Britney Spears Leaves LA Restaurant After Patrons Allegedly Refuse to Stop Recording Her: REPORT
Britney Spears left a restaurant this weekend after fellow patrons continued to record videos and take photos of the pop star while she attempted to enjoy a meal, according to reports.
On Friday (Jan. 13), the music icon was spotted out to eat at JOEY restaurant in the Woodland Hills area of Los Angeles. She was there with her husband, Sam Asghari.
Cell phone footage shared online shows numerous other customers taking out their phones to record Spears while she attempted to hide her face with a menu.
According to TMZ's reporting, the singer had a "bizarre meltdown" that allegedly prompted her husband to "storm out." A witness told the outlet that she was acting "manic" and speaking in "gibberish" before Asghari left her in the booth by herself.
Some believe that Spears was experiencing a "manic episode," though this remains unconfirmed and unethical to speculate about on the basis of medical privacy and mental health.
According to Mayo Clinic, a manic episode is described as a person acting "abnormally upbeat, jumpy or wired" or experiencing "increased activity, energy or agitation"; an "exaggerated sense of well-being and self-confidence (euphoria)"; or a "decreased need for sleep." A person must have three of those symptoms for it to be considered a manic episode.
Spears apparently left the restaurant minutes later with her bodyguard, who briefly returned to pay the bill.
Despite the report, the footage available online shows Spears being harassed as other restaurant patrons refuse to stop recording her, even as she attempts to hide her face behind a menu.
The reporting of and public reaction to Spears' dining experience is similar to the media's treatment of the singer in 2007, when she was constantly harassed and hounded by paparazzi in the attempt to get a rise out of her for the tabloid headlines.
The relentless scrutiny concerning Spears' mental health, appearance, parenting style and sexuality led to her infamous public breakdown.
On social media, the "Toxic" singer's legion of fans spoke out against the Friday night fiasco.
See fan reactions to the incident, below.
It's good to see Brit venturing out back on her own terms. Hopefully, the public can be more respectful to her in the future as she finds her footing following her controversial 13-year conservatorship.