Britney Spears' conservatorship team is balking at her claims that she was "forced" to do a European tour in 2018.
While speaking to a judge last week about her 13-year conservatorship, the pop star stated that she had no interest in performing all over Europe three years ago, but her management essentially made her do it. According to TMZ, Britney's management team is set to tell the judge a very different story, one in which the singer was "excited" about the tour.
The team will reportedly harken back to the waning days of Britney's Las Vegas residency show. She realized "she had nothing on her calendar for almost all of 2018. She then asked Management to find something for her to do so she wouldn't be bored for a year," a source told the website.
The source continued, "She literally begged to do the 2018 European Tour run. She was very excited about it and called repeatedly to ask to have it confirmed. There is a text message exchange between Management and Britney on December 16, 2017, where management provides her with the tour routing. She asks a few questions, and expresses how excited she is to do it."
At the explosive June 23 hearing, Britney said, "I was on tour in 2018. I was forced to do … my management said if I don't do this tour, I will have to find an attorney and by contract, their own management could sue me if I didn't follow through with a tour. He handed me a sheet of paper as I got off the stage in Vegas and said I had to sign it. It was very threatening and scary. I couldn't even get my own attorney, so out of fear, I went ahead and did the tour."
The conservatorship source, though, is essentially accusing Britney of revisionist history, claiming she "willingly" committed to the tour, but then changed her tune while on the road.
"She simply didn't want to be there so she was trying to find every excuse to leave the tour, at which time she made up the story about being forced to do it," a source said.
Further, the management team protest that Britney's supposed flip-flopping resulted in a change in conservatorship protocols.
"She would lie and deny having agreed to do it. The conservatorship was then forced to put into effect protocols requiring management to get her to sign off on all professional obligations so the conservatorship could show it to her to 'remind her' that she consented to the obligation," a source said.