The singer even chartered a private jet to fly herself, her family and close friends to the bash last week to mark Bryan's engagement to girlfriend Lauren.

The star's mom Lynne says, "We arrived at 9 pm, just in time to surprise the two of them. We all brought gag gifts.

"A magician named Magic, who they had met previously, followed them to the party. He amazed everyone with his tricks. At least I think - no, I hope - they were tricks! Britney said this guy was so good, it was scary!

"Britney really surprised Lauren and Bryan. They were so happy to see all of us. We left that night at 1am. It was the best party!"

teenhollywood.com

What's behind Britney Spears' decision to go brunette - and trade in her flowing goldilocks for a perky chocolate bob over the weekend?

"We'd been talking about making a big change, both in cut and color," says hairstylist Kevin Mancuso, who has been cutting Spears' hair for three years.

"We decided the whole idea would be to give it a jagged edge, both hard and beautiful at the same time."

Mancuso, who performed the transformation along with colorist Steven Amendola for Manhattan's Peter Coppola salon, said it took "hours" to apply the color, which includes golden, reddish and dark blond highlights.

Mancuso says Spears' "personal" new songs inspired the coif.

"She's working on some great stuff," he says.

Lauren Solomon, a New York image consultant, says Spears' new hair color is a bid for attention. "We have not heard much about her recently and she had to do something to get her back in the spotlight. A new, dark sultry look instead of the blond flighty look is going to get a whole new message in the media," she says.

Spears hasn't been much in the spotlight lately.

According to her Web site, she is currently "in production" on her new album, and she was recently seen on the arm of Hollywood hotshot Colin Farrell.

But with Madonna's new album set to hit stores today and Christina Aguilera signing on as the new face of Versace, Spears has been laying low, aside from the recent announcement that charges against a Japanese stalker have been dropped.

"I don't think that [the stalker] was a life-changing experience," says Solomon. "This is not Rudy looking to get over prostate cancer. It's time for a change. We've had too much of the same for too long. The easiest way to get attention is to change the look."

Spears' publicist, Nathalie Moar, insists the new hair wasn't a premeditated ploy.

"She's young. She can do whatever she wants," says Moar.

"Even though she's never changed her color, Britney always changes. Next week it could be something different."

nypost.com

britneyspears.com

Masahiko Shizawa's attorney had said Spears' misunderstood his client's interest in her. "He's not a stalker," Simon R. Hiller said during a February hearing. "He's an avid fan."

In asking for a court order keeping Shizawa at least 1,000 yards from her, the 21-year-old pop star said he had sent hundreds of love letters and photographs and tracked her to her homes in Louisiana and California. She said one photo bore the words, "I'm chasing you."

Hiller said Shizawa, a 41-year-old computer programmer and inventor, returned to Japan when his visa expired but wanted to resolve the issue so he could eventually return to the United States.

Spears' attorney Joel R. Strote was out of his office Wednesday and unavailable for comment, associates said.

story.news.yahoo.com

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