Britney Spears has entered a rehab facility after her arrest in March for driving under the influence.

The pop singer was stopped by police in Ventura county, California, after driving erratically, and was found to have drugs and alcohol in her system. She was briefly detained, and her manager called Spears’ actions “completely inexcusable. 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.”

Spears has now voluntarily begun treatment at a rehabilitation centre, as confirmed by a representative for the singer.

After a career as one of the most significant pop artists in US history, Spears has spent time away from music: her last album was released in 2016 and her most recent chart appearance was in 2022, when she returned to the US and UK Top 10 with Hold Me Closer, a collaboration with Elton John.

In 2024 she said “I will never return to the music industry” and that she preferred ghostwriting for other artists, and in January she said she would never perform again in the US although hoped to perform in the UK and Australia. She sold her song catalogue in late 2025 to Primary Wave for a reported $200m.

In 2023 she published The Woman in Me, a hugely successful memoir that is now being developed for a big-screen adaptation with Wicked director Jon M Chu and La La Land producer Marc Platt.

In 2008 Spears was placed in a conservatorship arrangement after a mental health breakdown, which lasted until 2021. Spears’ independence was curtailed by the controversial arrangement, including restrictions on her spending, diet and more.