Brittany Spears "interview"

This is something I have been looking toward for quite some time.

Brittany Raylene Spears is my second favorite character in The Buddy Wayne Chronicles, only behind the main character. As I have explained before, her appeal is based on a combination of a simple, old-fashioned life and the promise and flower of youth.

Although only a teenager, she is the lead singer of a band that performs a musical style as traditional as the Appalachian Mountains themselves. Her wholesome, down-to-earth behavior and her modest beauty has made her the poster child for bluegrass music.

She also shares the same name (at least as pronounced) as Britney Spears. But whereas Britney left behind her country roots for a career as a provocative pop singer, Brittany has stayed grounded. Besides, Brittany is a lot more talented!

Off stage, her romance with Buddy Wayne Barefoot is the talk of Idealia. Recently, the two have announced marriage plans, breaking a taboo barrier and fulfilling the dreams of both.

This "interview" is being conducted by another one of my new characters. Magdalena Babblejack is - what else? - a local reporter and gossip.


MB: Where are you from originally?
BS: My hometown is Beattyville, Kentucky, about 35 miles south of Lexington. It is in the beautiful bluegrass country by the foothills of the Appalachians.

MB: Is it safe to say that your family and your band are the same?
BS: Yes. My father Blanton and my brother Blanton, Jr. are both banjo players, my brother Bunch is on the mandolin, my brother Bradshaw is the fiddler, uncle [Blanton's brother] Brashears plays the washboard, and my sisters Blair and Bailey are dancers. My mom Rebecca is the manager and sews the clothes and dresses us.

MB: How many albums has the family made so far?
BS: We have made three albums as a group. The songs combine old classics [e.g. "Orange Blossom Special"] and original songs. One of [the original songs] is "Mad from the Moonshine," a cautionary tale about alcohol. I was the lead singer on that.

MB: Who made the decision for you to go solo?
BS: I have always wanted to go solo. And after a long and prayerful decision, that's what the family decided to do. As long as they always performed [backup music], my name would be on the album.

MB: Be honest. How much of your decision was based on the existence of Britney Spears?
BS: It weighed on me a lot. I looked at what the other Britney did, and I didn't like it. It just so happens that my name is Brittany, too. So I have always thought I was more talented that [she was], so I decided to go for it on that basis too.

MB: However, that decision led to a lot of booing at the start of your career [as detailed in Chapter 9]. How did you come to terms with it?
BS: I told myself to stay patient and to remind myself to pray. Eventually, God knows what is right and what is wrong, and I knew my faith would pull me through.

MB: Then you went on The Great Singing Showdown [the local version of American Idol; see this post for details of the competitors]. Believe it or not, you won that competition by winning the fan vote. This must be a great tribute as to how far you have come.
BS: Yes! I want to thank everyone who voted for me. Maybe a lot of people hated me at the start, but I won their respect as the weeks progressed. That's all you can ask for: to do your best and eventually the public will see your talent shine through.

MB: And you beat Buddy Wayne Barefoot, the heavy favorite!
BS: That's why I am so excited![Beaming] No one was supposed to be more popular than him in the fan balloting, but I was. What else can you say?

MB: How surprised were you at Mr. Barefoot's marriage proposal at the end of the show?
BS: Very much. After the failed try before [as noted in Chapters 9 and 11], I thought that it was never going to happen. To see that B.W. still has my heart, that is awesome!

MB: When and where is the marriage scheduled?
BS: The date is October 10. Probably at the Spears farm house. I'm the bride, so that was probably why.[Giggling]

MB: I want to go back to the show, in particular the finale. That was a funny scene in which you sang the Britney song "Circus," then had to run away and see the poster of the fake movie in which Debbie Harry plays Blondie. What was that like?
BS: It was a fun side of me that no one knew about. And no one knows it, but that was not Debbie's picture on the poster, it was "our" Blondie [the pianist]. And Bubba Brister and Matt McBriar were pretending to be football players and got the VIP treatment. The producers wanted us to have fun with our names because they were so many similarities, and that we did.

MB: What a story. You come to Idealia in a freak accident, endure the taunts of the fans, meet the big cheese at your biggest time of need, and now you will soon be man and wife. Good luck on everything, and thank you for your time.
BS: You're very welcome. Be well, Maggie.
MB: And the same to you. Goodbye.

See also: Britney vs. Brittany, a "tale of the tape" chart I did for my other site.