Britney Spears testified before a court about her conservatorship Wednesday, and her emotional and at times jaw-dropping testimony is captivating everyone, including fellow music stars like Mariah Carey and Halsey, who voiced their support for Spears.
Spears said during the hearing via phone that she wants the court to end the conservatorship and added, “I am so angry, it’s insane.”
“I’ve lied to the world that I’m happy and OK, it’s a lie. Maybe if I said it enough, I would become it,” Spears testified. “I am traumatized, fake it to make it. I am not happy. I can’t sleep. I am so angry, it’s insane, I am depressed and I cry every day.”
The singer, who has been under the conservatorship arrangement since 2008, also said that she wants to get married and have a baby with boyfriend Sam Asghari but can’t because she has an IUD and her team will not let her go see a doctor.
She described the conservatorship as “abusive” and wants it to end without having to undergo an evaluation.
Spears added in her testimony that she was forced to take Lithium, a drug that’s usually used as a mood stabilizer to treat manic depression or bipolar disorder.
Singer Halsey noted on Twitter that she admired Spears’ “courage” for speaking out against her father, James Spears, for keeping her in a legal conservatorship that restricts her rights to have children if she wants. After sharing her admiration of Spears, Halsey expressed her disdain for Spears’ situation and noted that she was disturbed by the fact that Spears’ reproductive rights and agency over her own body were being restricted.
During the hearing at Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday, Spears testified via phone, speaking out against the conservatorship for the first time. She compared her father to a “sex trafficker” and added “he loved the control he had over me, one hundred thousand percent.”
Take a look at the reactions from Spears’ supporters — including Cher, Megan McCain and others below.