Britney Spears Former Assistant Reveals the Pop Star’s First Big Paycheck Splurge Was a Humble Act of Kindness

The new Britney Spears documentary Framing Britney Spears, takes a look back at some of the pop star’s most pivotal moments in her life, from dating Justin Timberlake to her ongoing conservatorship battle.

The documentary also touches upon some of the singer’s career highlights throughout the years, including the first big splurge she made when she became famous — which, according to her former assistant, wasn’t something for herself.

Britney Spears’ career took off with the release of her single ‘Baby One More Time.’

Before becoming one of the biggest pop stars on the planet, Spears made her nationwide singing debut on the competition show Star Search back in 1992.

Although she didn’t win, her appearance on the show opened doors for her and she ended up being cast on Disney’s The All-New Mickey Mouse Club alongside other future superstars like Justin Timberlake, Ryan Gosling, and Christina Aguilera.

After MMC was canceled in 1996, Spears returned home to Kentwood, Louisiana, where she spent the next two years attending her town’s high school. In 1998, a year after she signed with Jive Records, the singer embarked on a shopping mall tour to promote her upcoming debut album.

Her debut studio album, …Baby One More Time, was released on January 12, 1999. The song was an instant hit and sold more than 500,000 copies within its first day of being released. Today, it’s known as the biggest-selling album ever by a teenage artist.

What did Britney Spears spend her first paycheck on?

Though Spears has spent her hard-earned money on things like vacations, houses, cars, and clothes from reasonably priced retailers over the years, buying materials items wasn’t the first thing she did when she received her first big paycheck.

During her new documentary Framing Britney Spears, the singer’s friend and former longtime assistant Felicia Culotta, opened up about her first big check, which she says went to the people in Spear’s hometown as a way to honor her roots.

“One of the first things that she did when she just was getting famous was… we were home for Christmas and she wanted to go get $10,000 in $100 bills and she just drove through Kentwood and gave out $100 bills,” Culotta said in the documentary, per Today. “And it wasn’t, ‘Hi, I’m Britney Spears.’ It was, ‘Merry Christmas.’”

Britney Spears’ net worth today

Since the release of …Baby One More Time, Spears’ net worth has continued to grow. Today, she is worth a whopping $115 million. However, $59 million of her fortune is controlled by her father, Jamie Spears, who has served as a co-conservator for the last 12 years.

In August 2020, the “Toxic” singer filed court documents that requested her father be removed as sole conservator because she was “strongly opposed” to the idea of him retaining the role. Her request was backed up on social media through a campaign called #FreeBritney, which was supported by not only fans, but fellow celebrities like Paris Hilton, Kacey Musgraves, Cher, Lance Bass, and Miley Cyrus.

However, a few months later in November 2020, Spears’ request to remove her father from her conservatorship was rejected.