When it comes to celebs making headlines in 2023, Jackass vet Bam Margera has been something of a standout, though obviously not exactly for the most positive reasons. The skateboarder’s substance abuse struggles put him at odds with his ex (who’s suing him), his brother, and more, to the point where he even dropped a rap track dissing former co-star Steve-O. One of his latest public outings was also tangentially music-related, but with more pop than hip-hop vibes, as he got a tattoo referencing Britney Spears, and spoke out about the similarities he sees between their situations.
Days after Margera claimed 30 days of sobriety, which followed his most recent arrest for public intoxication, the 43-year-old made a pit stop at the Pennsylvania shop First Hand Tattoo, according to TMZ, where he paid respects to his fellow former MTV mainstay Spears in the form of a quote tattoo on his neck. Here’s what his new ink says:
Britney Spears ❤️ Oops they did it to ME too!
The tattoo is not actually referencing the subject matter of the 2000 single, although that would have been amusing, but rather the idea that he allowed others in his life to control his actions and his journey, in a way that’s not completely dissimilar to the conservatorship that Britney Spears dealt with for 13 years of her adult life. For Margera, the issue doesn’t revolve around conservators trying to control his finances, but rather friends and family aiming to keep him bouncing from one Florida rehab facility to another.
Bam Margera spoke out about the tattoo’s meaning during the process of having it designed and inked, saying:
So if you haven’t known, I’ve been through the ringer with the longest Florida shuffle, which means that if the interventionist knows you have insurance money, they’ll find reasons to keep you there forever. So Britney Spears…Oops, they did it to me, too. I’m on your level.
The “Florida shuffle” is indeed the shorthand phrasing for what happens to addicts and alcoholics living in the state who also happen to have stable health insurance, as they’re shifted from one place to the next, with each facility reaping the financial benefits of charging insurance companies. And while he’s not so direct with calling out who’s responsible in this particular instance, Margera is pointing the finger at his own interventionalist for allegedly finding a way to secure a financial gain from the skateboarder’s substance abuse.
As fans are probably aware, Spears was finally released from her conservatorship back in November 2021, after months of legal wrangling, and hasn’t exactly made amends with her father Jamie Spears for the role he played in all that. It’s more than likely that she will speak to that entire situation in full in her upcoming memoir The Woman in Me, which is due to hit shelves on October 24. Maybe Bam Margera will pick it up and give it a read, with or without the intention of getting some of the book’s quotes tattooed on his body.
For what it’s worth, Margera also called himself “the Britney Spears of Jackass” earlier in 2023 while taking part in a comedy-centric stage tour with Steve-O. So this wasn’t just a sudden slice of inspiration for the celeb.
Margera has reportedly been spending his sober time on a farm in Philadelphia with his girlfriend Dannii. Here’s hoping that streak continues to hold strong, and that he doesn’t fall back into the Florida shuffle again at any point.
