Britney Spears’ long-anticipated memoir “The Woman In Me” is finally here, and it’s not just her writing that’s getting praise.
On October 24, the memoir debuted alongside its audiobook version, which is narrated by Academy Award-nominated actor Michelle Williams. The two-time Golden Globe Award winner and Academy Award nominee has received critical praise for her performances in films such as “My Week with Marilyn” and “The Fabelmans.”
Her latest performance as the audiobook reader for “The Woman In Me” has people taking to social media to praise her delivery of the memoir.
People have reacted in particular to Williams’ reading of a passage about Spears’ former boyfriend Justin Timberlake, and his performative behavior as a member of ‘N Sync. Spears dated from 1999 until 2002.
In the audiobook, Williams reads Spears’ writing with zero hesitation and a heavy dose of zeal.
“His band 'N Sync was what people back then called ‘so pimp,’” Williams reads in the audio recording of Spears’ book.
“They were white boys, but they loved hip-hop. To me, that’s what separated them from the Backstreet Boys, who seemed very consciously to position themselves as a white group. 'N Sync hung out with Black artists.”
“Sometimes, I thought they tried too hard to fit in,” the passage continues. “One day, J and I were in New York going to parts of town I had never been to before. Walking our way was a guy with a huge blinged-out medallion. He was flanked by two giant security guards. J got all excited and said so loud, ‘Oh yeah fo shiz fo shiz, Genuine. What’s up, homey.’”
“I never had any real opinions on Michelle Williams before, but I bet she’s incredibly fun to hang out with,” one user wrote in a tweet about Williams’ audio reading.
“ijbol,” another user wrote in response to the audiobook. “Ijbol” recently overtook “LOL” on social media platforms and stands for “I just burst out laughing.”
“Can Michelle Williams win an Oscar for this audiobook?” another user inquired over the viral clips.
“No, but she can win a Grammy,” another user replied.
It’s true that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which awards members of the entertainment industry Oscars yearly, does not have an award for audiobook performances. The Recording Academy of the United States, however, which issues Grammy awards, does provide an award for Best Audio Book, Narration and Storytelling Recording.
In 2023, Viola Davis received the award for her performance of “Finding Me.”
Britney Spears’ memoir “The Woman In Me” debuted on Oct. 24.
