So back in the day, for reasons known only to history, I was very much Team Christina (Aguilera if youāre too young to know who she was being compared to) and honestly I have no idea why? Maybe bc Christina was theĀ āunderdogā - I donāt know. But you have no idea if you werenāt old enough back then, to understand the freaking pressure Britney Spears was under. She was front page of every gossip rag and in the days before social media, there was no way for her to control the narrative the way todayās young female celebrities. She didnāt get to control her growth or change her image from that sex kitten in a school uniform without a team of god damned publicists who put her in those knee-high socks to fucking begin with.
And when she melted down, Iām not going to lie, we all grabbed the popcorn. I honestly feel guilty about it now. She was a product to be consumed, a flat, one-dimensional image in magazines and television and when she melted down, people lapped it up because theĀ āperfectā Britney (which she never claimed to be, but that didnāt matter) was knocked off her pedestal. And now, with the benefit of time, age, and 20/20 hindsight, I feel fucking guilty.Ā
And honestly, even now the memes about her meltdown and resurgence sometimes get to me because theyāll treat her like sheās a different person or something. But she spent YEARS of her life working with the courts and her dad (itās her dad right) to come out of the other side of this a good mother and good person who controls her own destiny. And while I wouldnāt usually approve of a long-term guardian ad litemĀ (or whatever is the exact legal set up) for an adult, it has given her the freedom to be the relatively normal human she was never given the chance to be as a child and young adult. She doesnāt have to be the one fighting Kevin Federline about whether $30k/month is enough child support for the boys. She doesnāt have to be the one dealing with the bottom feeders who will inevitably try to take advantage of someone with her history. For the first time, she has the bubble of protection that we should all have and (mostly) had growing up.
And look, sheās flourished. She seems genuinely happy. And you know what I learned from all this, looking backā¦donāt pick teams.
You can be Team Ariana and Team Demi. The success of one woman doesnāt detract from another. That narrative is damaging to everyone involved. And I love that these younger stars seem to genuinely know that; they may not all be best friends and they get into petty spats, but mostly they control their own narratives and thatās a beautiful thing. So you can say what you want about theĀ āInstagramā models or how celebrity is different now but god damn yesĀ it isĀ and thank freaking god for it. Because the old model sucked.Ā
So, like the celebrities you like, like the music you like, stan for your fandoms, but please, remember Britney Spears. Donāt stan so hard for anyone that you end up contributing to breakingĀ them.Ā
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