Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Jessica Gibb

Britney Spears changes her name after 'regretful' tattoo with fans voicing concern

Britney Spears has announced she's changed her name to River Red.

The pop icon, 41, took to Instagram to share a photo of Mars before changing her name on Instagram.

She told her 41.6million followers: "A bright one … easy does it !!! Thank you, childhood friend, I found my ball … don’t underestimate the power of purity !!!

"I see right through it all … it has liquid and is wet … it’s playful and has mass !!! I changed my name to River Red !!! Yet the fire is where it illuminates … to stare at it and jump right in with no fear at all !!!! S***. Now I have to find my FORK !!!"

Fans rushed to Twitter to share their concern for the star - who got a new tattoo in her hotel room just days ago.

Britney Spears says she's changed her name to River Red (Instagram)
The name change comes days after she got a tattoo in her hotel room (Instagram)

"River red ?? Britney honey what's going on," one fan asked.

"So cryptic," another commented.

Meanwhile, Britney took to Instagram on Thursday to shut down claims her new ink was for former flame Justin Timberlake.

The pop sensation revealed she'd had a new tattoo at a similar time to she posted about the former N*Sync man - an upload she has since deleted.

But now, she's confirmed it was purely a coincidence and the two snaps were in no way linked. Sharing a short message on her Instagram Stories, the hit maker wrote: "Just to clarify... my tattoo had nothing to do with an ex in the past !!!

"I simply did it because I wanted to !!! The pic with my ex is a time where there was less confusion on what it meant to be together ... it is what it is !!!"

Britney with her ex Justin Timberlake in 2002 (Getty Images)

Brit uploaded a number of throwback snaps of her and Justin, who she dated between 1999 and 2002, playing basketball.

The pair were seen in matching jerseys from a charity game in 2001. She began her now-deleted caption: "When we used to shoot hoops TOGETHER … that’s when miracles happened."

And she went on to add a cryptic message about being "cast out," saying: "I came out of my mom’s stomach just like we all did !!! Psss … why always cast me out ??? I’m equal as all !!!"

Shortly after, she shared a clip of her getting a tattoo while on holiday in Hawaii - something she now regrets.

Britney Spears admits 'she's learning' (Instagram)
She reflected on her Justin Timberlake romance (britneyspears/Instagram)

The Baby One More Time singer was seen in her hotel room and she was joined by a tattoo artist. In the clip, she danced around her room before the artist started tattooing her arm.

She wrote: "Tattoo in Maui 3 days ago !!! Can’t show it because it sucks !!! Like really really sucks !!! S**t !!! Psss … I have to fix it !!!"

The star appeared to see the funny side, however, and added a number of crying with laughter emoji faces.

Britney has at least nine other tattoos, including a triangle tattoo on her right hand, a fairy on her lower back and lips on her right forearm.

* Follow Mirror Celebs on Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.