Entertainer Britney Spears attends the iHeartRadio Music Festival. Photo / Getty
Entertainer Britney Spears attends the iHeartRadio Music Festival. Photo / Getty
Britney Spears has opened up about her well-documented 'difficult years' in a revealing new interview, admitting that her 20s were "awful."
It's a decade since the teen-pop superstar suffered a very public mental breakdown, shaving her head, attacking paparazzi and appearing spaced out during a disastrous MTV Video Music Awardsperformance all in 2007.
Daily News front page February 18, 2007, Headline: BRITNEY SHEARS. Photo / Getty
In the wake of that horrible year, Britney's minders - including her father - were given more control over her career and finances, so that she could focus on getting better.
"My life was controlled by too many people and that doesn't really let you be yourself," she explained in a new interview in Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot (she's performing in Tel Aviv next week).
"In that situation, when you're not in control, you become less excited, and there's less passion when it comes to music. I wrote back then that I was lost and didn't know what to do with myself. I was trying to please everyone around me because that's who I am deep inside. There are moments where I look back and think: 'What the hell was I thinking?'"
Spears acknowledged that those dark days made her rethink how she approached her career.
"I think I had to give myself more breaks through my career and take responsibility for my mental health," she said.
Spears was catapulted to worldwide fame with the release of record-breaking debut single ... Baby One More Time in 1998, when she was 17 years old. It was to kickstart years of unrest, with peace only coming in the past few years.
Britney Spears performs with a large snake. Photo / Getty
"I think I had fun when I was younger. I was a pretty normal girl, a tomboy. But my 20s were awful. My 30s are much better for me. I've learned to get to know myself better."
Finding a routine has helped - since 2013, Spears has eschewed the stress of world touring and instead played more than 200 shows in her Las Vegas Piece of Me residency - but she admits she still finds fame a challenge.
"I have these moments where I just want to dress up like a normal person and walk in the street. It goes through my mind quite a lot," she said.
Britney Spears poses with sons Jayden James Federline (L) and Sean Preston Federline (R) during a game. Photo / Getty
And while she has a few regrets about her teen pop past, they might not be what you'd expect: Spears now admits she winces at her instantly iconic performance at the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards, singing I'm A Slave 4 U with a giant snake draped around her neck.
"That was pretty scary," she said. "Stupid even. I wouldn't do that again."
