Britney Spears is back in the spotlight after she was photographed last Thursday while leaning out of the sunroof of a black Mercedes van in traffic on Highway 101, near Studio City in Los Angeles.

The images, obtained by Page Six and other media, show the singer lying on the roof of the vehicle with her arms outstretched in an attitude that some described as erratic.

Far from being affected by the criticism, Spears used her Instagram account on Sunday to respond to the controversy. She posted a photo of herself in the same situation and wrote a strong message: "What people see are two seconds of madness of me arching, but the days and hours of my reality are something else. Nothing is what it seems." The artist added with humor: “I think I need to get off the roof more often.”

Sources close to the singer explained to the Daily Mail that her behavior was nothing more than a specific moment to check the traffic: "Britney only looked out of the sunroof for a moment. She wanted to see what was happening with the traffic because the vehicles had stopped."

The same source added that Spears “used to do this all the time when she was a child growing up in the South,” and that she had “no intention of doing anything wrong.”

A year of ups and downs

This incident occurs in a complex context for the singer. In March, Spears was arrested in California on suspicion of driving under the influence.

According to police reports obtained by The New York Times, during the arrest the singer “spoke nonsense” and seemed to have “drastic mood swings,” even using a British accent at times and offering the officers to prepare lasagna at her home.

In April, Spears voluntarily entered a rehabilitation center, although she left after less than a month. Finally, in May he reached a court agreement, pleading guilty to a lesser charge of reckless driving with alcohol and drugs, which allowed him to avoid jail. She was sentenced to 12 months of probation and to complete an alcohol education program.

Despite these episodes, her representative defended the artist, describing the constant media attacks as “ridiculous” and comparing them to the situation she experienced 20 years ago, when the media tried to “paint Britney as a bad person.”