are at the time, where Britney is at that time,' says her father.

'I do understand that my baby made this monster [a reference to the dire situation she found herself in] but when she was down, people took advantage.'

Her mother, Lynne, has also been ushered back into the fold, despite spending their year of estrangement penning a warts-and-all book titled Through The Storm: A Real Story Of Fame And Family In A Tabloid World.

Most important of all, however, has been the rapprochement between Britney and Larry Rudolph, the manager who oversaw her rise from sickly sweet pre-teen performing pastiches of modern hits on American kids television show, The Mickey Mouse Club, to global star with a £60million fortune to her name.

It is thought the star's parents both contacted Rudolph after Britney hit rock bottom and begged him to come back into their daughter's life. For a long time, he was seen as a Svengali figure for her, and without him in her life she had no confidence in anything she did professionally.

Those who have observed the singer for years were aware that for some time she was obliged to adopt a sweet and innocent facade which was patently false.

First there was unrestrained hype about her being a virgin in a blatant bid to appeal to Middle America's puritan masses - when nothing could have been further from the truth - and then she started experimenting with drink and drugs.

In short, she started to believe her own publicity and to think she could get away with anything.

Not any longer, it would seem. I understand that Mr Rudolph agreed to take Britney on as a client again on the strict understanding that she would not take drugs or drink heavily, and that he would have the final say on all career decisions.

This was a deal her parents were only too pleased to accept, and since Rudolph has returned to the fold the singer's circumstances have changed beyond recognition.

Now, all the hangers-on are gone, Britney has been instructed to go to bed by 11pm at the latest, unless she's working, and people aren't even allowed to smoke around her. But Britney is said to thrive on such strict parameters.

She has also overhauled her diet. Having lived on burgers, pizzas and sugary drinks for over a year she is limited to 1,200 calories a day. 'It may not sound much, but it's a lot of food if you eat the right things,' she says. 'And no sugar. I don't eat fruit or even drink fruit juice because of the sugar.'

The results are there for all to see, with Britney dropping two dress sizes and almost two stones in weight. But just how realistic is this regime over the long term?

Such concerns pale into insignificance when one considers how far Britney has come, and her family are delighted that Rudolph agreed to return. Negotiations to win him back were not easy. He is understood to have been wounded by the barbs aimed at him by a woman he had supported for so long.

Goaded on by her new management, Britney had told the world that Rudolph colluded with her father to 'force' her into rehab against her will. The implied subtext being that they were both motivated by greed and a desire to get their hands on her money.

It is worthy of note, however, that in years gone by he also represented Britney's teenage sweetheart, Justin Timberlake - himself a huge star earning many millions of dollars every year.

When the couple split up he could have jumped either way, but remained loyal to Britney.

Industry insiders believe this principled decision has personally cost Rudolph five million dollars as Timberlake's career has soared.

And he remains reluctant to discuss his return to the fold. Earlier this summer, he went on record to admit: 'I have spent time with her, and she is on the right path because she has people around her who care about her well-being. But this isn't the time to talk business. This is a time for healing.'

The Rudolph connection led to one slightly awkward moment behind the scenes at the MTV awards this week, when the heiress Paris Hilton invited Britney to 'hang out and party' with her. (The pair know each other of old, and last year spent many a night together drinking into the small hours.)

An embarrassed Britney is understood to have made her excuses and left, for fear of invoking the wrath of her manager.

The next day, Britney and Rudolph were spotted leaving the Thompson Hotel in Beverly Hills. Britney was dressed in a modest black outfit and resolutely refused to smile for the paparazzi who had been alerted to her presence.

And, with the old team back in harness, Britney had successfully hidden from photographers for months, working quietly on her health and fitness in preparation for a renewed assault on the charts.

There is even talk of bringing Britney's trusted PA of a decade's standing, Felicia Culotta, back into her inner circle after the pair fell out at the height of Britney's mental health problems - whereupon Felicia resigned her position to become a teacher.

Not all associates are so welcome, however. A restraining order has been taken out on Sam Lutfi, the manager who dominated her life last year (Britney's mother, Lynne, claims that Lutfi would grind up prescription pills and put them in Britney's food, hoping to put her in a coma that would allow doctors to cure her of all addictions).

Meanwhile, Britney has made a well-received cameo appearance on the hit television show How I Met Your Mother, and has been back in the studio recording material for a new album. She has even been granted access to her sons, Sean, three, and Jayden, two.

For all her rediscovered self confidence, however, it has been noted by music critics in the U.S. that Britney's MTV awards comeback consisted of little more than smiling, being polite and walking in a straight line.

Just a few months ago she was barely capable of performing any one of these feats, let alone all three at the same time, but the jury is still out on whether she can ever recapture past form.

The latest speculation surrounds a mooted appearance on stage with Madonna for the Los Angeles leg of the latter's current world tour, though doubts persist as to whether she will be up to it.

Whether Britney will be able to maintain her delicate equilibrium at all over the long term, only time will tell. But if Larry Rudolph has anything to do with it, the girl America is falling in love with all over again might just succeed.

Source: Daily Mail

New People Magazine Issue

In People Magazine's latest issue, Lynne Spears opens up about her insecurities as a mother, Britney & Justin's relationship, Britney's first and second marriage, her stay in rehab, the hospital visits and more. A very well-written, positive article.

Source: Breathe Heavy

New OK! Issue

Britney opens up to OK! Magazine about her latest album, her relationship with mom Lynne, and her current support system in their latest issue out on stands now. "Regardless of what people might think, Britney's isn't upset about Lynne's book," an insider tells OK!. "I'm at a stage where I really appreciate her a lot more," Britney said.

And according to Britney, her next album is her "best work ever." "It's more urban. I'm working with producers who are just amazing, and I'm writing every day."

"Britney's road back is such an extraordinary journey that it is being documented daily on videotape by one of her staff members," reports OK!. "Some of the video will be seen on her reworked Web site, which will relaunch in advance of the album release."

Source: Breateh Heavy

Britney Not Dating Russel Brand

Britney Spears steps out for a business dinner Thursday at Hollywood's Little Door Restaurant while MTV's VMA host – and Spears's promo partner – Russell Brand (not pictured) dined there as well. "He came over to her table and said hello," a source tells PEOPLE. "They were not having dinner together."

Source: People

Britney Spears Donates Painting for Charity

The following italicized article is from www.people.com:

Britney Spears and her family have donated an autographed portrait of the singer for charity, with a starting bid of $10,000 on eBay.

The 5-by-4-foot oil painting of the pop star was given to the L.A.-based Promises Foundation, which provides behavioral health services to low-income women and their children.

"The Spears family gave us this painting out of their generosity," says the organization's director, Lisa Rogg. "It was their idea for the auction."

The eBay page shows several photos of Spears standing next to the artwork, as well as a letter of authenticity from her father, Jamie, which states: "I hereby verify that the portrait of my daughter, Britney, has been in our home since it was completed by the Daniel Maltman Studio."

Source: People

Kevin Federline At Chevron

Kevin Federline was at Chevron today and was chill with the paps. We wished his boys a happy birthday, and Kevin said that he and Britney are doing "good." That's great news, Kev!

Source: X17 Video

Britney Spears Spotted -- Yes, It's Really Her

The following italicized article is from www.tmz.com:

No deceptive decoy here -- Britney went to The Little Door last night and actually stuck up for the pappers when her bodyguard started getting pushy. Doubt a double would have done the same!

Source: TMZ

The Many Faces Of Britney Spears?!

The following italicized article is from www.x17online.com:

Brit got dinner at Little Door last night and gave photogs some interesting facial expressions. Maybe next time we'll get a smile or her trademark stuck-out-tongue pose? She used to do it all the time, and we know she's still got it, because she did it at the end of her VMA introduction! Either way, she's looking fab!

Source: X17 Online

Britney Dating Russel Brand

The following italicized article is from www.dailymail.co.uk:

Britney Spears has long had questionable taste in men.

So it shouldn't exactly comes as a surprise that she's turned her attention to Russell Brand, a former drug user who has been treated for sex addition.

The pair are said to have enjoyed an intimate dinner last night at Hollywood's Little Red Door restaurant, where they arrived and left separately in an apparent effort to avoid being photographed together.

It seems the two formed a bond at Sunday night's MTV Video Music Awards, where British comedian played host while the triumpant singer scooped three awards.

The certainly looked comfortable in each other's company at the star studded event, Russell at one point resting his hand on her leg.

Just hours before their romantic dinner last night, Russell told reporters he was back on the prowl after a three-month relationship with Australian Teresa Palmer, describing himself as 'footloose and fancy free'.

The lothario, who has dated Kate Moss and Sadie Frost, had previously said he had fallen in love with Palmer, even going so far as to say: 'There's no more womanising.'

Britney, who has already clocked up two ill-fated marriages with Kevin Federline and Jason Alexander, has been single since splitting from Birmingham born paparazzo Adnan Ghalib earlier this year.

Source: Daily Mail

Britney's Current iTunes Positions

Top pop 100 albums:

#21 - Blackout

#30 - Blackout (Deluxe Edition)

Top pop 100 songs:

#21 - Piece of Me
#67 - Break The Ice
#74 - Gimme More

#99 - Toxic

Top pop 100 video's:

#4 - Piece Of Me
#17 -Toxic

#37 - Baby One More Time
#41 - Slave

#46 - Gimme More

#67 - Oops!..I Did It Again
#69 - Gimme More (Clean version)

#78 - Break The Ice

#91 - Everytime

Top 100 songs:

#68 - Piece Of Me

Top 100 video's:

#7 - Piece Of Me
#48 - Toxic

Source: Break The Ice

Britney To Be Back On Song At Christmas

The following italicized article is from www.thesun.co.uk:

BRITNEY’s improving health and popularity have prompted her record label to rush-release a new album.

The past two years have seen the pop princess plunge from her pedestal.

A messy divorce, custody battle and continuing concerns about her mental condition left industry bigwigs worried about the future of her career.

They thought getting an album together for next spring was as good as they could hope for.
But RCA bosses are so impressed by her recent recovery, including a triumphant return at the MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday, that they are now planning to put out her next album in December.

A source said: “Britney’s last album, Blackout, was released in the middle of her meltdown and carried negative associations.

“It did OK but wasn’t as big as her previous releases. Label chiefs vowed her private life would never be allowed to overshadow her career again.

“However, they’ve been astonished by how well she’s managed to piece her life back together.”

The last few months have been among Brit’s most productive and she has recorded a mountain of songs.

The plan is for a single in November then a big relaunch in December with the album and live shows.

It was nice to see Britney looking so much better at the MTV bash.

Source: The Sun

Britney Spears’ Little Red Door

The following italicized article is from www.justjared.com:

Britney Spears arrives at the Little Red Door Restaurant for dinner in Hollywood on Thursday night.

The 26-year-old singer has impressed her RCA bosses so much recently, that they are pushing for her next album to be released in December.

“Britney’s last album, Blackout, was released in the middle of her meltdown and carried negative associations,” a source told The Sun. “It did OK but wasn’t as big as her previous releases. Label chiefs vowed her private life would never be allowed to overshadow her career again.

“However, they’ve been astonished by how well she’s managed to piece her life back together.”

The RCA bosses are reportedly planning to release a single in November then a big relaunch in December with the album and live shows.

Source: Just Jared

Happy Birthday Jayden

Britney's Christmas Album

Britney Spears fans could be in for a special Christmas present if record label bosses decide to bring forward the release of her next album.

The Sun reports that Brit's bosses are so impressed with her return to form they think she may be ready to start promoting her new material.

Britney has apparently been working on a stock of new material for an album which was scheduled for release next year.

But a triumphant appearance at the MTV Video Music Awards has apparently impressed bosses at record label RCA.

"Britney's last album Blackout was released in the middle of her meltdown and carried negative associations," a source is reported to have said.

"It did OK but wasn't as big as her previous releases. Label chiefs vowed her private life would never be allowed to overshadow her career again.

"However, they've been astonished by how well she's managed to piece her life back together."

Source: Music News

Lynne Opens Up About Memoir In Who Magazine

In an exclusive interview and excerpt from her new memoir with Who Magazine, Lynne opens up for the first time about her anguish over daughters Britney and Jamie Lynn - and what she wishes she'd done differently. The print is a little small; may have to squint your eyes.

Source: Breathe Heavy

Britney Dines At Little Door

Britney dined out at Little Door tonight in Hollywood. Britney, dressed in skinny jeans, a pink polo and leather jacket, headed inside with her security guard and assistant Brett.

Source: Untouchable Britney

Where Will We See Britney Spears' Spread?

The following italicized article is from www.eonline.com:

The mystery surrounding the Britney Spears photo shoot continues.

Now that we know Patrick Demarchelier is not shooting the comeback kid for Vogue, what could it be for?

Maybe Brit's getting an early jump on Christmas by posing with Sean Preston and Jayden James for their annual holiday card?

Um, probably not...

Most industry insiders I've spoken to put their money on Glamour.

Why?

"Patrick shoots for Glamour all the time," one insider explains. "She's perfect for Glamour. If it's not Vogue, who else could it be for?"

A rep for Glamour would not confirm or deny an upcoming appearance by the "Oops!...I Did It Again" singer. "We don't comment on upcoming issues," the rep said.

While known primarily as Vogue's main shutterbug, Demarchelier is allowed to shoot for other mags like Glamour as long as they're within parent company Condé Nast's empire.

Besides, another insider says, Spears has a good history with Glamour. She appeared on the cover of their Women of the Year issue in 2003 and "it sold very well," the insider says.

Spears then appeared at the annual Women of the Year awards alongside other honorees like former POW Jessica Lynch and Seabiscuit author Laura Hillenbrand.

Demarchelier has also shot Spears in the past for Rolling Stone and CosmoGirl.

A long-shot prediction? Vanity Fair. Editor-in-Chief Graydon Carter has made some unconventional choices in the past, including a much-criticized cover of Paris Hilton and, to a lesser degree, Lindsay Lohan.

But a V.F. spokesperson says she doesn't think a Spears story is in the works: "It's not something that I've been told or heard about."

A rep for Spears at her music label did not comment, and emails sent to Demarchelier's office went unanswered.

Source: E! Online

Spears Tops Best Comeback Poll

The following italicized article is from www.contactmusic.com:

BRITNEY SPEARS' MTV Video Music Awards appearance has been voted the greatest comeback ever.

The troubled pop star was awarded three gongs at the ceremony on Sunday (07Sep08) - and it has landed her the top spot in an online survey.

British boy band Take That were awarded second place in the comeback poll, after they burst back onto the music scene in 2006 following a 10-year absence.

Australian singer Kylie Minogue was voted third, for returning to the limelight in 2006 after battling breast cancer.Fourth and fifth places were handed to John Travolta and Robert Downey Jr. respectively, in the survey conducted by Onepoll.

Source: Contact Music