Britney attended court yesterday for an update on her conservatorship hearing, and for the court to approve the auction of her silver dress, worn to the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards, to raise funds for the Haiti Earthquake disaster charities. Britney attended court with her father, Jamie, and the hearing was sealed due to the private personal and medical files discussed. It was also approved that containers of items containing props from Britney's 2009 tour, The Circus Starring Britney Spears, could be disposed of. Her lawyer, Samuel Ingham, said, "Britney is perfectly satisfied with the disposal of property and she is very enthusiastic" about the Haiti donation." Britney was not present for the hearing postmortem due to a previously arranged commitment with her sons, who were dropped off at Britney's home before the hearing. She is "appreciative of the extra time and energy the court has given" to these proceedings, he added.

Marcella Araica AKA Ms. Lago, who wrote with Danja on tracks for Britney's "Blackout" album in 2007, has posted on her Twitter account about the new Britney album, responding to the question about when the Britney 'storm is coming', saying, "Soon! And when it's coming... Be sure to hear about it!" Kiis FM has claimed the album will be released in early Summer 2010, with a David Guetta-produced lead single hitting radio stations in March!

Rodney Jerkins AKA Darkchild, has announced on his Twitter that he is writing and producing tracks for submission for Britney's new studio album, due in the Summer of 2010. Darkchild submitted tracks for "Circus," including a co-write with Lady Gaga, entitled "Telephone," which was rejected and is now being released as a single with Lady Gaga duetting with Beyonce, following Britney's management's denial for her to be featured as a featuring artist. Darkchild posted, "In the studio writing a sick song with Michaela Shiloh to present to Britney, hope she likes it, it feels like a BIG SMASH!"

Billboard have announced their end-of-decade sales lists, placing Britney Spears as the biggest selling female artist of the decade in the USA, and the 2nd biggest seller overall, behind Eminem, and way ahead of acts such as Madonna, Destiny's Child, Beyonce, Alicia Keys and P!nk. Britney also ranks as the #21 biggest touring artist of the decade, having sold out 158/255 shows and grossed $216,229,560, playing to nearly 3.8million people since 2000!

Britney's second compilation album, the follow-up to her million-selling 2004 set, "The Singles Collection" has debuted at #38 in the official UK Top 75 Albums chart, based on sales of the CD and CD+DVD set this week!

 
"The Singles Collection" is out now in the UK, available on three different physical formats - the standard CD, featuring 17 of her biggest hits, including all 5 of her UK #1 singles, and her latest top ten smash, "3"; a CD+DVD set, featuring the standard CD and a 16-track DVD, and a 30-disc deluxe box set, featuring all 29 of her worldwide singles on special 2-track CDs, and a DVD featuring 26 music videos. There are also digital versions, including a 23-track deluxe digital download, featuring 22 hit singles and "3," and the opportunity to download the deluxe box set tracks as 'Digital 45's' or as a set - visit the discography for the full range of releases worldwide, and here to see the versions of "3"!

"The Singles Collection," which is available in the USA on a single-disc, featuring 16 of Britney's biggest hits and her latest #1 single, "3," has debuted at #22 in the US Billboard Top 200 albums, selling over 26,000 copies this week.

Britney's 29th single, "3," her 26th hit to be released in the UK, becomes her 25th song to chart in the official UK top 20 singles chart, and her 20th single to debut within the top 10, as it charts this week at #7, selling 42,000+ copies.

"3" is now available for purchase in the UK on iTunes here, and Amazon MP3 here - it appears the physical CD release, which was due out tomorrow, has been cancelled. A digital EP will be released on 15th November, featuring remixes by Manhattan Clique, Groove Police and Wolfgang, and the instrumental, which was due to appear on the CD.

The brand new music video by Britney Spears, for her #1 single, "3", is now available to view on Britney's official web site here - the video, which was directed by Diane Martel, is amongst Britney's most minimalist videos to date, relying on Britney's raw star quality to sell the song, as she dances and gyrates with two other women, and two men.

 
"The Singles Collection" will receive exclusive alternative artwork in the UK compared to the rest of the world; the covers for the UK CD and UK CD+DVD set are above, left, pictured next to the international CD and CD+DVD cover - click the two UK covers for exclusive HQ 850x850 versions of the cover. The USA CD, released 10th November, will be the international CD cover - visit the discography for the full range of releases!

Diane Martel, director of the "3" music video, which is due to premiere in the next few days, spoke to "Life & Style" magazine, saying, "I think it's her next sexy video. It's a very simple video for her - I don't think you've seen her this much under a magnifying glass. Everything's really strong and playful. We collaborated on the wardrobe and had meetings about hair and makeup people. We talked a lot on the phone and met Tone and Rich - two of the best choreographers. She's so sweet and funny and so normal and down to earth. It's really fun as a director to see her in front of the camera. She's so creative with this stuff. The video is very simple, it's very, very minimal. So it's her, her, her. And she's totally engaging every second. She really knows how to work with a camera and move. "I was really impressed, and I have worked almost with every female artist in the business."

Madonna has spoken about Britney, and the "Human Nature" video segment that Britney shot for her Sticky & Sweet tour, where she is trapped in an elevator, going crazy. Asked if that analogised Britney's career, Madonna said, "Yes. Didn't that explain what I thought? 'I'm not your bitch, don't hang your shit on me.' I just think people should mind their own business and let her grow up. I think everyone goes off the deep end at one time or another, and she, like Michael Jackson, didn't really have a childhood, so there are some inherent problems. I have a lot of compassion for her, and I hope that she can find balance. I don't know how bad her meltdown was. One can't believe everything one reads."

Britney Spears becomes the first artist in over three years to debut at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, as "3" opens at the pinnacle of the chart. The song sold approximately 255,000 downloads in its first week of release, propelling it to #1 on Billboard's Hot Digital Songs; the song also jumps 38-25 on the Pop Songs chart and debuts at #49 on Radio Songs/Hot 100 Airplay, which ranks songs based on airplay audience on all radio formats. "3" is the first title to debut at #1 since Taylor Hicks topped the chart on 1st July 2006; the last non-'American Idol' related song to debut at #1 was Lauryn Hill's "Doo Wop (That Thing)" on 14th November 1998. "3" is her 3rd Hot 100 #1, following her debut single "...Baby One More Time" and "Womanizer" which topped the chart, exactly one year ago this week.

The full UK and Europe tracklist and artwork for both formats of the forthcoming "The Singles Collection" release have been revealed by Sony Music been announced, and have been added to the discography - as revealed last week, the UK release will be available on CD, CD and DVD, and the 30-disc box set, featuring "3." In the USA, "The Singles Collection" CD will be released on 10th November 2009, with the box set on 24th November 2009.

"3," the brand new single from Britney Spears, has hit iTunes in the USA, and, within 16 hours, has already perched itself at the top of the chart, topping the 23 hours it took "Womanizer" to hit the top spot last year. The single has also been added to countless stores around Europe for download; click here to see if it is on your local store!

The tracklist and artwork for Britney's forthcoming "The Singles Collection" box set and regular CD/DVD has been announced, and has been added to the discography - the UK will receive three separate formats of the release, CD, CD/DVD (featuring 15 music videos) and the 30-disc box set, featuring 29 singles with original artwork.

Britney's brand new single, "3," written by Max Martin, Johan 'Shellback' Schuster and Tiffany Amber, premiered today on US and UK radio, playing on Z100 in the morning before Scott Mills launched the track on his BBC Radio 1 afternoon show. The track can be heard on YouTube here, and will be released in the UK on 16th November 2009.

Jive Records celebrates a decade of Britney Spears, with a special anniversary collection entitled "The Singles Collection" this year on 23rd November 2009. The collection will be available as a special 30-disc box set, featuring all 29 of Britney's singles, pressed separately onto individual discs, each disc backed with a B-side or remix, alongside a special DVD, featuring every single Britney Spears video in chronological order, and a special booklet showing her evolution over the past 10 years. There will also be a standard one-disc ediiton, featuring 17 songs; her biggest hits, and her new single, "3," which she recently recorded with Max Martin. "3" will hit radio stations worldwide next Tuesday, 29th September 2009 - the track will precede the album collection and will be available as a single independently in the UK the week before the album collection is released, on 16th November 2009. Britney is one of the world's best selling artists, and one of the most famous female artists in history, with 5 #1 albums and worldwide album sales of over 63million.

David Guetta, fresh from his massive hits with Kelly Rowland (the UK #1 "When Love Takes Over) and Akon ("Sexy Bitch"), has announced he is working with Britney on a forthcoming project, saying on his Facebook, "I'm working with my friend Britney Spears! This is amazing man!" He also reiterated the information on a French radio station, where he was promoting his album, "One Love," stating he is incredibly excited. Lucas Secon has also posted that he is working with Britney on his MySpace blog, saying, "New Britney Spears production, new smash on the way, sooner than later!"

Breaking from the regular "The Circus Starring Britney Spears" set list, Britney performed a cover of Alanis Morissette's "You Oughta Know" last night at Greensboro, North Carolina, the 11th show of the second North American leg. Due to staging difficulties, Britney was forced to stay grounded for the entire show, speaking to the audience in a British accent to introduce "Everytime," performing part of the song live here, and including the Alanis cover into the show, performed with 100% live vocals - you can see some of the video footage recorded by fans here, here and here!

Sony Music UK's official online catalogue has added a retail reference for Britney's forthcoming album, which is entitled "The Singles Collection (Title To Be Confirmed)," with a catalogue number of 88697 564892 and a release date of 26th October 2009. Hits Daily Double have added the release to their USA release schedule for 17th November 2009, entitled "Hits," where they detail that "Circus" sold 505,000 in the first week, totalling 1,593,000 so far in the USA.

 
Britney Spears arrived at the Teen Choice Awards 2009 last night to receive the Ultimate Choice award - the highest honour - presented by Miley Cyrus. In her speech, Miley proclaimed Britney as "the very first artist to step on stage at the very first Teen Choice Awards, who introduced the world to the show and got the very first award for Choice Single for her classic #1 single, "...Baby One More Time," now with 8 Teen Choice Awards in total, she is quite simply, the best selling female artist of the decade." Coming out to rapturous applause and chants of "Britney, Britney," she said in her acceptance speech, "It is an honour, thank you so much, I'm so happy to be here with you all tonight, from the bottom of my heart, thank you so much and God bless!" - 35 photographs from the event are available here! "Entertainment Tonight" at MSN has an exclusive 30second video preview, featuring Britney's speech here!

According to reports, Britney is looking to continue her streak of iconic performances at the MTV Video Music Awards, which includes her kiss with Madonna in 2003, her snake-charming in 2001, and her Elvis-inspired 2007 show. "Rolling Stone" magazine report, "Once more, Lady B shall take the stage," having been nominated for 7 awards!

Britney will officially attend and appear at the Teen Choice Awards 2009, where she will receive a special award, the 'Ultimate' for her outstanding contribution to teen pop culture, according to the show's organisers. She is also nominated for Best Single, Best Tour and Best Female Artist (vote online here!) at the ceremony, which will be filmed on Sunday 9th August 2009, and shown on Monday 10th August 2009 in the USA, however, she will not be performing at the show.

Britney has been nominated for 7 MTV VMAs this year, following her spectacular comeback last year, which saw her win for the first time. The ceremony will take place at Radio City Music Hall in New York on 13th September, again hosted by Russell Brand. Britney is nominated for Video Of The Year and Best Pop Video for "Womanizer," whilst "Circus" is nominated for Best Art Direction, Best Choreography, Best Direction, Best Editing and Best Cinematography - you can vote for the winners of the awards online at the MTV web site online here!

After nearly a year of availability, "Womanizer" has become Britney's biggest selling single in the USA, having sold over 2,777,614 copies, also becoming the 39th biggest selling download of all time. The rise in download sales over the past two years has seen a sharp increase in sales of singles; previously, only physical singles have counted, where "...Baby One More Time" sold a million CD singles. Her second biggest-selling download single is "Circus," with over 2million downloads sold, but all of her post-2007 singles have now sold over a million each in the USA.

Alongside Dallas Austin, Fernando Garibay and Max Martin, up-coming writer and producer Russ Castella has announced he has been approached to work on new material for Britney Spears, posting on his Twitter account that he has worked on a song for her called "Dirty Girl," which is 'reallllllyyyyy dirty'. It is as yet unknown what the mass of new material Britney is working on will be used for, following the unconfirmed reports of a second greatest hits album this year.

Fernando Garibay, who produced "Amnesia" and "Quicksand" for "Circus," has announced he is working on new material for Britney Spears, saying, "I'm writing all dance tracks at the moment, working on icons like Britney." There are also reports that Jive Records have added a request for material for Britney's seventh studio album, with an estimated release date of Spring 2010, and additional rumours that she is working with Danja before the final leg of her tour.

Britney's acting manager, Adam Leber, has confirmed on his Twitter account that unfortunately, Britney's Circus tour will not be visiting South America, following rumours and reports that the tour is too expensive for tour agencies in the countries to invest in, particularly in a worldwide recession. He said, "Always hate to pass along bad news. Sadly The Circus will not be coming to South America. We really tried to make it happen! Sorry guys!"

Dave Meyers has spoken about Britney's new music video, "Radar," saying it is inspired by 'the romance of high-end society and the guys that circulate around there'. The video, inspired in part by Madonna's 1994 "Take a Bow" video, deliberately attempts to show Britney's classy side "instead of the images of a sexed-up Britney that we're all used to seeing. It’s the kind of Britney we saw in her video for 'Lucky', except more grown-up." Dave said, "She was in a really good headspace and open to trying new things, and I wanted to try some new things with her too. It kind of was a great celebration of trusting one another. Now we're sort of both seasoned in our own rights, so it's like two people coming back together, trying to do something fresh and new, seeking out an actual different technique and stylistic choices and trying to find a form to celebrate them in. I thought, 'It's not the first single. Let's be a little experimental and push to not have her around dancers. I feel, I guess, that the videos are a chance for her to vocalise a sense of herself. The media tends to attack her, so I thought, 'Let's show the classy side of Britney and focus on a classy experience, very European-inspired.' And she’s at the point in her career where I think this would be a nice step. She kind of filled Madonna's shoes. But everything is done in a Britney way. She's not Madonna, and Madonna is not Britney. It seems like Madonna made the same choices that were right for her at the time, to class her up when she had just done a sexpot video. She was riding that image train too. She was leading that image train, and I think that Britney has done that as well."

Following the news that Britney is in the studio with Max Martin, as posted on her official Twitter page (the latest up-to-the-minute Twitter update from Britney and her team is now displayed above!), Australian sisters Olivia and Miriam Nervo have been asked to write for her, having submitted material for "Blackout" in 2006. Since then, the Nervo sisters have had a massive UK #1 with David Guetta and Kelly Rowland's "When Love Takes Over," and have also been working with up-coming Dr. Luke and Max Martin protégé Ke$ha, who featured on Flo Rida's hit single, "Right Round." It is heavily reported that the songs are for a 'singles collection' to be released in October/November this year, coinciding with the end of the Circus tour in Australia; the collection will reportedly feature tracks from both of her recent albums, "Blackout" and "Circus" alongside a collection of new songs, one of which will be released as a new single.

Entertainment Tonight caught up with Britney in Paria as part of her The Circus Starring Britney Spears tour, where she says that the tour is going really well so far, that she can't wait to bring her show back to the States, and that she loves being in Paris, as it's one of the most beautiful places she's been so far. There are also exclusive scenes from the tour performances in Paris, and backstage costume chats, including segements from her dancers - watch here!

"People" magazine have gone backstage with Britney on the Circus tour in London, where she spoke to the magazine saying, "I'm constantly changing the show to keep it fresh and new and exciting. It's an inspiring, empowering show. The crowd gets me so energised - I live for that feeling. I still get excited every night before I hit the stage," and before the show, "I always do a prayer with my dancers, band and the rest of my performers." She also told them that her two boys are her biggest fans: "They even work out some really cute routines to a few of the numbers!" and added that the tour is "more of a creative outlet" than a work-out. She also confirms that she is dating Jason Trawick, her TV aget, but that they are not engaged - the rumours are "funny to me," she says. The magazine goes on sale this week in the USA.

Britney kicked off the second part of her European tour, following her residency at the O2 Arena in London, where she played 8 dates, and her date in Manchester, before returning home for a short break in Los Angeles. The Circus Starring Britney Spears hit France last night, where Britney, with her new brunette look, performed the stunning show with the same set list as her previous dates; see clips of the Perez Hilton and "Circus" intro here & "Everytime" here!

Britney, who is sporting a new brunette hair style, posted on her Twitter during her break in between the UK and Central European Circus tour dates, saying, "Had a great day with my boys yesterday on a boat - was so much fun!" Britney headed out on a yacht at the Marina Del Rey, with Jayden James and Sean Preston, before heading back to Fred Segal in Santa Monica for some shopping, where she purchased inflatable guitars for the boys.

The brand new video for "Radar," which was originally planned to be a single in mid-2008, has been released by Jive Records today, exclusively online, featuring Britney checking a guy 'on her radar' in a variety of situations, including dressing up to catch his attention at a horse race; you can see the video in full online here!

On the sad news that 'King Of Pop' Michael Jackson has died, aged 50, Britney Spears has released the following official statement: I was so excited to see his show in London. We were going to be on tour in Europe at the same time and I was going to fly in to see him. He has been an inspiration throughout my entire life and I'm devastated he's he's gone." Britney shared the stage with Michael Jackson in 2001, when she performed a duet of "The Way You Make Me Feel" with him at a special tribute concert - you can watch the duet on YouTube here.

A new custody agreement has been arranged for the duration of The Circus Starring Britney Spears tour, giving Britney, who currently shares 50-50 joint custody of her two boys with Kevin Federline, more than 50%, with a calendar outlining which parent is looking after the children on which day. The agreement is currently for June, July and August, after which time the agreement is due to revert to 50-50, unless it is extended due to the extention of the tour.

After the announcement that Britney will tour Australia for the very first time comes the announcement that the dazzling Circus tour will return to the USA for a second leg, with Britney saying, "I'm so excited to bring The Circus back to North America. I've made some really cool changes to the show that I think my fans are really going to love. I also get to bring the show to some new cities we missed the first time around!" The tour returns in August, following the end of the European leg, and goes across North America throughout late August to September, adding 22 new dates - tickets go on sale on Friday 19th June - full dates here!

Following an incredibly successful sell-out tour of North America, and a mini residency at the O2 Arena in London, which will see her performing to over 170,000 people, which was extended to the whole of Europe, Britney Spears has announced The Circus Starring... tour will be extended to Australia this winter, making her full tour debut. "I've wanted to tour Australia for quite some time. My Circus tour is the best show I have ever created and I can't wait to perform it," Britney is quoted as saying. The tour will go to Perth on 6th November, Melbourne on 11th and 12th, Syndey on 19th and 20th, and Brisbane on 24th - tickets are available here!

Britney kicks off the European leg of her Circus tour in the UK tonight, launching at the O2 Arena from 9pm (doors open at 6:30pm, Britney is due to commence her show at approximately 9:15pm, with Ciara beginning at 8pm). Merchandise will be available, including a range of T-shirts, the program for £20 with a free mask, a mousemat, a floating pen, a mug, two posters, the "Circus" album for £15 and a balloon, a lightwand, a dogtag, window cling, buttons, magnet, tote bag, charm bracelet and teddy bear, all under £10.

Britney has arrived in the UK, ready for her forthcoming shows at the O2 Arena in London, kicking off with a private dress rehearsal today, and launching with the full show tomorrow night, Wednesday 3rd, and continuing on Thursday 4th and Sunday 6th. It is rumoured that there will be some new remixes and potentially a new song for the European leg of the tour, and that the O2 will be surrounded by a funfair and circus acts throughout the evening greeting guests.

Britney has pre-recorded a video snippet for America LGBT channel, Logo, advertising a fictional fragrance entitled "Mo." In the advert, which features snippets from "For The Record," where Britney was smelling scents for her Elizabeth Arden fragrances, Britney speaks about the tantalising fragrance - "One spray, and the gays will run your way!" "She's having fun with her gay audience, because she's an official gay icon at such a young and tender age. We wanted something that would be fun and playful that we can celebrate/mock, and we thought, 'It's her perfume career,' bBecause everyone knows every holiday season they bring out those commercials of her running through a forest or a hotel. Britney's team loved the idea, but she herself wanted to make sure that the punch line - wasn't offensive in any way," said Christopher Willey, a Logo executive producer. "She has this natural rapport with the gay community," Willey said. "I think she just really likes her gay fans and she sees this as a way to talk directly to them, which she hasn't really done before." You can watch the fictional advert on Logo's web site here!

Britney is to shoot the fourth music video from her "Circus" album in the shape of 'Radar," which originally appeared on "Blackout" in 2007. The music video is set to be directed by Dave Meyers in two days, featuring a crew of around 100 people; Britney is also reportedly bringing her children to the shoot.