5 Celebs Who Supported The Free Britney Spears Movement From The Start

While the #FreeBritney movement has existed since 2019 thanks to passionate fans, it’s taken off full force within the mainstream media amid Spears’ conservatorship trial, and support has only grown due to several factors. While many celebrities are coming out to support Spears and demand an end to her conservatorship, there were very few vouching for Brit before the trial became the most pressing celebrity story on the internet. These people who supported the Free Britney Spears movement from the start have long had her best interest at heart.

The media craze surrounding Spears’ conservatorship took off at lightning speed in February 2021 following the release of Framing Britney Spears. Before this, most people in the general public didn’t give the conservatorship as much as a second thought, regarding it as simply a necessary part of Spears’ life (if they thought about it at all). But the Hulu documentary shed a light on how unfair the media and paparazzi have been to the singer through the years, and many took a sympathetic stance towards Spears after watching. Then, Spears went to court in June to try to overturn her 13-year-long conservatorship. Again, the public was swayed by her testimony, which included claims she was being taken advantage of by her family through the conservatorship. (Elite Daily previously reached out to Spears’ team for further comment on her testimony, but didn’t hear back.)

Spears’ legal battle is far from over, but even before it began, these five celebrities bravely vocalized their support for Britney freedom long before the rest of the world.

1. Paris Hilton

Hilton’s first public comments supporting Spears date back to September 2020. Hilton and Spears are long-time friends, so Hilton was very protective of her when speaking on the issue. As she told Andy Cohen on his SiriusXM radio show, she wishes her friend had more control over her life.

"I saw her this summer,” Hilton began. “We had dinners... saw her in Malibu and I just... I love her so much and I just feel if you're an adult you should be able to live your life and not be controlled."

Hilton said she can relate to being controlled as a celebrity, but she wishes Spears had more of a voice herself. "I think maybe that stems from me being controlled so much so I can understand how that would feel and I can't imagine right now if that was still happening to me. After just working her whole life and working so hard... she's just this icon. I just feel like she has no control of her life whatsoever and I just don't think that's fair,” Hilton said.

2. Felicia Culotta

Spears’ former assistant of nearly 10 years, Felicia Culotta, bravely spoke out in Framing Britney Spears without knowing that public perception of the film would be. As she said in an interview the following July, she strongly believes Brit can take care of herself.

“She doesn’t need a conservator,” Spears’ former assistant said. “I mean, she definitely needs people to manage her money… she definitely needs somebody to manage money because that’s more money than any of us have ever heard of…. as far as somebody being conservator of her person, she can take care of herself.”

3. Iggy Azalea

Azalea collaborated with Spears back in 2015 on “Pretty Girls,” and it seems she knew things weren’t quite right in the pop star’s life even then. When fans accused Azalea of not speaking up about the #FreeBritney movement, she reminded them she raised her concerns about Spears’ situation back when they collaborated.

"Right, I said her team wouldn't let her do promo and that they went through my house etc and y'all said I was a hater," Azalea responded.

4. Tinashe

Tinashe has been in Spears’ corner since day one. The pop stars collaborated on the 2016 hit “Slumber Party,” and it seems Tinashe was privy to her conservatorship issues long before the rest of the world. Just look at her post from July 2020 where she spoke out about the conservatorship. "I worked with Britney Spears several times and she is an angel and a STAR. Respect her,” Tinashe tweeted along with the hashtags “#FreeBritney” and “#endconservatorshipabuse.”

Seeing as big-name celebrities tweeting about the #FreeBritney movement was not popular at the time, Tinashe might have had second thoughts. The post was later deleted.

5. Miley Cyrus

Cyrus supported the #FreeBritney movement long before her fellow A-listers. Back in May 2019, while performing at the Beale Street Festival in Memphis, Tennessee, Cyrus incorporated a message of support for Spears into her stage show. While performing “Party in the U.S.A.,” she screamed “Free Britney” at the top of her lungs before diving back into the chorus.