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Britney Spears: "Mind-Bendy and Trippy"?

Get the inside scoop on the pop princess' upcoming new album. "She needs to be in the forefront," says hitmaker (and possible collaborator) Ryan Tedder

By Marc Malkin Oct 09, 2010 2:00 AMTags
Britney SpearsEric Charbonneau/WireImage

I already told you that Britney Spears might be getting "freaky" on her upcoming—and mucho anticipated—album.  

How's that coming along? Well, I just got word that her team recently put together a "writing camp" of top music producers and writers. They were apparently flown to Dallas for a few days to brainstorm and collaborate on new songs for Spears...

"I know that 'Usual You' off the last album [Circus] has been tossed around like, 'Use this as kind of a jumping off point,' " OneRepublic frontman and über-hitmaker Ryan Tedder told me last night at Ralph Lauren's Big Pony Collection fragrance launch event at the Chateau Marmont hotel.

Even though Tedder—who's produced megatracks for superstars like Beyoncé, Rihanna, Whitney Houston, Leona Lewis and Kelly Clarkson—didn't take part in the writer's camp, he says Spears producer Max Martin is considering a song he produced with Dan Black.

"It's mind-bendy and trippy," Tedder said, adding, "I applaud the label for saying, 'We're not going to do what's always been done.' I think Britney's such an innovator. She needs to be in the forefront, you know what I mean? You can't come out with something sounding like someone else."

OneRepublic recently finished touring with U2 and is now on the road with Maroon 5. Tedder also just produced two new tracks for "Chasing Pavements" songstress Adele. "She personifies authentic," he said. "She is authentic in every sense of the word. I would rather listen to my least favorite Adele song on repeat than 99 percent of the songs on the radio right now."

The Chateau Marmont event included a five-song acoustic set by OneRepublic, a viewing of a Bruce Weber-directed Big Pony video featuring the band's hit single "Secrets" and a four-course dinner prepared by chef Carolynn Spence.