As Britney Spears was deciding whether or not to take her two young sons on tour with her, she sought guidance from Madonna.

A source said: “Madonna gave Britney some great advice about her kids. Madonna told her, ‘Keep them close when you’re on the road. I have always taken my kids on the road with me. It’s a life they learn to accept, as long as they’re with their mom. You want to look back on those years and know they are with you. They’ll look back on these years too and they’ll be very glad to have those memories’.”

Britney ultimately decided to take the children along, as well as her ex-husband and the kids’ primary guardian Kevin Federline.

Britney said: “I do think it’s all about history. What we as mothers are doing is creating this history with our kids that we can look back on and say, ‘Yeah, that was hard. But it was fun because we did it together’. When they’re adults I want my kids to say, ‘Wow, my mom was working hard but she was there for us’.”