10:03 am, February 2nd, 2012
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Jamie Lynn Spears, whose teen stardom disappeared when she became pregnant at 16 and moved to Mississippi, is speaking out in Glamour.
In a first-person account of her past few years, Britney’s little sister talks about baby daddy Casey Aldridge, “Teen Mom,” tabloid attention, dating, and her daughter Maddie.
Spears begins, “It was 2007. I had been on a Nickelodeon show, Zoey 101, and after we wrapped shooting, I just wanted to go home to Louisiana and finish high school, be a cheerleader, all that. Then I found out I was pregnant.”
“I was young. I was in love. I was like every other teenager, except I had this last name,” she explains. “And I made a decision that is forever my decision.”
While Spears says she “[believes] in safety and birth control as prevention,” she admits that she was “really scared to go to the doctor.”
When she revealed her pregnancy, Spears experienced some tension with her fans.
“I did feel responsible for the young girls and the mothers I probably confused and let down. I apologize for that. But I wasn’t trying to glamorize teen pregnancy,” insists Spears. “I hated when [the tabloids] said that.”
VIDEO – Little Maddie Sings Aunty Britney’s Song
Spears talks about why she decided to move to a small town.
“I just wanted to get away from [scrutiny] as much as I could, to just go away and be a mom and figure out what I wanted, and to earn a sense of respect back for myself,” she explains. “Move to a town in the middle of nowhere and just raise my child.”
Despite separating from Aldridge in 2009, Spears, who now lives with Maddie in Nashville, says, “We really wanted to do it right. We loved each other. I will love him as Maddie’s father until the day I die.”
Her daughter visits Aldridge every month.
While her big sister’s music videos dominated MTV for years, Spears says it was another part of the network’s programming that really interested her.
“When I saw MTV’s Teen Mom was coming out, I remember thinking, ‘Oh my God, I cannot wait to see this show because there’s someone else out there.’ I mean, I feel for those girls. I’ve been that girl.”
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Spears says that she’s not been focusing much on romance.
“I’ve been on dates here and there, going to dinner or a movie, but nothing further than that,” she reveals.
Spears explains, “I’m a mother first. I have a little girl, and until I’m serious about someone, he’s not going to be around her.”
Now, shortly before her 21st birthday, Spears is approaching a career in entertainment again, writing and performing songs in Nashville.
“The last time anyone heard anything of me, I was 16 and pregnant,” she says. “All I can do is be my best – there will always be people who will never like me.”
She adds, “These days, the only thing I’m afraid of is not being a good mom. As long as Maddie is healthy and she loves me, the rest doesn’t matter.”
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