Nine months after being freed from her father’s conservatorship, Britney Spears made her musical comeback in an epic collaboration with Sir Elton John. Their new single, ‘Hold Me Closer’, is out on streaming sites today, August 26.

Rumours about a potential collab between Britney Spears and Elton John surfaced earlier in July after it was reported that the pair had met for a recording session in Beverly Hills, California. It was later confirmed by Elton John himself in an Instagram post.

This collaboration marks Britney Spears’s comeback to music since her last album came out six years ago. In the months following a ruling in November 2021 when the star was freed from her father’s 13 year-long conservatorship, Britney had shared how the experience had left her scared of the music industry and she shared on Instagram that her intention of not making music anymore was “a way of saying ‘fuck you'”.

However, shortly before the new single with Elton John was released, Britney Spears took to Twitter to tell her fans how she is learning that “every day is a clean slate to try and be a better person and do what makes me happy … I want to be fearless like when I was younger.”

“I was so honoured when the incredible Sir Elton John asked me to join him on one his most iconic songs,” she said about the collab. “We are so excited for the fans to hear it! Thank you, Elton, for having me! I am so grateful that I got the opportunity to work with you and your legendary mind.”

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‘Hold Me Closer‘ incorporates three of Elton John’s most famous hits – ‘Tiny Dancer’, ‘The One’ and ‘Don’t Go Breaking My Heart’ – to create a new fresh summer beat. The song was leaked on August 18, with many people sharing it on social media.

“I am absolutely thrilled to have had the chance to work with Britney Spears. She truly is an icon, one of the all-time great pop stars and she sounds amazing on this record. I love her dearly and am delighted with what we’ve created together,” commented John.

During an interview with The Guardian, Elton John also shared some insights on what it was like to work with Britney Spears on their duet. “Everyone was saying they don’t think she can sing any more. But I said, she was brilliant when she started so I think she can. And she did it, and I was so thrilled with what she did,” he shared.

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“I’m so excited to be able to do it with her because if it is a big hit, and I think it may be, it will give her so much more confidence than she’s got already and she will realise that people actually love her and care for her and want her to be happy.” He added, “That’s all anybody in their right mind would want after she went through such a traumatic time.”

John also spoke about how, because of his own struggles, he’s able to empathise with Spears and what she’s had to go through. “It’s hard when you’re young. Britney was broken. I was broken when I got sober. I was in a terrible place. I’ve been through that broken feeling and it’s horrible. And luckily enough, I’ve been sober for 32 years and it’s the happiest I’ve ever been.”

John continued, “Now I’ve got the experience to be able to advise people and help them because I don’t want to see any artists in a dark place. A lot of artists, you’d think they’d have a lot of self-esteem but they don’t, and that’s why we go onstage and we get the applause, and then we come offstage and we’re back to square one.”