Entertainment
Britney Spears Admits to Lighting Cigarette on Flight

NEED TO KNOW
- On May 22, Britney Spears lit a cigarette during a flight, leading flight attendants to request she put it out and authorities to issue an official warning
- Spears shared her side of the incident in a May 23 Instagram post, stating that she thought she was on a “plane where you can smoke”
- The singer also said she thought alerting authorities “was kinda much,” and claimed the flight marked her “first time” ever drinking vodka
After making headlines for lighting a cigarette mid-flight, Britney Spears is sharing her side of the story.
On a May 22 flight, Spears, 43, lit a cigarette — a violation of federal aviation regulations — before putting it out at the request of flight attendants on the charter plane, sources previously confirmed to PEOPLE. Authorities also issued a warning about her conduct at the airport following the flight.
After the incident, JSX, the public charter operator that Spears was aboard, had no comment.
The day after the incident, however, the “Toxic” singer recounted the events of the flight and aftermath from her point of view in an Instagram post. Alongside a video of herself on the flight, Spears began, “Me yesterday !!! It’s actually incredibly funny !!!”
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Credit:
Britney Spears/Instagram
Credit:
Britney Spears/Instagram
“Some planes I’ve been on you can’t smoke mostly but this one was different because the drink holders were on outside of seat !!!” she wrote in the May 23 post. “Confession it was my first time drinking VODKA!!! I swear I felt so SMART 🙄🙄🤔😂😂😂😂 !!! I was like wow what the heck is in there !!! I felt so clear and smart !!! And said I want a cigarette so bad !!!”
So, she continued, “My friend put it in my mouth and lit 🔥 it up for me so I was like OH SO THIS IS A PLANE WHERE YOU CAN SMOKE !!!”
The star went on to apologize and state that in her opinion, contacting the authorities was “kinda much.” She also made several allegations about one flight attendant in particular, describing her as “weird” and claiming she “invaded” the singer’s personal space.
“I do so apologize to anyone I offended but the flight attendants always make sure I’m way at the back of plane anyways 🤷🏼♀️🤷🏼♀️🤷🏼♀️ !!!” wrote Spears. “I thought officials greeted me as support and I was like WOW I feel special !!! I’ve never been to an international airport 😂😂😂😂 !!! Am I famous or something ???”
“The flight attendant called officials because I smoked a cigarette !!! And embarrass me which jeez I thought was kinda much but she didn’t like me the moment I got on plane !!!” the singer continued. “Nobody was on the plane for first 20 minutes and she wouldn’t let me get out of my seat I wanted to stand up !!! She acted so weird about making sure I sat down and it was weird !!! I didn’t like the way she put the seatbelt on me and invaded my space !!!”
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Credit:
Britney Spears/Instagram
Credit:
Britney Spears/Instagram
Spears was traveling with her security from Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, to Los Angeles on the headline-making May 22 flight, where — as she stated in her Instagram post — she was drinking and lit a cigarette.
Alarmed by the move, flight attendants insisted the star put out the cigarette, and she did. Authorities were then contacted mid-flight and when the plane landed, Spears was met by officials, who issued a warning about her conduct on the flight before she was allowed to leave.
“This is not her first warning,” a source told PEOPLE exclusively. “She doesn’t exactly follow the rules.”
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Spears was under a conservatorship for 13 years following mental health concerns after a series of troubling incidents in the early 2000s. The star’s father, Jamie Spears, served as the conservator of her estate.
The “Circus” singer successfully petitioned the court to terminate the conservatorship in November 2021 and, about two years after it ended, released her best-selling memoir, The Woman in Me.
Entertainment
All the Celebrities at Knicks vs. Pacers Game 2 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals

Ciara, Timothée Chalamet, and more stars attend Game 2 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals to watch the New York Knicks vs the Indiana Pacers on May 23, 2025 at Madison Square Garden.
Entertainment
Russell Wilson, Ciara, Timothée Chalamet Among Stars Sitting Courtside at Knicks Playoffs Game

Timothée Chalamet, Ciara, Russell Wilson, Ben Stiller, and Tracy Morgan were among the celebrities in attendance at the New York Knicks versus Indiana Pacers playoff game on the evening of Friday, Mat 23.
The star-studded audience took to Madison Square Garden in New York City to see game two of the Eastern Conference finals. Grammy winner Ciara, 39, wore a denim ensemble paired with chic shades and knee-high cognac suede tie-up boots.
She sat beside N.Y. Giants quarterback and husband Wilson, 36, who similarly sported a set of shades, paired with a denim jacket layered over an all-black outfit.
Chalamet, 29, has been noticeably present for the Knicks throughout the playoffs. For Friday’s match, the Oscar-nominated actor wore orange cargo pants paired with brown Converse sneakers and a Knicks t-shirt and cap.
Elsa/Getty
The A Complete Unknown Star went solo this time around, after he was spotted with girlfriend Kylie Jenner courtside at last week’s May 13 game against the Boston Celtics. An N.Y.C. native, Chalamet has long been an outspoken fan of his home team.
Elsa/Getty
For this round, Chalamet sat beside Stiller, who opted for subtle Knicks merch with a patch representing the team on the arm of his black jacket. Tracy Morgan was also seen at the game, wearing a Knicks jersey layered over a white t-shirt and white shorts, paired with a Knicks-themed bucket hat.
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The Pacers took the lead over the Knicks this round, defeating them 114-109.
Entertainment
Lizzo channels Beyoncé in new photo shoot as she enters her ‘blonde era’

Lizzo is feeling “Good as hell” in her “blonde era.”
The “Truth Hurts” hitmaker channeled her inner Beyoncé in her Thursday Instagram post as she shared some behind-the-scenes clips highlighting her new light-colored hair.
“Just a girl & her blonde era 👱🏾♀️,” she captioned the carousel of pictures, which featured several from her recent appearance on stage as SZA’s surprise guest at the Los Angeles stop on she and Kendrick Lamar’s Grand National Tour.
She also included a screenshot of Beyoncé from one of her Cècred advertisements among the collection of photos as she showed the clear reference.
“I swear, the moment I saw the photo, I thought it was Bey🤣 I love my divas❤️,” one fan commented under Lizzo’s post.
Another social media user added: “close enough … welcome back Beyoncé.”
Lizzo and SZA hit the stage together at SoFi on Wednesday night where they performed a remix of the “Watch Out for the Big Grrrls” star’s track “Special” from her album of the same name, per People.
For the performance, she styled the blonde look with a brown, lacy and form-fitting two-piece set, which accentuated the singer’s newly slimmed down curves.
Lizzo previously gave her fans a glimpse into her “blonde era” at this year’s Met Gala earlier this month.
In a last minute decision, she decided to change up her ‘do and opted for a platinum blond shoulder-length wig with loose waves.
Hairdresser Jstayready created her head-turning hair using Red by Kiss styling products and premium Vivace by Kiss extensions. Her beauty look was finished with a smoky eye and dark lipstick.
Underneath her sea of blonde curls, the “Juice” songstress, 37, wore a plunging black-and-white floor-length gown by Christian Siriano for the star-studded event.
Her look was put together in just three days and features three layers of corsetry, Siriano revealed to E! News.
There was “not an ounce of stretch in anything in this fabric and probably 200 seams” in Lizzo’s ensemble,” Siriano, 39, said.
The designer also said that “celebrating [Lizzo’s] curves was really important.”
At the 2024 ball, Lizzo attracted attention on the carpet while wearing a sheer brown leaf- and petal-filled gown that extended beyond her head to emulate the look of a tree.
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