Britney Spears has opened up about motherhood, her relationship with her sons and her painful experiences with her parents in a lengthy and emotional social media post.
The 44-year-old pop star shared her thoughts on X on Friday, saying she believes she “failed as a mother” after one of her sons told her that he does not believe in God.
Spears said she nevertheless remains convinced of the existence of a Holy Spirit, writing that she has “been there” and “felt it.” She accompanied the message with what appeared to be an older photograph of her sons, Sean Preston, 20, and Jayden James, 19, running on a beach.
The singer, who shares her sons with ex-husband Kevin Federline, also made claims about her estranged parents, Jamie and Lynne Spears. Spears alleged that she learned five years ago that her parents had secretly taken her children to the beach without her.
The mom of two said she “felt demoralized” by her parents allegedly spending time with her kids without her, noting she “went to my knees and cried for two months.”
The Criminal singer also reflected on her own upbringing and the years she spent under her father’s control. She said she “never got to be me” despite describing herself as “unbelievably intelligent,” claiming she had been “brainwashed into an ignorant system” in which people took advantage of her.
Britney Spears concluded the lengthy post by saying she wants to openly share her perspective after feeling misunderstood for much of her life.
The singer’s comments come after years of public struggles surrounding her family and personal life. Spears spent 13 years under a court-ordered conservatorship controlled in large part by her father, before it was terminated in November 2021 following her highly publicized legal battle.