Britney Spears’ much-anticipated memoir leaves few stones unturned from her nearly 30-year career and 41 years on this earth.
The Woman In Me tracks Britney’s entire life, from troubled beginnings with her less-than-perfect family in Louisiana to the mega stardom with which we’re well acquainted and, of course, the dramatic conservatorship of which she would finally be freed in 2021.
Many have waited with bated breath to see what Britney would say about her famous pals. Her relationship with her once-boyfriend Justin Timberlake is spoken of at-length, with Britney sharing detailed accounts of their break-up, his infidelity, his history of black appropriation and the time he allegedly talked her into a home abortion.
She discusses Mariah Carey and Madonna with awe and respect as her continued idols. She mentions running wild in Vegas with Paris Hilton, who she still recalls affectionately as being so much fun.
Then there’s Christina Aguilera.
Despite Aguilera being a consistent presence throughout Britney’s career—first, through their co-starring in the Mickey Mouse Club from the age of 12, and then, unintentionally as a constant subject of media comparison—Christina does not get much of a mention in the 275-page memoir.
Those who have followed the pair know there is some simmering bad blood beneath the surface. But what is it and when did their childhood friendship turn sour?
Britney & Christina’s Feud Timeline
Here’s the full time of Britney and Christina’s friendship and feud.
1993-1994: Britney & Christina Are In The Mickey Mouse Club
Along with their famous peers Ryan Gosling, Justin Timberlake and Keri Russell, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera were part of Disney’s Mickey Mouse Club between 1993 and 1994. The troupe of all-singing and dancing tweens formed the cast of the variety show where they would show off their talents.
In her memoir, Britney briefly mentions meeting “a girl from Pennsylvania named Christina Aguilera” during an earlier audition process, and that neither of them had made the cut after their first auditions.
After their second successful auditions, however, Britney and Christina became friends.
“The Mouseketeers quickly split into our own cliques, divided by the dressing rooms that we shared: Christina Aguilera and I were the younger kids, and we shared a dressing room with another girl, Nikki DeLoach,” she wrote.
From all accounts between the two, they were good friends at the time.
1999-2000: Christina And Britney Become Certified Pop Superstars
The media comparison really kicks off when both Britney and Christina debut their solo singles within a matter of months. Britney, of course, was first, with ‘Baby One More Time’—the release of which caused an absolute riot, figuratively speaking.
Christina followed four months later with ‘Genie In A Bottle’.
Both young, blonde and from the same Disney background, the similarity was undeniable.
2003: Britney and Christina Perform—And Make Out—With Madonna
At this instantly iconic MTV VMAs performance, both Britney and Christina performed with Madonna and all made-out while singing ‘Like A Virgin’.
However, while Madonna kissed both Britney and Christina, Christina’s kiss was largely ignored, even unknown, as the broadcast cut to Justin Timberlake—Britney’s recent ex—during the televised version.
“It was weird. And you know why they cut away for it? Because they cut away to get Justin [Timberlake]‘s reaction,” Aguilera confirmed in an interview with Radio Andy in 2018. “I definitely saw the newspaper the next day. It was like, ‘Oh, well, I guess I got left out of that one.'”
Meanwhile, as Evan Ross Katz points out, Britney also overlooked Christina’s involvement in this major performance when discussing it in her memoir. In fact, she never mentions her.
Following the performance, Aguilera told Blender that Britney had been “distant” during rehearsals for the MTV VMAs performance.
“Every time I tried to start a conversation with her – well, let’s just say she seemed nervous the whole time,” she told the publication. “She seems to me like a lost little girl, someone who desperate needs guidance.”
Britney did not appreciate being called a “lost little girl”, later telling the same magazine that she “couldn’t believe” the ‘Dirrrty’ singer’s comments.
She also accused Aguilera of not “being real”, which Aguilera reportedly accused Britney of to her face. “I say, ‘It’s good to see you,’ and she goes, ‘Well, you’re not being real with me.’ I was like, ‘Well, Christina, what’s your definition of real? Going up to girls and kissing them after you haven’t seen them for two years?'”
It was also around this time that Christina and Justin appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone together, with Christina saying she thought he and Britney should get back together. In her memoir, Britney called these comments “confusing” and said they “stung”. (Read full quote in Memoir section, below.)
2005: Britney Reportedly Writes Christina A Letter
US Weekly reports that a blog post published to Britney’s website during this time claimed “Britney would love to be close with Christina again.”
“In fact, Britney recently wrote Christina a letter telling her how happy and beautiful Christina looks lately,” it reportedly said.
2008: Christina Addresses Early Media Rivalry
Christina reportedly apologised for previous media comments about Britney, saying their early pop careers were “a funny time for me”.
“It must have seemed as if we were competing with each other, but, in reality, Britney is someone that I used to hold hands with. We were silly little girls together on the Mickey Mouse Club. What a journey it has been for both of us,” she said to Daily Mail in November 2008.
2021: Christina Shares Support After Britney Spears’ Conservatorship Testimony
On June 24, 2021, Britney shared an emotional speech in court detailing the “abusive” conditions of a conservatorship she’d been subjected to for the past 13 years. Following the widely-shared testimony, Christina took to social media to share her thoughts.
“These past few days I’ve been thinking about Britney and everything she is going through. It is unacceptable that any woman, or human, wanting to be in control of their own destiny might not be allowed to live life as they wish,” she began a string of Tweets.
“To be silenced, ignored, bullied or denied support by those ‘close’ to you is the most depleting, devastating and demeaning thing imaginable. The harmful mental and emotional damage this can take on a human spirit is nothing to be taken lightly.
“Every woman must have the right to her own body, her own reproductive system, her own privacy, her own space, her own healing and her own happiness.
“While I am not behind the closed doors of this very layered & personal yet public conversation – all I can do is share from my heart on what I’ve heard, read and seen in the media.
“The conviction and desperation of this plea for freedom leads me to believe that this person I once knew has been living without compassion or decency from those in control.
“To a woman who has worked under conditions and pressure unimaginable to most, I promise you she deserves all of the freedom possible to live her happiest life. My heart goes out to Britney. She deserves all the TRUE love and support in the world.”
2021: Britney Blasts Christina For Not Acknowledging The End Of Her Conservatorship
Britney’s conservatorship eventually came to an end in November, after which Christina made no comment, despite many of Britney’s friends and A-list supporters, like Paris Hilton and Lady Gaga, sending congratulations on social media.
When asked at the Latin Grammy Awards about whether she’d had any communication with Britney, Christina’s publicist shut down the conversation saying, “no, we’re not doing that tonight”. However, ELLE Australia reports, as she walked away, Christina said “I can’t. But I’m happy for her.”
However, Spears was not pleased, blasting Christina for “refusing to speak”.
Alongside the footage of Christina, Britney wrote:
“I love and adore everyone who supported me… but refusing to speak when you know the truth, is equivalent to a lie! 13 years being in a corrupt abusive system yet why is it such a hard topic for people to talk about? I’m the one who went through it! All the supporters who spoke up and supported me thank you… Yes, I do matter”.
October 2023: Christina Aguilera Comments On Britney’s Memoir Release
During an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, a week prior to the release of Britney’s memoir, Christina was asked about the book.
“You know Britney Spears has a memoir coming out, do you think you will be in it?” Kimmel asks.
“Dude, I don’t know. I don’t know,” Christina responds, shaking her head.
“Are you hoping that you’re in it?” He asks.
“I don’t know!” She says with a laugh. “Am I hoping? I mean, I’m hoping that everything is all good with her and everything is beautiful. You know, I think the future should be celebrated.”
Kimmel pushes again: “If you had to choose between being in it and not being in it…”
“You know what? Let’s put it this way. I’d rather it be you than me,” Christina concludes.
Does this foreshadow some drama to come? Let’s find out…
October 2023: Everything Britney’s Memoir Says About Christina
Christina doesn’t earn many mentions in Britney’s memoir, ‘The Woman In Me’.
The first two name-drops are around the pair’s involvement in the Mickey Mouse Club (read section above).
However the most significant mention—and evidence of the two having a falling out—is in the following anecdote from 2003, after she and Justin had split and there was the explosive interview with Diane Sawyer.
She wrote: “While the news about me was often not all that friendly, the entertainment press was full of positive stories about Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera. Justin was on the cover of Rolling Stone half naked. Christina was on the cover of Blender, dressed like a madam from the Old West. They were together on the cover of Rolling Stone, him in a black tank top, looking at her with sexy eyes, her looking out at the camera, wearing a lace-up black shirt. In that story, she said she thought Justin and I should get back together, which was just confusing, giving how negative she’d been elsewhere. Seeing people I knew so intimately talk about me that way in the press stung.”
Following this, she recalls Christina being “pretty messed up” when the two met up in Las Vegas while both on tour.
“She seemed pretty messed up,” Britney concludes of her former Mouseketeer. “But the dancers and I ended up swimming in a beautiful pool and sitting in a jacuzzi.”
More kindly, in another mention she calls Christina “really professional on TV”.
“I think a lot of people are really professional on TV, like Christina Aguilera and Gwen Stefani,” she writes.
However, some have interpreted this comment as coded, meaning that Christina doesn’t give much away when doing televised interviews.
Who’s to say for certain, but as we know, these two have been compared and forced into each other’s orbits for years—and both appear to want to start a different narrative.
Whether or not they are feuding or friends, one thing is for certain, when all is said and done, given the bizarre lives of these two *very* famous women, their relationship is probably pretty normal.
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