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Throughout the week, excerpts from Britney Spears’ unreleased memoir, The Woman in Me, out on October 24, have been turned into headlines, with news stories relaying the abortion she had with ex-boyfriend Justin Timberlake in her teens, their breakup and who cheated on who, when she lost her virginity, and more.
And Spears is not happy about how much attention these life events from 20 years ago have been getting. On Friday, the singer shared a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter, clarifying her intentions with the book. She wrote:
My book’s purpose was not to offend anyone by any means!!! That was me then … that is in the past!!! I don’t like the headlines I am reading … that’s exactly why I quit the business four years ago!!! Most of the book is from 20 years ago … I have moved on, and it’s a beautiful clean slate from here!!! I am here to establish it that way for the rest of my entire life!!! Either way, that is the last of it, and shit happens!!! This is actually a book I didn’t know needed to be written … although some might be offended, it has given me closure on all things for a better future!!! Hopefully I can enlighten people who feel particularly alone in most cases or hurt or misunderstood!!! Again, my motive for this book was not to harp on my past experiences, which is what the press is doing, and it’s dumb and silly!!! I have moved on since then!!!!”
In an email interview with People this week, Spears discussed how excited she was to finally be able to use her own voice to recount her life. “Over the past 15 years or even at the start of my career, I sat back while people spoke about me and told my story for me,” she said. “After getting out of my conservatorship, I was finally free to tell my story without consequences from the people in charge of my life.”
You can order Spears’ memoir below:
Senior News and Strategy Editor
Alyssa Bailey is the senior news and strategy editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage of celebrities and royals (particularly Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton). She previously held positions at InStyle and Cosmopolitan. When she’s not working, she loves running around Central Park, making people take #ootd pics of her, and exploring New York City.