Spears Sets Sights on Sin City?

08/31/2005 7:24 PM, E! Online
Charlie Amter

Britney Spears apparently doesn't have a grudge with Sin City.

Despite having a 2004 trip to Las Vegas resulting in a quickie marriage--and near instantaneous annulment--the pop star is in negotiations to become the next Celine Dion or Elton John, holding down a long-term residency at a casino resort.

Jack Wishna, the dealmaker at the center of the potential engagement, told E! Online Wednesday the pregnant pop star is interested in her very own Vegas show. "I met with Britney, her manager and her lawyers, and we are working on a deal to bring her to the Strip for 'X'-number of weeks in 2007-2008," he says. The venture consultant, who has successfully negotiated big-deal contracts for the likes of Wayne Newton, says a contract is in the works.

While Wishna would not reveal which casino is interested in signing up the "Toxic" singer, he says he is working with a "major Strip property."

"This particular property is looking for a big name that will take them to the next level in terms of entertainment, and Britney would certainly do that for them," he says.

There has been no immediate comment from the Spears camp, but the move would certainly make sense for the pop star, who lives a short flight away in Southern California.

Just as Dion decided to forgo the rigors of the road and focus instead on raising her children while she rakes in big bucks as the headliner at Caesar's Palace, the 23-year-old Spears could still perform without having to travel far from her soon-to-arrive child with hubby Kevin Federline.

Meanwhile, Spears has been logging long hours in a private studio near her new $7 million dollar home in Malibu, laying down tracks for her forthcoming new release, which is not yet titled and without a release date.

Earlier this year, Spears played a rough mix of a new song called "Mona Lisa" on a Los Angeles radio station and said the complete CD might be ready for release by this summer, which seems highly unlikely at this point. Two other tracks that may make the disc include "Ouch" and "Sippin' On"--both of which were recently added to the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers' (ASCAP) database.

And if Britney's Vegas deal doesn't pan out, Wishna has a back-up plan. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, he's also been trying to convince Madonna to book an extended stint on the Strip.