Britney Spears shuts down album rumors, says she'll 'never' return to music

Jan. 4 (UPI) -- Britney Spears is shutting down rumors of a new album.

The 42-year-old singer and actress denied the reports in a post Wednesday on Instagram, saying she will "never" return to the music industry.

"Just so we're clear most of the news is trash!!! They keep saying I'm turning to random people to do a new album... I will never return to the music industry!!!" Spears said.

Reports surfaced Wednesday that Spears is working with Julia Michaels and Charli XCX on new music.

In her post, Spears added that she has recently written over 20 songs as a ghostwriter.

"When I write, I write for fun or I write for other people!!! For those of you who have read my book, there's loads that you don't know about me... I've written over 20 songs for other people the past two years!!! I'm a ghostwriter and I honestly enjoy it that way!!!" she said.

Spears, whose memoir The Woman in Me debuted in October, also denied that her book was released without her permission.

"People are also saying MY BOOK WAS RELEASED WITHOUT MY APPROVAL ILLEGALLY and that's far from the truth... have you read the news these days??? I'm so LOVED and blessed!!!" she said.

Spears released her most recent album, Glory, in 2016. She has since released the single "Hold Me Closer" with Elton John in 2022 and "Mind Your Business" with will.i.am in 2023.