Britney Spears Shares Why She Shaved Her Head In 2007

When Britney Spears shaved her head in a Los Angeles hair salon in 2007, it became one of the most infamous pop culture moments of the decade. Now, 16 years later, the pop sensation has revealed why she decided to do so.

In an excerpt from her memoir The Woman in Me published by People, Spears reflects on that year — an especially turbulent one for the singer, when her every move, including her public divorce from Kevin Federline, faced intense tabloid scrutiny.

“I’d been eyeballed so much growing up. I’d been looked up and down, had people telling me what they thought of my body, since I was a teenager,” Spears writes. “Shaving my head and acting out were my ways of pushing back.”

Britney Was Forced To Grow Her Hair Back

In the same excerpt obtained by People, the hitmaker explains that her court-ordered conservatorship went into effect the year after she shaved her head. Spears has previously spoken about how the conservatorship took away her bodily autonomy; now, she reveals, even her hairstyle wasn’t left up to her during that time.

“I had to grow my hair out and get back into shape,” the singer writes. “I had to go to bed early and take whatever medication they told me to take.”

Spears released four albums and fronted a successful Las Vegas residency during her 14-year conservatorship, which was eventually terminated in 2021. During that time, though, Spears writes that her “heart wasn’t in it.”

“As far as my passion for singing and dancing, it was almost a joke at that point,” she continues. “Thirteen years went by with me feeling like a shadow of myself.”

She’s Ready To Share Her Story

Spears’ The Woman in Me hits shelves on Oct. 24. The long-awaited memoir promises trace the life of one of the world’s biggest pop stars, from her early years as an all-American teen idol to her past decade of legal troubles.

Speaking to People ahead of the release, the singer-songwriter revealed that she feels empowered to share her side of the story.

“Over the past 15 years or even at the start of my career, I sat back while people spoke about me and told my story for me,” Spears said. “After getting out of my conservatorship, I was finally free to tell my story without consequences from the people in charge of my life.”