[StateOfDreaming]

With one album left on her recording contract, the pop star's suitors include fellow "X Factor" judge and Epic Records chairman L.A. Reid, and longtime Jive Records head Barry Weiss, who's now running Justin Bieber's label.

A battle for Britney Spears is brewing. The pop star's recording contract with the former Jive Records (now RCA, a division of Sony Music) has one album left, and among those courting the chart-topper are L.A. Reid, chairman of Sony's Epic Records and Spears' X Factor sidekick, and Barry Weiss, former Jive head who's guided her career through its greatest heights and now chairs Island Def Jam Motown and Universal Republic, home to Justin Bieber, Kanye West and American Idol's Mariah Carey.

Both execs want to sign the singer, 30, whose seven studio releases have sold some 100 million units worldwide, to their rosters (at a cost of $3 million to $5 million per album, according to one estimate). But in what’s being described by sources as a virtual face-off, the two are approaching the courtship with divergent strategies.

Reid, with whom Spears has become “chummy” since joining X Factor*-- to the extent that she and Demi Lovato swapped table positions so Spears can sit to Reid’s left -- is in dire need of an artist who can chart, having run Epic for more than a year now with nary a hit to its name (staffers insist new signings Ciara and Avril Lavigne could turn the tide). According to sources, Reid is using his proximity to Spears to woo her while also offering his counsel and promising to take her career “to the next level.”

Weiss (pictured), who essentially swapped jobs with Reid in 2011, at least where IDJ is concerned, has time on his side. "I have a 15-year history with Britney and would love to be reunited with her," he tells The Hollywood Reporter. Indeed, Weiss is one of few executives with whom Spears has interacted directly and he represents a sort of “comfort zone for Britney," says an insider. “Barry understands how her business is run and the many buffers in place."

Chief among them: the decision makers in Spears' life. They include*Jason Trawick,*Spears’ fiancé, former agent and co-conservator (along with her father Jamie Spears), who sits at his own judges’ table-like spot on the X Factor set and keeps a close eye on the proceedings,*and Larry Rudolph, her longtime manager. Rudolph is*close to both Reid and Weiss -- the former via Lavigne, whom he also reps, and the latter from his years with Spears.

"I have a 15-year history with Britney and would love to be reunited with her." — Barry Weiss, Chairman & CEO, Island Def Jam Motown and Universal Republic.

Worth noting: Spears’ affiliation with*X Factor, which is aligned exclusively with Sony Music, does not give the label group a signing advantage nor does Spears' contract preclude her from negotiating a new deal concurrently. The show could, however, bar other executives from coming onto the set. RCA Records would not comment for this story, other than to say that the label does not disclose details of its artists' deals.

“Larry and Jason will want to go where the money is,” offers one source, who cautions that, after all these years in the business, Spears has developed “a pretty good s--t-detector [where] if LA goes overboard, that could push her away.” Ultimately, says the insider, Spears can be easily swayed but will go where she’s comfortable. Adds another high-ranking executive: “She’s a hot commodity, and that’s a good position to be in.”

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/new...ontract-359213

Finally she'll be free of RCA...God help any artists on that label. Pink needs to free herself from them too. They were shafted when Jive disbanded.

[Dr. DoNothing]

Britney should go to Reid, somewhere new and unknown. Maybe that's what she needs to make her excited about making music again

[soundstory]

Personally, I think she;s a spent force, though the X Factor connection will restart her career

Let's focus on new emerging artists

[toanythingtaboo]

If Britney goes where she's comfortable and her conservators go where the money is, I dare say she'll go with Barry Weiss.

[umr3000]

There's no doubt that she's had an amazing run with Barry Weiss at Jive records for 15 years however I definitely think that she needs something new and exciting and different... which will help keep her fresh and try out new things.... therefore I think goin' with LA Reid and Eppic Records would be a good career move for her.... it's time she stepped up and took her career to the next level. She definitely needs to get away from RCA.... they're a total mess, just a shame her next studio outing is going to be with them :s

[michaelkeates]

Wish Britney would go back to basics, her new stuff just doesn't cut it for me, loved Britney back in the day.

[chrisqc]

cant wait to see what she will do next shes the only artist i ever bought every single album on release day even the first one

[boysforpele]

as long as she doesnt go to interscope or syco she will be fine.....

[PopularCulture]

I think she should take a bit of time out from showbiz before she signs a new record deal to be honest. Britney hasn't seemed completely herself for over 5 years now.

[little-monster]

Ooh sounds good

I always felt JIVE kept Britney on a leash. In Seven Albums, she only ever once really came out of her comfort zone and got really involved and that was with In The Zone.