July 17, 2008

Britney Spears Is Hard At Work On New Album All Summer, Label And Manager Confirm

By Jennifer Vineyard (MTV.com)

It's official: Britney's back in the studio. Two of the singer's producers have already spoken out, and now her label is also confirming, along with on-again manager Larry Rudolph, that the singer is hard at work "on a brand-new album."

"Britney Spears is spending her summer in the recording studio," Jive Records said in the joint statement Wednesday (July 16). "She's working with a team of top-notch producers and songwriters."

Two of those producers include Rodney Jerkins and Sean Garrett. Earlier this month, Jerkins told Rap-Up TV that the two songs he and Spears laid down are "very dance-y, really up-tempo, in the clubs, real aggressive, catchy and very hook-friendly.

"I'm trying to reinvent her and reinvent myself with the project," Jerkins told the site. "I think it's about to be her time again."

Last fall, in the hopes of a career comeback, Spears released her fifth studio album, Blackout, which included contributions by Garrett, Pharrell, T-Pain, Danjahandz, Bloodshy & Avant and Keri Hilson. The album was recorded mostly while the singer was pregnant and separating from then-husband Kevin Federline. Other than a much-ridiculed VMA performance and music videos for "Gimme More" and "Piece of Me," Spears barely promoted the album. Blackout sold 290,000 copies in its first week, but headlines about the singer's custody battle and mental-health issues quickly overshadowed her music career.

Now she has settled down a bit, under the watchful eye of her father, Spears seems to be concentrating on her work, which has also included shooting a video that will be featured on Madonna's Sticky & Sweet tour.

"We're very excited about what she's accomplished so far," Jive Records said in the statement. No release date for the album has been set, the label said, but some speculate it will be slated for early 2009.