Britney Spears’ longtime manager Larry Rudolph resigns, says singer is retiring from music

Britney Spears‘ longtime manager, Larry Rudolph, has resigned from his position following the pop singer’s alleged wish to retire from music.

In a letter sent to Spears’ father and conservator, Jamie, and court-appointed care manager Jodi Montgomery, Rudolph said he hadn’t spoken to Spears in more than two and a half years. The last time they spoke, Rudolph said, Spears told him she was planning to take an “indefinite work hiatus.”

He stated in the letter that Spears herself has recently said that she wants to stop making music permanently.

“It has been over 2 1/2 years since Britney and I last communicated, at which time she informed me she wanted to take an indefinite work hiatus,” read the letter in part. “Earlier today, I became aware that Britney had been voicing her intention to officially retire. I believe it is in Britney’s best interest for me to resign from her team as my professional services are no longer needed.”

Rudolph first met Spears in 1995, when she was only 13 years old. Two years later, she scored her first record deal with Jive Records. Rudolph has also managed Justin Timberlake, Miley Cyrus and Avril Lavigne, among many other successful acts.

Spears, 39, has been under a conservatorship since she suffered a mental health breakdown in 2008, with decisions about her finances and personal care being managed by Jamie. Last year, she began the legal process to ask the court to remove him from handling her personal affairs.

Last month, the singer told a Los Angeles judge overseeing the arrangement that she wanted it to end. Spears called the 13-year conservatorship abusive, saying she felt traumatized and angry and wanted her life back.

Although Rudolph was not named by Spears in court, he was implicated as one of her abusers in her emotional testimony.

“The people who did this to me should not get away,” Spears said in court. “Ma’am, my dad, and anyone involved in this conservatorship, and my management, who played a huge role in punishing me when I said no — Ma’am, they should be in jail.”

Jamie is credited with reviving his daughter’s career after her life spiralled out of control in 2007-08. He is also a joint conservator of the singer’s finances. He has strongly denied his daughter’s assertions, saying that he’s only looking out for her best interests. He has filed a petition to look into the claims that Spears raised in court.

Representatives for Spears have not yet commented on Rudolph’s resignation, nor have they confirmed Spears’ intention to retire.

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Here is the letter in its entirety (via Deadline):

James P. Spears and Jodi Montgomery, as co-executors of the estate of Britney Spears:

It has been over 2 1/2 years since Britney and I last communicated, at which time she informed me she wanted to take an indefinite work hiatus. Earlier today, I became aware that Britney had been voicing her intention to officially retire.

As you know, I have never been a part of the conservatorship nor its operations, so I am not privy to many of these details. I was originally hired at Britney’s request to help manage and assist her with her career. And as her manager, I believe it is in Britney’s best interest for me to resign from her team as my professional services are no longer needed.

Please accept this letter as my formal resignation.

I will always be incredibly proud of what we accomplished over our 25 years together. I wish Britney all the health and happiness in the world, and I’ll be there for her if she ever needs me again, just as I always have been.

Larry Rudolph

— With files from Reuters