Britney Spears has chosen to admit herself into a treatment center, Billboard has learned.
A spokesperson for the pop icon confirmed to Billboard on Sunday April 12 that Spears made the decision to check in on her own, though no specific reason was shared.
At the time of reporting, her representative did not offer any additional information.
According to TMZ, the artist reportedly entered a rehab facility for treatment related to substance use.
Her move to seek treatment comes a little over a month after being arrested for a DUI.
Spears was taken into custody on March 4 in Ventura County, California on suspicion of driving under the influence. She was processed by the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office and released the next morning on March 5.
“This was an unfortunate incident that is completely inexcusable,” Spears’ rep said in a statement to Billboard following the arrest. “Britney is going to take the right steps and comply with the law, and hopefully this can be the first step in long overdue change that needs to occur in Britney’s life. Hopefully, she can get the help and support she needs during this difficult time.”
Her rep added, “Her boys are going to be spending time with her. Her loved ones are going to come up with an overdue needed plan to set her up for success for well-being.”
While Spears has not directly addressed the situation, she returned to Instagram on March 27 with a dance video featuring her 19 year old son Jayden Federline, where she thanked her fans and wrote, “Thank you guys for all your support… spending time with family and friends is such a blessing. Stay kind !!!”
In a more recent Instagram post, alongside additional dance clips, Spears shared a still photo of herself and captioned it, “When peeps try to make you larger than life… tell them to BOW if I ever showed them the fragility of my real heart.”
Metallica bassist Jason Newsted says he is now “free and clear” after facing throat cancer.
The 63 year old musician, who played with the Enter Sandman legends from 1986 through 2001, has shared details of his diagnosis publicly for the first time. He explained that doctors discovered it early, and on May 8, 2025 he “underwent a procedure” to treat the condition.
Speaking on the Let There Be Talk podcast, he said: “They took a bunch of s*** outta here and then they went in with lasers this way and took a bunch of s*** out.
“So the cavern inside my head is different than it was, but we got it early. And I got my ‘free and clear’ about three weeks ago. So I beat it.”
Jason contributed to several of Metallica’s most iconic releases, including 1988’s ...And Justice For All, their self titled 1991 album, 1996’s Load, the 1997 follow up Reload, and 1998’s Garage Inc.
After going through his cancer experience, the bassist made a point to slow down and actually give himself time to recover instead of constantly pushing forward.
He explained: “I promised myself I was going to rest, and that was the first time I’ve done that in my life.
"I’m usually just on or off. And so I promised myself I was gonna take the gravity off and lay down for the right amount of hours."
The health scare also led Jason to give up smoking weed and drinking alcohol, something he admits he likely would not have done otherwise.
He added: “The great spirit got my attention and said, ‘That’s not good right now, man.’ And so it pulled me off it.
"And so now I’m more clear-headed than I’ve been in my entire adult life. And so there’s blessings within everything. The lemonade I’m making this summer, bro — mm. Sweet. Ooh.”
Jason has previously said that his unexpected departure ultimately helped Metallica continue moving forward, while James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich later admitted they struggled to process his decision at the time.
Lars told Apple Music in 2021: “Jason is the only member of Metallica who has ever left willingly. And that in itself is a statistic.
"And the resentment from James and I was just so… 'You can’t do that. You can only leave if we want you to leave'.
"And then we weren’t equipped at the time to do a deep dive into why he was leaving. So of course, now you can see 20 years later, it makes complete sense.”
