Britney Spears has revealed Justin Timberlake gave her a five-minute “pep talk” ahead of her famous MTV Video Music Awards performance.
The pop superstar’s appearance at the 2001 ceremony featured a host of live animals, including an albino python draped over her shoulders.
In an Instagram post, Spears shared a series of photos including a number showing her and Sir Mick Jagger on the red carpet together.
She also recalled how Timberlake, who she was in a relationship with in the late 1990s and early 2000s, had helped her before the show.
She wrote: “I will tell you this … before I went on that night I was feeling kinda out of body with nerves … I mean … I was in a cage with a live tiger !!!!! I will never forget the moment before I went in the cage !!!!
“Justin saw I could hardly talk so he held my hand and gave me a 5 minute pep talk which obviously worked !!!!!
“Psssss guess I’m sleeping because my eyes are closed in half of these pics !!!!”
The post also saw Spears reflect on her outfit for the night.
She added: “Geez … this is me before my VMAs performance with @MickJagger 20 years ago !!!! This is one my my favorite dresses I’ve ever worn and it’s simple black lace !!!!”
Spears, 39, has been under a conservatorship – an arrangement usually reserved for the very old or infirm – since 2008 after suffering a series of mental breakdowns.
Her father Jamie has been overseeing her estate, despite her protestations.
Earlier this month, he filed a petition to end the conservatorship, saying “recent events” called into question whether she still needed a court to oversee her affairs.