On her last album she sang about not yet being a woman, but Britney Spears turned 21 on Dec. 2 and has emerged as a very capable, very confident,  stand on her own two feet kind of person. Of course, nothing speeds up the growth process like a kettle of bad karma. This year Spears was challenged on hte charts by a new wave of grittier singer-songwriters like Avril Lavigne and Michelle Branch. She also coped with her parents' divorce. In June she opened a Manhattan restaurant, NYLA, that proved to be a flop, and she pulled out by November. But her troubles began in March, when she suffered a very public breakup with 'N Sync's Justin Timberlake after a three year relationship. "It was all pretty horrible," she admits. "I cried a lot, and it wasn't fun." Some solace from mom Lynn in Louisiana and a few bowls of Baskin-Robbins' Pralines n' Cream helped mend her wounds, though, and after a summer tour she has just wrapped up a three-month sabbatical. "Britney is the kind of person who is crushed for one day and then picks herself up and carries on," says Steve Lunt, a vice president of Jive Records. "She always comes back stronger." Trading in her low-rise jeans for Versce gowns and Dolce & Gabbana suits, Spears is at work on a new album that will reflect her more mature side. "She is going to have to sing songs that are more edgy," says producer Rodney Jerkins, who's working with Spears on her new CD. "the main key is to do something different to pick up a new fan base." Spears, who splits her time between a Hollywood Hills mansion and a New York City loft, could have a backup career on film. Though she didn't score a breakthrough success in last winter's teen drama Crossroads, she has been sent a few new scripts to read. "Some people want to say I'm over. Some can't wait for the next thing. Time will tell, " says Spears. "The world hasn't seen all I have to give."

Click on picture to enlarge. Thanks to Bubba.

Posted by Ruben