Just some little articles I couldn't resist commenting on.
[ My comments in RED ]

Role Model...for strippers?
The "New" Britney
Emotions taking her over...
Too Sexy for Their Fans
Oops! Britney's on the loose again
Britney denies "faint" rumors
Britney: I Need a Break
Britney's Diva Rating
The O'Rielly Factor: Britney/Pepsi

Britney a role model for strippers?

Soul singer Dionne Warwick, arrested at Miami airport this month for allegedly possessing marijuana, might not be considered the best person to lecture on moral standards. But she has had a pop at fellow singer Britney Spears, 20, calling her "a role model for strippers".

"I don't really approve of the way our children are forced into being looked at as playboy bunnies. I think it's degrading. They're not being given an opportunity to develop into women. Gone is the respect that they're due as women," she said.

Warwick, a 61-year-old grandmother, added in an interview for the Variety Club's magazine, The Barker: "Britney would not be a role model. Not for my kids anyway."
Ok, so I find it EXTREMELY humorus that she can even think that she holds credablity when it says she was arrested for drugs. Honestly, the tidbit about Britney not being a role model for her kids? Please! I certainly hope you're not one.

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The "new" Britney

Poor Britney Spears.

If you believe the magazine fodder, the girl was dumped by her boyfriend, got caught smoking on a balcony in Australia and was turned away at a bar for being underage.

What's a teen pop star to do?

Get back on that horse, of course — or, in Britney's case, get back on stage.

The 20-year-old not-a-girl-not-yet-a-woman comes to the Tacoma Dome Wednesday for the second leg of her "Dream Within A Dream" tour, which kicks off in Las Vegas today. The tour originally launched in November, but didn't stop in the Northwest.

A lot's happened to Spears since then. First, there was her highly publicized split with 'N Sync's Justin Timberlake, who later reportedly told people she's not really a virgin. Further crumbling her good-girl image are rumors of her smoking and drinking, her penchant for the words "hell" and "damn" on her latest album, and one too many belly-baring shirts.

Critics have compared her third album, "Britney" — an edgier, sexier album with song titles such as "I'm A Slave 4 U" — to the coming-of-age anthem that was Janet Jackson's "Control." (Others have called it a nod to Madonna's steamy "Erotica.") This from the Louisiana girl and former Mouseketeer who, just three years ago, made her debut dressed as a Catholic schoolgirl in the perky "Baby One More Time."

So is Britney simply graduating from girlhood to womanhood? And where does that leave her fans, many of whom are pre-teen girls?

These are questions Spears has answered — many times — before. She insists she's not a role model to young girls, and that it's up to their parents to explain that she is a performer.

"I don't wear these clothes to the supermarket or to a ballgame," she has said of her skimpy stage get-ups. "When I come off stage, I trip and I burp and I fart just like everyone else."

Indeed, when she's not onstage, the girl with the breathy Southern drawl, who calls her mom her best friend, actually comes across like the girl next door (see her wide-eyed performance in the movie "Crossroads"). In a conference-call interview with reporters before her tour last year, Spears giggled, chewed gum, called women "Ma'am" and crunched on potato chips.

No wonder so much has been made of her single, "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman."

"I'm in that in-between stage in my life. A girl is someone who is very naļve," Spears said. "A woman is someone who knows herself inside and out and does have all the wisdom she needs. And I think I'm right in between there."

That contradiction is perhaps what is so appealing about Britney Spears. Critics be damned — the girl has fans. And she's not likely to disappoint when she appears in Tacoma next week with a sold-out show that features a 153-foot long multi-tiered stage with a runway and more than 250 lights and lasers.

As for the critics and gossips and tabloids, Spears says: "I find it interesting that they find me so interesting."
YES! It is up to parents to explain to their children that she is a performer. YES! She has repeated that over and over and over again. Altogether, I think this article's good. It's states the truth, and nothing more. Finally!

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Britney Emotional About Family Breakup
www.allpop.com

Britney Spears' current tour almost didn't go ahead after her mother made plans to divorce her dad last week. New York's Daily News quoted a source who said Spears appeared "extremely distraught" last week in Las Vegas, just before the tour's debut. Last week, Spears' mom, Lynne, reportedly told her husband of 30 years, Jamie, that she wanted a divorce. He had recently moved out of the mansion Britney had built for the family in Kentwood, La., and returned to the family's former home nearby. The marital problems between her parents took a toll on Spears, the report said. "She was ready to call off the tour," a source told The Daily News. "The tour was off, then it was on. It was really tense backstage hours before the show. She finally did the shows. But she ended up cancelling (other) appearances (in Vegas). She didn't go to any of the parties." Spears' spokeswoman wouldn't comment to The Daily News on the status of Spears' parents marriage, and denied there was any thought to cancelling the tour.
I argued back and forth whether to put this 'tidbit' up, but it struck a cord. So tell me the problem? Britney's upset about her parents' split...wouldn't you be. Just because she's famous doesn't mean she doesn't have feelings. Why does everyone have to make such a big deal because she didn't go to a party? Leave the girl be! [Best wishes to a Spears family at this difficult time.]

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Too Sexy for Their Fans?

Today’s drop-dead gorgeous pop stars tantalize teens with plenty of flash - and flesh. Teen pop is more sexualized than ever. Ask anyone who saw Britney Spears rip off her tuxedo top on last year’s MTV music awards.

“We got flack, obviously, from kids’ parents about that,” says Britney’s co-manager Johnny Wright, who says cutthroat competition pressures stars to be provocative. “Britney cannot be the same girl that she was on the first cover of the first album.”
What would it say if someone NEVER changed in 3 years. First of all, she'd never survive in the industry. Plus...are you the same person you were 3 years ago?

While her fans may be 8 or 9, Britney is 20, Wright says, and “she’s doing what a woman would do.”
Amen brother!

Carol Weston, a mother and author of advice books for girls, thinks there is a line that shouldn’t be crossed. She is concerned that sexy singers like Shakira, Jessica Simpson and Britney, all women in their 20s, are sending the wrong message to girls in their teens, even girls in their pre-teens. “I think young kids shouldn’t look sexy, they shouldn’t want to look sexy when they are 9,” Weston says.
You're right, but it's also not fair to pin blame of women like Britney Jessica, Shakira (and others...) who aren't 9 and can dress and act however they choose too.

It’s not uncommon for pre-teens to measure themselves against their teen idols, she says, so entertainers with a big fan base of preteens send a confusing message when they adopt a sexy style. Even teen-agers envy the slender, lithe figures of the people in the videos.

“It’s hard not to, when you see the “Slave” video come out and she’s, you know, dancing around like a belly dancer,” one Long Island teen tells Troy Roberts. “You’re like ‘Wow, I wish I could look like that.’ especially when the video comes on and you’re hanging out with a bunch of guys. And they’re just like, ‘Oh, my God.’ They won’t let you turn off the TV and if you move in front of it, they say, ‘Get away.’ You know?”

Britney Spear’s “Slave” video has made quite a few teens insecure. “People that I know, like they don’t eat or they’ll starve themselves or some people are bulimic,” says one girl. Another adds, “It would be nice if maybe she communicated that maybe not everyone is supposed to look like her and that you’re beautiful the way you are.”
Insecurities suck. But just like the girls who watch the "Slave" video and want to be Britney, Britney has insecurities too. Don't blame conditions such as anorexia and bulimia on someone else, especially the media. It's an illness that is in the mind and body of the beholder.

One entertainer trying to bring that message to teens is 20-year-old Christina Milian. “Half the time that picture’s airbrushed,” she tells fans. “That person’s not as perfect as you think.”
No crap...Really? (note: sarcasm.)

Milian, a former model and actress has harbored dreams of being a pop star since she was 7. Now, she is on the verge of seeing that dream come true. “I met her, heard her music, fell in love with her right away,” says Wright, who is also her manager. “Knew she was going to be a star.”

These days, Milian, with two smash singles, is winging her way around the globe and in the process has learned that sex appeal sells albums. “As an artist, you are a product,” she says.
Isn't that the truth.

But Milian hasn’t lost sight of another reality. When she isn’t performing or making a music videos, she’s hitting the stage at middle schools across the country, talking to teens about self esteem. With the help of psychologist Dr. Anne Kearney-Cook, she has launched a program called “The Secret of Self Esteem.”

“I’m a real person just like them,” she says. “ I’ve gone through a lot of the same things these girls have gone through.” She admits that her esteem can drop to zero in situations involving a boyfriend and she urges them, when thinking of weight, to concentrate on physical strength, not figures on a scale.

“She’s able to say, 'Look, we don’t look the way we do in pictures and magazines. There’s lighting, there’s makeup artists, they airbrush the piece.’ So she’s able to give some helpful information,” Cook says, “to help them realize what’s the reality, what do people really look like, for instance.”

The audience sees a beautiful, young woman, Cook says, but “they also hear a smart, competent woman. And she sets goals and she perseveres. She’s teaching them that, and that, to me, is a very important message.”
Altogether, not bad article. It just irks me that they can bash on Britney, but praise Christina (Millian), who shows flesh too. Not the I don't like Christina, I do, but it just seems to me that if their going say one things about one artist, why are we making such a big deal about Britney? It's just a thought.

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Oops! Britney's on the loose again

The tour might be called "Dream Within a Dream." But lately Britney Spears has experienced more than her share of nightmares.

First there was the whole ugly breakup thing with longtime boyfriend Justin Timberlake of ''N Sync. Star magazine says she caught Justin in bed with some other blonde and went "berserk." The New York Post says he''s been spotted making out with Janet Jackson, one of Spears'' idols.

Then her film debut Crossroads, now on its way to video, grossed less than $40 million —— a lot to most of us, but not to a major studio. Then her parents split up. Then that meanie pop star Pink picked on her ("Tired of being compared to damn Britney Spears") in her song "Don''t Let Me Get Me," a single that adds insult to injury by far surpassing any of Spears'' songs lately.

But don''t sob for Spears. Her life is still way better than yours.

The 20-year-old from Kentwood, La., is still the reigning young monarch of mainstream music, magazine covers and MTV (Christina Aguilera who?). She''s a multimillion-dollar mascot for carbonated beverages. She''s even a restaurant owner now, as she recently opened up Nyla, a Manhattan bistro named for New York and Louisiana.

Maybe singles like "I''m a Slave 4 U" off Britney, her release of last November, haven''t caught on as her earlier work did, but the album has given her some critical acclaim and quadruple-platinum bragging rights.

And her tour, which features a 153-foot-long mutli-tiered stage, 70- foot oval main stage and a runway that requires 17 semi-trucks to haul it all, has received positive reviews (or as positive as cranky entertainment critics can muster. Quoth The Washington Post about her lastweek stop at the MCI Center: "Spears, who for all her musical shortcomings remains utterly adorable... and hit all her marks"). That is when the show has been able to go on. Last month a show in Lubbock, Texas, ended two songs in, when it became clear the venue''s electrical supply couldn''t handle the high-powered production.

The tour is sponsored by Pepsi (the soon-to-be released Austin Powers movie, in which Britney has a cameo, gets a boost from her latest soda spot) and Chips Ahoy... two items of which it''s impossible to picture the Muse of the Midriff partaking (OK, maybe a Diet Pepsi and maybe one-third of one of those Chips Ahoy, but only the reducedfat kind).

Which brings us, of course, to Britney''s most important assets —— her killer bod and her savvy use of it. Yeah, she can sing (at least, lip-synch. This reviewer is still adamant that there was a whole lot of Milli Van Britney-ing going on at Spears'' last show at Alltel Arena two years ago. And her last Saturday Night Live appearance. And her Las Vegas HBO special. And...). Yeah, she can dance. But what matters is that she can do all this while working her stuff in ****- ified Catholic school uniform, all the while remonstrating that she is still a good, small-town gal who loves Jesus.

What she''s got going on is not so much a Madonna (the virgin)/whore complex. It''s like a Madonna (the singer)/Debbie Gibson complex. Though, to Spears'' credit, she already has at least one more smash record than Gibson will ever have, and Madonna actually wore a Britney shirt in concert.

Spears'' dichotomy plays itself all over her current album. Take, for example, "Boys." The same song in which she declares " I''m a nice girl," she completes the rhyme with "Let''s turn this dance floor into our own little nasty world." On the same album that she is caroling the teen-age bedroom dreamer "Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman," she''s in the club appointing herself the "slave" of some guy.

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Britney denies faint reports

Britney Spears has rubbished reports that she collapsed on stage like a 'rag doll' at a US gig due to crash dieting on raw vegetables and water.

According to reports, an insider claimed: "Britney usually drops several pounds after every concert and needs to replenish herself with food and water.

"After the concert she complained of being dizzy and feeling light-headed. She drank some water but still felt weak and friends begged her to eat some food - but she refused.

"Minutes later Britney blacked out and slumped over in her seat motionless, looking like a rag doll. She was out for almost a minute. Everyone around her was in shock.

"After someone shook her, Britney's eyes opened and there was a collective sigh of relief. She was still feeling groggy but refused to go to hospital."

The details of Britney's love life have constantly been in the headlines this year following her split from 'Nsync's Justin Timberlake.
Ok, first of all. Unless it comes from Britney herself, I don't believe anything the press says anymore. Really, they've put her through too much to take their words over hers. Secondly, I hope that if it is true Britney has wised up a little and went back to eating "REAL" food.

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Britney: I Need a Break
Sun Online

BRITNEY SPEARS fears she may never love again after her painful split with JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE. The pop princess was devastated when he dumped her and consoled herself by non-stop partying, drinking and smoking. As I exclusively revealed, she has been told to calm down and take a break from the booze and wild nights. Britney says: “The break-up was horrible, very upsetting and it took a lot out of me. He was my first real love and I doubt I’ll be able to love anyone like that again. But now we’re doing different things. He’s 21 so I would expect him to see other girls.” Britney is resting for six months after her mum forced her to ditch her wild lifestyle.

She says: “I need this break to rejuvenate spiritually. I never wanted to hide who I was but, until about a year ago, I was trying to fit an image and trying to be someone I wasn’t. If I have a drink or I’m with someone, I’m human. I’m no different than anyone else my age. Smoking, drinking, sex – why is it such a big deal for me? As you get to 20 you grow up, you experiment. You feel more comfortable in your own skin.”

And after a gruelling tour, Britney is enjoying her break from showbiz. She adds: “This may sound weird but I’m kind of the happiest I’ve been in a really long freakin’ time. I need to find new influences, get re-inspired.”

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Just how demanding are divas?
Carina Trimingham knows - she's spent
two years as a publicist on Top Of The Pops. She spills the beans
here. Britney: She's always flanked by loads of her people but she
keeps herself to herself. She always works hard but doesn't socialize
or make demands on anyone at the show. She's very punctual and polite
and always says hello. When she is performing, her minders are in the
wings and out of the way. When she's not made up you wouldn't think
she was this huge star. You wouldn't really recognize her. She's
pretty but just like a normal girl. But she has an amazing body and
works hard to keep it in shape. Rating: 1/5

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Britney Under The O'Reilly Factor Gun Over Pepsi Deal

Bill O'Reilly spoke with Lori Waters, Executive Director for Eagle Forum, a conservative grassroots organization today on the O'Reilly Factor about whether Pepsi should also dump Britney Spears as a spokesperson for the soft drink company. Bill says he was on 107.1 FM today and got an earful from the hip hop community as they argued why he wasn't going after Britney. Lori agreed that Britney's sexualized message shouldn't be rewarded with a Pepsi contract. Read on for a transcript.

Bill: I appeared on 107.1 radio. They were all over me for knocking the rapper Ludacris. Their argument is Pepsi spokeswoman Britney Spears is just as bad. Joining us from Washington is Lori Waters, Executive Director of Eagle Forum. The rap community, Ludacris' mother is yelling at me now. They are telling me I'm unfair. They are not defending Ludacris. Everybody, I think everybody realizes how subversive he is. They say you give Britney Spears a pass and it's the same thing. How do you see it?

Lori: Bill, I certainly agree with you and commend you for getting Ludacris off the pepsi deal. He is outrageous. I'm shocked you aren't going after Britney Spears. She is a sexualized pop star and pepsi's banking on that.

Bill: Ellis Presley was a sexualized pop star. Should I have gone after him when I was 5 years old?

Lori: Do you want your 10, 12-year-old girls dancing and looking like Britney Spears?

Bill: Do I want that? No. I don't want it. To me it's like comparing marijuana to heroin. You may object to Britney Spears flounsing around in little skimpy outfits and buying the fake boobs, all of that. You may object to it, but it's not nearly on the lel of a Ludacris who is saying to people, get a gun, use crack and call women hos.

Lori: Ludacris is over the edge. You're right. She is still a bad role model for teens. This is just a ploy by Pepsi to get little kids to drink it.

Bill: You think pepsi should fire Britney Spears?

Lori: Yeah. They could get some young teen star like the "dude you're getting a del" commercial. They have a successful marketing campaign without using sex. You don't see him dancing dirty in front of bob dole.

Bill: we live in a society that is a lot more permissive than it was 20 years ago, ok? We have people like Michael Jackson grabbing his, you know, jewels when he dances and spinninground. Janet Jackson coming out in a halterumping grin to me, this no a danger to see sit, shock I wouldn't let my daughter do those things. In the long run, it's this. Where as ludacris' message is be an outlaw, take narcotics, abuse people, punch people. Hurt people. I'm not going to call for pepsi to fire Britney Spears because I don't feel Britney Spears is a threat to the nation. del, but I don't think she is going to do any permanent damage to anybody, where Ludacris is.

Lori: The permanent damage is the feeding of the culture of sexualizing kids when they are 10, 12 years old.

Bill: She isn't doing that. She is an adult.

Lori: But the way she dresses and in the songs. She is 20 years old and came to stardom about two or three years ago. She doesn't appeal to 20-year-olds. Her appeal is to the 10-year-ol 12-year-old girls.

Bill: Britney Spears to me, I don't know. I see, but I don't listen to her lyrics.

Lori: You just want her to dance in front of you like she did bob dole.

Bill: Bob Dole did a commercial with Britney Spears. Was Dole learing at her?

Lori: It was a sexualized commercial. At the end he says, down, boy. It's supposed to be for his dog, but you can get other sexual messages from that. It was gross thinking that bob Dole is the age of her grandfather.

Bill: For those us getting up in years, I don't know if we can't to categorize that. All of, I think, is immature and silly. Rather than subversive and dangerous.

Lori: It's just feeding the notion that little girls, it's ok for them to be sexualized, to dance dirty. One of her songs says about getting out on the dance floor doing a nasty dance, nasty whole world kind of thing that just no something we want to promote among young girls. That is not a positive message for kids.

Bill: Thank you for your point of view.

I just found this interesting because we were JUST reading his editorial on the Ludicras/Pepsi thing in my editorial class. I was actually surprised he didn't mention Britney in that at all. He never says anything nice about anyone. I thought it was quite a statement that he didn't bash Britney as much as I thought he might. At least someone is looking at the drug/violence thing as more of a bad influence over sexy attire. Damned if I thought it would ever be him....but hey, let's take what we can get, right?

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:: in deFense ::