featured! Why Britney Spears is the most important pop artist of the 21st century

[DignifiedLove]

This is the story of how a girl from Kentwood, Louisiana, changed pop music forever.

But first, a quiz. Can you name the five biggest-selling female artists of 1998?

Of course you can. They're Shania Twain, LeAnn Rimes, Janet Jackson, Paula Cole and Celine Dion.
Now, here are the five biggest-selling female artists of 2003.

That's Beyonce, Aaliyah (RIP), J-Lo, Christina Aguilera (Career RIP) and Avril Lavigne. Not necessarily better, of course - but different. 

So what happened in those five short years to inspire this seismic cultural shift? This happened.

 

In October of 1998, Britney Spears released her debut single, ...Baby One More Time. The ellipsis replaced the words 'Hit Me', which were removed because of their potentially sado*******ic interpretation. "It doesn't mean physically hit me," she said later. "It means just give me a sign."
Britney changed everything. Politically, she held a mirror to the rapidly-changing fin-de-siecle America. As the screenwriter and novelist Tom Perrotta wrote:

"Britney and Cobain are fated to be forever linked in our national consciousness as the opposing bookends of the 1990s, poster children for a schizoid decade. There's Cobain on the left, mumbling, unshaven, representing a gloomy time of war and recession. And there's Britney on the right, the offical superstar of the late-90s boom, the chipper emblem of a fat, happy country bubbling over with irrational exuberance."

Britney had her finger on the pulse of modern America. While pop icons of the past generally tried to disturb the established cultural order, Britney was perfectly happy the existing cultural order as it was, thank you very much.

 

Musically, pop changed forever. Let's have a look at how those stars of '98 turned out.

Shania Twain vamped herself up. LeAnn Rimes stripped herself down. Janet Jackson had her wardrobe malfunction. Celine Dion is currently going through her own mildlly saucy reinvention. Meanwhile, Paula Cole changed her name to Cheryl and enjoyed a string of popular hits. All products of the new, Britney-fied pop universe.

As pop adapted, so did Britney. A lot. In so doing, she created some of the most enduring images of the decade.

 

Even today's pop stars, from Miley Cyrus to Lady Gaga to Lana del Rey, have recognised their debt.

Still not convinced of Britney's influence? Look at this graph, which plots Britney album sales against annual US GDP growth.

The evidence is clear. When Britney sneezes, America catches a cold. The story of Britney is the story of America.

So let's cut a long story short.

Britney Spears is single-handedly responsible for the reinvention of popular music...
...recording some of the greatest songs of all time...
...redefining pop culture in the late 1990s and 2000s...
...continuing to influence the music of today...
...and surviving for 20 years in the world's most cut-throat industry.
Oh, and she predicted the recession.

THE END.
 

 

[Roxxy]

The perfection in this thread. 

[Roxxy]

6 minutes ago, EasyThere said:

Sloppy made thread hence why it flopped

I mean yeah there are some things here and there but I liked the comparison and the graph. I was like 

[Roxxy]

1 minute ago, EasyThere said:

Ehhhhh it can't be good if it was done by Dignie lbr here

You really love her huh. 

[Roxxy]

13 minutes ago, EasyThere said:

Ewww no I don't hate ha let's start with that

Aww if she could see this. 

[joe sp]

[Blackout2006]

YAS! It’s time people understand her influence. The fact blackout changed what pop music was From 2008-2014 is simply iconic  people think that the fame started the electro pop craze but if it weren’t for Britney, it wouldn’t for lady Gaga  Britney brought basically dubstep and many underground genres to a more commercial front, that’s why artist like Calvin Harris, shrillex and so much more DJs are instantly recognizable. Blackout might not sound fresh rn, but if it were to be released in 2012, it would still sound ahead of time And these fools dare to discredit her like that? minus good girl gone bad, pop albums were never truly that dark and edgy but Britney started the trend man! From blackout, it went to Sasha fierce to rated r to this is the end to cannibal to nowwwww.....thank you next and when we all fall asleep where do we go. Blackout basically started the distorted and broken sound that’s so trendy rn otherwise, pop before circa 2007, was smooth, perfected and polished as a shiny black shoe. The album basically gave the rights to other artist to throw back and show their clap backs to the media that trash them, for example-Taylor Swift quoted “another day, another drama” with look what you made me do. The album is freaking featured in the rock hall of fame museum alongside legends like Beatles. Very few POP artist have that position and the fact that an artist that is shown off as a “Manufactured Auto-tuned doll” achieved this shows that she isn’t what the media says. 

”On Tuesday, October 30th, 2007, when the world was trying to write her off as a joke – not for the first time, not for the last – Brit dropped music way too weird for the radio, all alien and distorted, warping her Southern drawl into a surly electro-punk sneer. Within a couple of years, everybody was trying to sound like this.” - Rolling Stone, 2017

Now that’s where my blackout rant ends. Let’s talk OTHERWISE about her influence. Britney  came into a scene dominated by boy bands and girl bands, it was basically was hard to get a hit as a solo artist (for comparison sake, it’s basically like how K-pop solo artist are not as successful compared to the groups) she broke that and created a pathway for other solo female artist to walk with success on back of them (example-Christina Aguilera, Mandy Moore, Jessica Simpson etc.) Britney basically was the most talked about artist from 1998-2009, and nobody even to this day, not even Beyoncé has able to reach the status of what Britney was back then. The fact that she was the most searched person in the world consecutively from 1998-2008 just showcases how much of a deal she was and to put more into the point, Beyoncé was only the most searched for one year which was 2011 which was basically because of revealing her baby in a performance   Britney was deemed as a one hit wonder, but was able to thanos snap that with the Oops I did it again era. She was the first female artist to have an album reached 1million sales in the first week, and before that, the highest female first week sales were around 514k she hit double of that. Her album was also critically acclaimed. She gave a new insight towards teen pop. THEN came, her third or fourth hugest era, the Britney era. That era basically brought in the “Good girl gone bad” frenzy into the scene otherwise from what I know, other female artist weren’t doing that. She transitioned not only with her image but music, she was able to capture a huge audience of RNB, Hip hop, and pop, which brought the idea to artist of making songs versatile to attract a much more huger audience. Then she also proved her not being a puppet, she wrote 90% of the album and was very much involved in it. In the zone basically brought the crazy partying and fun girl stuff into the game. She experimented with genres like Middle eastern and Asian music, rnb, hip hop and pop and was able to make a timeless record that’s listed in the 50 best recordings of the 2000s. This album was also appreciated by the critics. So through this look back, we can see how much her image and music influenced the sound and definition of 2010s music. So thank you for reading my long rant bye

[Spicechinodiva]

Janet Jackson Boring.

 

Bish, where. The girl created a Pick up line that every bottom uses who grew up with the song All for you..

You have a nice package alright, I'm gonna have to ride it tonight. To say Britney idol was boring. Thank u, Next. 

 

 

[Roxxy]

1 minute ago, Spicechinodiva said:

Janet Jackson Boring.

Bish, where. The girl created a Pick up line that every bottom uses who grew up with the song All for you..

You have a nice package alright, I'm gonna have to ride it tonight. To say Britney idol was boring. Thank u, Next. 

Spicey why so savaaage.  I live for All For You. 

@EasyThere All my girls at the party, look at that body. Shakin' that thing like you never did see. Got a nice package alright, guess I'm gonna have to ride it tonight. 

[Roxxy]

8 minutes ago, EasyThere said:

Mmmmmm I like the sound of that 

It's all for you, if you really want it. It's all for you, if you say you need it. It's all for you, if you gotta have it. It's all for you, if you make a move, it's all for you. 

[Roxxy]

3 minutes ago, EasyThere said:

I just want you to make me move....

Tell me i'm the only one, soon we'll be having. Come over here and get some. It's all for you if you make a move, it's all for you. 

[Roxxy]

1 minute ago, EasyThere said:

Cmon over cmon over Babaehhhhhh 

Hey boy don't you know I got something going on. I've got an invitation, don't you keep me waiting all night long. 

[Britneyarmy8]

I stopped reading it at Janet Jackson boring 

not xtinct saying this on a Britney Spears forum 

the fact that she’s 52 and has been more entertaining and dances harder than Britney is sad and I’m talking 26 year old Britney all the way to currentney 

[Roxxy]

2 minutes ago, EasyThere said:

Xtinct actually did something with that one

I know, you know, so baby don't pretend you won't keep me guessing if you will or you won't. Don't wanna play that game with you baby. 

[Roxxy]

4 minutes ago, EasyThere said:

I miss 90s xtina 

Now baby don't be shy, you better cross the line. I'mma make you change your mind. 

[Roxxy]

1 minute ago, EasyThere said:

Ooooohhh ohhhoh Los ias contess

Know you tryna be, know you tryna be, a gentleman, a gentleman. Trying to impress, tryna be the best, specimen. Perfect specimen. 

[jordeezy river red]

So Britney really did ruin music like all of the Gen X ppl used to say   Why does everyone leave Spice Girls out of the equation?  I think they opened up the scene for Britney TBH

[Roxxy]

Just now, EasyThere said:

Don't get me wrong. Sing it ?

I appreciate you. 

[Roxxy]

2 minutes ago, EasyThere said:

Don't get me wrong. Sing it 

I really do.

[Roxxy]

1 minute ago, EasyThere said:

Don't get me wrong. Sing it one last timeeeeee....

but I'm tired of waiting