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‘Waiting for Britney Spears’: 5 shocking (allegedly true) stories from a former tabloid writer

BBG News

In his latest publication titled “Waiting for Britney Spears: A True Story, Allegedly,” Jeff Weiss, a music writer from L.A., takes us on a trip down memory lane to the twilight of the celebrity gossip era in the early 2000s. It was an era before smartphones, when people didn’t capture every moment and paparazzi could earn six-figure sums for pictures of Angelina Jolie’s baby bump.

Straight out of college, harboring ambitions for Pulitzer prizes, Weiss opted instead to work at Star magazine, later known as Nova in the book, to cover his living expenses. This decision led him to witness some disturbing events during the infamous celebrity stalking period, including Britney Spears’ rapid rise to fame and subsequent struggles in the early 2000s, several years before her personal and professional life was put under a court-appointed conservatorship managed by her father, Jamie.

In this harrowing incident, Weiss, gritting his teeth, serves as an observer, penning articles for rental payments alongside photographer Mel Bouzad, often called Oliver Bournemouth in the novel, who functions as Weiss’s guide, navigating him through Hollywood’s luxurious velvet barriers. Quickly, Weiss is swallowed up by Spears’ sphere, making it his guiding force. The author transforms into an unapologetic accomplice in the scheme to bring down Spears, one sensational headline after another. “We craved more and more, until she had no strength left to resist and no sanctuary remaining,” writes Weiss. Here are some of the most startling tales from the book.

Music

Examining Britney Spears’ career requires delving into her personal life as well. Review past news articles and passages from her autobiography for a comprehensive understanding.

The Federline nuptials

In 2004, as a novice journalist, Weiss receives a valuable tip about the wedding of Britney Spears to Kevin Federline at the Studio City residence of one of Spears’ close friends. Joined by Bouzad, Weiss surveys a nearby house and pays its owner for the privilege of observing the wedding ceremony there. An hour before the event, Weiss notes that Federline enters in his white undershirt. The groomsmen, he describes, resemble missing members of 98 Degrees, with their curly goatees and rubber-band braids. Following the reception where Federline “retrieves her garters with his teeth,” the wedding party climbs into black SUVs adorned with Juicy Couture sweat suits: “Britney announces herself as Mrs. Federline.” The other suit simply reads, “Hers.

A high-speed chase with ‘Ben Affleck’

Temporarily pausing his Britney Spears storyline, Weiss shifts his focus towards uncovering details about Ben Affleck’s new relationship with Jennifer Garner. In pursuit of this elusive duo, Weiss takes a drive to Affleck’s house in Brentwood. Fortune smiles on him as Affleck appears and hops into his car, causing Weiss to trail behind. He admits that his lumbering car struggles to keep pace with Affleck’s sleek V12 Mercedes, but he manages. However, Affleck seems to have caught on to Weiss’ pursuit, swerving erratically across traffic on the 101 Freeway towards the San Fernando Valley. Weiss narrowly avoids a collision with an approaching Range Rover, and just like that, the chase is over. It turns out that the driver of the Mercedes was Affleck’s brother, Casey.

His own tabloid story

In 2005, assigned by People magazine, Weiss tried to secretly enter Brad Pitt’s seaside estate in Santa Barbara to gather information on his blossoming relationship with Jolie. His task also included observing the fourth birthday party of Jolie’s son. He expressed that he was about to uncover one of the most significant stories of the decade, as the media had been filled with sensational headlines regarding Pitt, Jolie, and Jennifer Aniston’s love triangle for six months. As soon as Weiss climbed a hill and pulled out his binoculars, he was surrounded by four men carrying Glock guns hidden in their shorts. He was threatened, eventually released, but not before Brad Pitt appeared. Pitt shook his head, signaling that Weiss had failed. The following day, the news about Weiss’s attempt to sneak onto Pitt’s property made headlines itself: “People Paparazzo Popped Trying to Snake Pitt” was the Daily Mail’s UK headline, marking Weiss’s first taste of tabloid notoriety.

Entertainment & Arts

A Los Angeles court decided on Friday to discontinue the contentious conservatorship over Britney Spears, a decision that follows years of complex events leading up to this point. Here are accounts detailing the intricate background behind it all.

Spears’ buzzcut

2007 saw Weiss and Bouzad following Britney Spears, fresh from her divorce with Federline, to a simple hair salon in Tarzana. As shielded by security, Britney darted in like a scared deer, according to Weiss’ account. From an open window, Weiss overheard Spears instructing the hairdresser, “I want you to shave my hair short.” When the hairdresser declined, Spears seized the trimmer and activated it: “The extensions were chopped into lifeless fragments … the loose hairs coiled on the floor like wriggling snakes.” Hours afterwards, Spears’ hair was up for bids on eBay. The bid reached $1 million before the online auction house took down the listing due to unverifiable authenticity. In her memoir “The Woman in Me,” Spears clarified her motive behind this daring act: “Shaving my head and acting out were my ways of resisting.

Meeting face-to-face

In the same year, Spears endeavors to make a musical resurgence through a new album and various unique shows. Weiss secures an exclusive interview with the pop sensation at a leased mansion in the Hollywood Hills. However, things don’t go as anticipated. Spears arrives disoriented and upset, dismisses the chosen outfits for the photoshoot, and locks herself in the bathroom. Eventually, Weiss gets his chance to interact with Spears. Over lunch, “Britney appears nonchalant and beckons Weiss as if she has something to disclose.” It seems Weiss is on the verge of a private conversation with Spears, but it turns out to be a misconception: She mistakes Weiss for a production assistant. “She hands him her empty plate filled with bones and fat to discard.

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2025-06-09 13:31

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