Pepsi's Child

Beyoncé, can you handle this? Destiny's Child frontwoman and solo artist Beyoncé Knowles is replacing Britney Spears as the pop-star voice of Pepsi, according to a press release from the soda company. The announcement comes as Spears' contract expires, the New York Times reported. Knowles will appear in two TV commercials for Pepsi, which may also sponsor a solo tour next year. ''We were really looking to take the work in a different direction,'' a Pepsi spokesperson told the New York Times.

Spears' spokesperson told the Times that she might be willing to return for more Pepsi ads, while Pepsi said that new Britney ads were possible but wouldn't happen anytime soon. This year, Spears has faced declining album sales, a high-profile breakup with Justin Timberlake, a failed restaurant investment, and a much-discussed aborted concert in Mexico City, among other obstacles. Knowles, meanwhile, appeared in ''Austin Powers in Goldmember'' (Britney had a cameo in the same movie), and is planning to release her first solo album next year. She and her Destiny's Child bandmates are said to be on hiatus.

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