The Hustler's Digest StaffYou will be shocked to discover that the one-time pop music queen Britney Spears’ net worth is not as magnificent as her career. Continue reading to find out how much she is worth.
Britney Spears is an American singer, songwriter, and dancer who rose to fame in the late 1990s and early 2000s. She is commonly referred to as the “Princess of Pop” and became the face of the revival of teen pop. Having sold over 100 million records all over the world, she easily makes her way up to being one of the world’s best-selling music artists. Britney achieved international stardom through her iconic lyrics and her youthful energy that became responsible for the historic transformation of pop stars into fashion icons.
Britney began working as an artist in childhood. She learned gymnastics, dancing and regularly took part in the talent show circuit before she made her local stage debut at the tender age of five. She won various talent competitions before she formally entered showbiz with her appearance on Star Search at the age of ten. Her music career skyrocketed at a young age which followed a series of notorious problems that placed her in a conservatorship. In 2019, her conservatorship initiated a #FreeBritney movement that led to the termination of it on November 12, 2021.
You will be shocked to discover that the one-time pop music queen Britney Spears’ net worth is not as magnificent as her career. Continue reading to find out how much she is worth.
Britney Spears is an American singer, songwriter, and dancer who rose to fame in the late 1990s and early 2000s. She is commonly referred to as the “Princess of Pop” and became the face of the revival of teen pop. Having sold over 100 million records all over the world, she easily makes her way up to being one of the world’s best-selling music artists. Britney achieved international stardom through her iconic lyrics and her youthful energy that became responsible for the historic transformation of pop stars into fashion icons.
Britney began working as an artist in childhood. She learned gymnastics, dancing and regularly took part in the talent show circuit before she made her local stage debut at the tender age of five. She won various talent competitions before she formally entered showbiz with her appearance on Star Search at the age of ten. Her music career skyrocketed at a young age which followed a series of notorious problems that placed her in a conservatorship. In 2019, her conservatorship initiated a #FreeBritney movement that led to the termination of it on November 12, 2021.
Early Life, Career, and Rise to Success
Britney Spears was born on December 2, 1981, in McComb, Mississippi. She was the second child of Jamie Spears and Lynne Irene Bridges. She has English and Maltese lineage and grew up under the strong religious influence of Protestantism. However, as an adult, Spears converted to Catholicism in 2021.
Britney started attending dance classes in Kentwood, Louisiana at the age of three. She exhibited her singing skills which led her to be selected as a solo artist for the annual recital. She made her local stage debut at her kindergarten graduation with the song, “What Child Is This?”
Throughout her childhood, she learned gymnastics and singing by signing up for different classes and programs. Britney exhibited boundless talent as a child, enabling her to win many state-level competitions and talent shows. According to Britney, she realized her ambition early as a child and knew her passion for music, singing, and dancing.
At the age of eight, she traveled to Atlanta with her mother to audition for The Mickey Mouse Club (1990). Despite her talent, the casting director Matt Casella was compelled to reject her due to her age. However, he introduced her to a New York City casting agent, Nancy Carson. Nancy too recognized her talent and suggested that Britney take up professional training at Professional Performing Arts School. Britney’s mother decided to give it a shot and moved to NYC with her daughters. From there began Britney’s journey to stardom. In 1992, she was cast in The Mickey Mouse Club along with Justin Timberlake, Ryan Gosling, and Christina Aguilera. In 1994, the show was canceled. Britney moved back to Mississippi and enrolled at Parklane Academy.
In 1997, Britney decided to join a female pop group Innosense and submitted her informal demo to Larry Rudolph, a family friend, an entertainment lawyer. He advised her to get a professional demo made and once Britney prepared herself with one she traveled to New York to meet four different record labels. Surprisingly, three of the labels rejected her citing that audiences wanted more pop bands like Spicy Girls than another Madonna.
Jiva Records recognized the spark in Britney’s voice and signed her to the label. The label assigned her to work with the producer, Eric Foster who helped her realize her true potential as a pop singer. He helped her shape her voice and explore what she could do best. In 1998, after her training, she flew to Stockholm, Sweden where Cheiron Studios recorded half of the album.
Britney’s first studio album ‘Baby One More Time’ sold almost 500,000 copies on the day of release and debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. It holds the record of becoming the fastest-selling single ever released by a female artist.
Following that, she produced well-known hits like ‘Piece of Me’, ‘Oops!.. I Did It Again’ and ‘Me Against The Music, which gained her recognition all over the world. She explored various facets of stardom and also took part in the world of acting. In 2002, she starred in the film Crossroads. Later in 2005, she also starred in the reality series Britney & Kevin: Chaotic alongside her then-husband Kevin Federline.
Apart from being seen on TV shows, she has also explored her fashion icon symbol by designing a special edition clothing line with Candies. She has established a legacy of a true style maven and her sense of fashion has continued influencing generations to come. From sexy crop tops flaunting her abs to tiny sunglasses, she has been the ultimate fashionista who has had an indisputable impact on trends of not only that era but also today.
In 2012, Britney signed as the highest-paid judge on The X Factor with a whopping salary of $15 million. Since the beginning of her music career, she has released nine albums; Baby One More Time, Oops! I Did It Again, Britney, In The Zone, Blackout, Circus, Femme Fatale, Britney Jean, and Glory.
Fame and mental health issues
During the peak of her music career, Britney’s mental health began declining. In 2007, she suffered personally and professionally. At the work front, she was abused by the paparazzi. She was always in the limelight that kept her life completely exposed. Constant hounding of reporters, photographers, and gossip frustrated her. Along with that, her life was a mess as a young, successful woman of 26. Her failed relationship with her ex-husband and dirty custody battle exposed her personal life to the world and the court proceedings became a hot spot for hungry paparazzi.
The final blow turned out to be when she was declined custody of her sons after she was declared as a substance abuser and a habitual alcoholic. This led her to lose her sanity and she was immersed in a chaotic state of mind for a while. In order to control the situation, she was put under a conservatorship run by her father, Jamie Spears. At that time, fans were devastated and the media declared The Pop Princess had fallen. Despite the assumptions, she proved them wrong, regained her lost glory, and emerged with a major comeback in 2013.
A 30$ million contract for a residency show was signed by Britney at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas. The deal required her to perform for 100 shows in a span of two years. She further renewed her contract to run through 2017. These four years at Las Vegas residency brought Britney back in the game, boosted her career, bank accounts, and helped her to regain her reputation. She set a new box office record with her final performance at Las Vegas residency. The single show brought in $1.172 million. Britney was officially taking over name and fame.
In 2018, her second Las Vegas residency, Britney: Domination was announced. It was set to premiere in early 2019 and Britney was expected to generate $507,000 for each show. That would have made her the highest-paid on the Las Vegas Strip. But just a month before, she canceled the residency due to her father’s fatal colon rupture. She decided to take a break from work to spend time with her family.
What Is Britney Spears’ Net Worth?
Britney Spears’ net worth is almost $70 million. She has emerged as the major figure in mainstream pop music and is largely credited for the revival of the teen pop genre in the late 1990s. She has sold over 100 million records all over the world. She is the eighth top-selling female musician in the USA. Her career peaked in the early 2000s when she became the highest-paid artist in the world. It is estimated that she earned $40 million in 2002 alone through touring and record sales.
Britney Spears’ seemingly huge net worth is considerably less than other female musicians. Other female musicians’ net worth is as follows.
| Rihanna | $600 million |
| Beyonce | $420 million |
| Taylor Swift | $365 million |
| Jennifer Lopez | $150 million |
| Jessica Simpson | $110 million |
| Britney Spears | $70 million |
Britney’s seemingly low net worth is largely because of her public mental breakdown and her court-ordered conservatorship. The entire control of her career and finances was handed over to her father, James Spears. This setup has not only been bad for their career but also diminished her net worth considerably.
How has Britney Spears made millions?
As mentioned earlier, Britney began her career as an artist quite early in life. Her wealth generated from her music career was what strengthened her finances. The fame she received through her pop music and her mega-hits led her to be a household name in the early 2000s. She was the pop queen for a reason. Her record label RCA Records reports that she sold almost 100 million records throughout her career out of which 70million were from the United States.
Britney rose to fame instantly with her funky and sexy pop music. She became a global sensation after ‘Baby One More Time’. Her first two albums are to date best-selling in the history of US music. Both her diamond releases ‘Baby One More Time’ and ‘Oops I Did It Again’ earned her so much name and fame that she was paid $10 million in advance for her next deal. Apart from producing quality music, she generated her millions through other ways also which has contributed to her net worth of $70 million.
Live Performances and Shows
Britney Spears has made a whopping amount of money through live performances and shows. She has been blessed with high energy and crowd-pulling aura since childhood and has never shied away from performing in front of large audiences. She has toured all over the world and has proven that her concerts are a must-see. Early in her career, she became a staple of the highly prestigious MTV Video Music Awards. She has managed to deliver the most highlighted moments at the awards. Some of these moments include her appearance and dance with a live snake and making out with Madonna. Britney’s live performances have demonstrated her ability to sweep the crowds and enabled her to make millions on tours.
The stage has contributed to her solid financial state. When she was touring her albums, Britney visited all around the world and had no issues selling out her music. Since 2018, she has not embarked on her global journey but her tours still hold a huge role in building her net worth.
Britney’s association with Las Vegas for her concert residency has also generated millions. She has performed on nearly 250 shows and has reportedly made $400,000 per night. Her final show also generated more than $1 million. After the completion of Britney: Piece of Me, she was expected to return with another Las Vegas concert residency, Britney: Domination. She was expected to earn almost half a million dollars per night but tragically had to back out. The superstar made the tough decision when her father became seriously ill. She decided to quit the show and spend some time with the family.
Brands
Britney Spears has earned her name and fame as a singer and performer. But there is more to her that has brought her some real money. Her name is also a brand, which she established as she took a break from performing. Her perfume brand has been in the business for over 15 years and ranks as one of the most successful fragrances. The brand has been able to generate $1.5 billion in revenue, from which the star takes a hefty amount.
Back in 2004, Britney decided to build her fragrance business with Curious. It became an instant bestseller and was purchased by almost 700 million people globally. Her fragrances are loved to date and make her a lot of money.
Television and Film
Although Britney didn’t go far into film and TV, she did generate some of her wealth from it. She appeared on some of the high streaming programs like The Simpsons, Glee, How I Met Your Mother, and Jane The Virgin. She also worked in films like Austin Powers in Goldmember and Crossroads. She also pocketed huge sums through commercials and endorsements for brands like Pepsi and Mcdonalds.
She landed herself with a huge deal on TV when she was signed to be the judge on The X Factor in the United States. Simon Cowell, the producer of the show, required someone influential to attract the audience to switch from American Idol. Britney was paid a striking deal of $15 million for a single season.
Britney under conservatorship
The world-renowned pop singer’s years of stardom have been tainted by highly publicized personal issues and mental health problems. Her erratic behavior and decisions led her to lose complete control of her life and placed her under the conservatorship of her father. In 2007, her infamous breakdown which landed her in rehab played a pivotal role in her conservatorship. Her mental health battles continued alongside her music career which did not falter much. She made a comeback with Circus in 2008 and continued to release albums afterward also. She starred in Las Vegas residency and launched her businesses of perfumes and lingerie during the period and continued her work as before.
Despite her performances and comebacks, Britney’s loyal fans have supported her dissatisfaction with the lack of control of her finances and life, as a 38-year-old woman. The singer herself tried to protest multiple times. Her fans launched the #FreeBritney movement on social media to raise awareness of the faulty conservatorship and the violation of Britney’s independence. The conservatorship allowed her father, James Spears to be in control of every penny of Britney’s fortune. He became the one in the power of all generated by Britney’s hard work.
What is a conservatorship?
According to U.S law, a conservatorship is the appointment of an individual or organization to care for or guard another unfit individual. It is initiated by a judge who appoints a person the authority to control another person’s financials and day-to-day affairs. A person under conservatorship is referred to as a ‘conservatee’ and may be a person who is deemed unfit to manage his affairs perhaps due to old age or physical and mental limitations. A conservator is a legally appointed guardian, and in the case of Britney, her father, Jamie Spears was assigned to be her conservator by the court of California.
The arrangement of conservatorship is usually reserved for people who exhibit severe mental disabilities, erratic behaviors, or are elderly folks. All those incapable of making sound decisions on their own can be legally put under it.
Why was Britney put under conservatorship?
Britney Spears underwent the ordeal of conservatorship after her public breakdown in 2008. Since 2007, she had begun displaying erratic behaviors like shaving off her head and attacking the paparazzi. The global star exhibited a lack of control over their mental state leading her to be sent to a psychiatric hospital for a mental health evaluation.
Timeline of events that led to Britney’s conservatorship
Divorce in 2006
Britney Spears filed for divorce from Kevin Federline, and the split was finalized by 2007. The couple shares two sons, Sean Preston, and Jayden James.
Post-divorce, the couple engaged in custody disputes which gained publicity due to Britney’s erratic behavior and deteriorating mental state. At one instance, she locked herself in a bathroom along with her kids, which led to police being involved. This resulted in her hospitalization and she was evaluated for mental health issues. Following her regular psychiatric issues, her father petitioned for conservatorship over his daughter which was approved by LA Superior Court Commissioner Reva Goetz.
Permanent Conservatorship in 2008
Initially, the arrangement was made to be a temporary solution to Britney’s problem. But eight months later it was made permanent legally. The judge cited the complex financial and business entities of Britney that required protection from a conservator. Her father was officially appointed as the conservator who would manage all her financial affairs and overlook day-to-day activities.
The norm till 2019
In 2008, Britney publicly accepted the new norm and gave her fans the true picture of her A few. A few months into conservatorship, Britney appeared glum and depressed, citing her routine to not be in her control. Previously a bubbly personality, Britney talked about the restraints and constant involvement of doctors and lawyers in her life to be the reason behind her sadness. Britney was going through a tough time and it was evident from her interview on MTV. She desired to be liberated from conservatorship but it was to take many almost 13 years to make that happen and for her to regain her independence in 2019. Till then, Jamie Spears had all the legal rights to make decisions of Britney’s health, finances, businesses, and even personal life.
Losing her fortune to the conservatorship
Although Britney made spectacular comebacks and regained her hold on the music world through new and popular music and by taking part in lucrative deals, the fact is that she also lost millions from her fortune to the conservatorship.
Her conservator, Jamie Spears claims that when he took over, Britney was in danger of going broke but during conservatorship and under his guidance she expanded her network 20 times.
Britney has paid her father’s massive legal fees and he has made a good amount of money from her tours and performances. Her legal representation has taken away huge sums of money from the pop icon which has caused her to lose so much from her fortune.
Britney Spears’ personal life
Britney Spears’ personal life has been an open book as she has never hidden her relationships. She dated popular musician Justin Timberlake from 1998 to 2002. The pop superstar couple was perhaps the most adored however they broke up and Britney moved on to have a brief linkup with Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst in 2002. A year later she is assumed to have had a brief fling with Colin Farrell. In 2004, Britney began displaying her eccentric nature when after a night of partying in Las Vegas with her friend Jason Alexander, she married him spontaneously. The marriage was annulled after almost two days.
Britney surprised the world once again in the year 2004, as she married her backup dancer Kevin Federline. The couple had two sons together and decided to part ways in 2007. She lost child support to him as legal battles got dirty and highly publicized. She had to pay $1 million to her ex-husband following the divorce and also agreed to pay the child support per month.
In 2007, Britney moved on to date paparazzo Adnan Ghalib but the relationship was short-lived and fizzled away in a year. Two years later she began dating her former manager, Jason Trawick and got engaged to him for 2 years. But that too never materialized and Britney had another blow in her relationships. She also dated David Lucado and Charlie Ebersol before she met model Sam Asghari on the set of her “Slumber Party” music video in 2016. The much younger model Sam and mentally estranged international superstar, Britney has been inseparable since then despite their 13 years of the age difference, the couple is still holding it stronger than ever.
What is known about Britney’s ex-husband and children?
Britney Spears’ ex-husband, Kevin Federline is also known as K-Fed. He is an American rapper, DJ, and tv personality. He started his career as a backup dancer and gained instant recognition when he became romantically involved with the pop queen, Britney Spears. His high-profile marriage to the star followed a ruthless divorce and child custody battle that gained a lot of media attention too.
Before his involvement with Britney, Kevin was formally engaged to actress Shar Jackson. He had a daughter with her and she was pregnant with his son when he quit the relationship and moved on to Britney. Despite the complexity of the situation, Kevin is complimented for his parenting by his ex-fiance.
Britney and Kevin Federline married in 2004 and the union lasted for 2 years. Intense media scrutiny termed Kevin as a gold digger and he became a target of media bullying. Britney desired to start a family as soon as marriage. Britney was ecstatic to welcome her firstborn, Sean Preston in 2005 and shared on her website, “We are ecstatic to announce the birth of our son! Everyone is happy, healthy, and doing wonderful things. Thank you for all your love and well wishes!”. In September 2006, the couple welcomed their second son Jayden James.
Alongside building a family, both Britney and Kevin appeared in a reality television series Britney & Kevin: Chaotic. The show consisted of their home videos. Kevin also starred in a 2004 movie ‘You Got Served’, and guest-starred in CSI and NBC show ‘1 vs 100’.
During his marriage with Britney, he excelled in his career and established himself as a tv personality and rapper. Things deteriorated between them soon and in 2006, Britney filed for a divorce from Kevin Federline. She also filed for both physical and legal custody of her two sons.
The divorce took Federline by surprise but it was finalized and a settlement was reached. He maintains a cordial relationship with Britney’s family as they partake in parenting their children together. In 2007, citing Britney’s substance abuse and erratic attitude, Kevin was granted sole custody of both the children as she became unfit to control her finances and life in general. She was given visitation rights which were increased with time but following the instance of her locking herself in the bathroom with her son and police being involved, she was deemed unfit to care for the children.
What is known of Britney’s fiance, Sam Asghari?
Sam Asghari has an Iranian lineage and was born in the capital of Iran, Tehran. At the age of 12, he moved to Los Angeles to live with his father who was a truck driver. He moved to the country without knowing the language of the land and cites the experience to be a complete culture shock. Sam Asghari’s family also includes his three sisters. He is an actor and personal trainer but is mostly known as the fiance of the pop queen, Britney Spears. Sam is largely credited for helping Britney recover from the chaotic lifestyle she had adopted and also brought stability to her life, something she craved for a long time. The couple met in 2016 at the shoot of her music video, Slumber Party. The couple hit it off from there and today, almost 5 years later they are officially engaged. They have flaunted their relationship all these years through social media and have remained inseparable.
Conclusion
As Britney struggled with mental health issues, relationship struggles, conservatorship, and keeping it all aligned with her success as a superstar, several of her pop star peers have attained massive net worth. Jennifer Lopez and Jessica Simpson both have continuously worked to produce new music, tour the world and create brands that generated vast signs of wealth.
Along with that, a fresh generation of pop stars like Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, and Rihanna have raised the standards further not just in the world of music and performances, but also as entrepreneurs and building their brands. Despite Britney Spears having a sizable net worth, the fact remains that she was worth a lot more as the queen of her time, and her lifestyle choices and erratic behavior along with her conservatorship sucked a lot of her fortune from her and left her with $70 million net worth today which is nothing compared to her pop peers and music artists that emerged after her.
