Jeff Weiss

Jeff Weiss is an American journalist, music critic, and publisher. He started the independent music blog Passion of the Weiss and wrote the 2025 book Waiting for Britney Spears: A True Story, Allegedly.

Weiss began his career as a business journalist and freelance tabloid reporter. He later shifted his writing to music criticism, focusing on underground hip-hop and the effects of the criminal justice system on musicians. His work appears in The Washington Post, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, and The New York Times. In 2017, Weiss helped organize an advertiser boycott of the LA Weekly after Semanal Media bought the paper. He then co-founded the print magazine The LAnd.

Early life and education Weiss grew up in Los Angeles, California. His grandfather moved to Los Angeles from New York. His father was a lawyer, and his mother ran a children's clothing store.

Weiss played high school baseball and went on to play college baseball at Occidental College. He read authors like Jack Kerouac and hip-hop magazines like The Source and Vibe. He reported on celebrities and nightlife, often working with British photographer Mel Bouzad. In 2005, police arrested Weiss for trespassing on Brad Pitt's Malibu property. He was on assignment for People to confirm Pitt's relationship with Angelina Jolie. He was not charged with a crime. Weiss later said he regretted this work and called the arrest "the worst day of my entire life." It began as a site for complaining about Los Angeles culture and changed into a music criticism site focused on underground hip-hop.

The blog reviewed artists such as Kendrick Lamar, Odd Future, Kevin Gates, and Frank Ocean before they became famous.

Music criticism Weiss wrote a music column for the LA Weekly for six years. Fans sent Weiss death threats, and Post Malone's father argued with Weiss on Twitter. Post Malone later sent Weiss a direct message to apologize for the situation. The book mixes memoir and autofiction. It details his time as a tabloid reporter following Britney Spears up to the start of her conservatorship in 2008. Weiss went on a national book tour and spoke at independent bookstores with authors like Caroline Calloway.