FORBES: It’s Been A Decade Since Britney Spears Changed Las Vegas Forever

[Fita]

Truly a visionary, non stoping, amazing everything Gaga says in that meme 

[breathe_on_me_toxic]

56 minutes ago, Gutterguppy2.0 said:

I see what you're saying, but Lady Gaga, Adele, Christina, etc. aren't Celine's contemporaries, they are Britney's. Maybe newer artists isn't the best term, but it makes sense they'd be inspired to do a residency after witnessing Britney's be so successful. 

this!!!

[Hot pink]

1 hour ago, BadBunny said:

How though? Celine Dion first saw mainstream success in 1990/91 with 'Unison'. By 1993, she was on her way to being a household name. 'A New Day' launched 10 years later in 2003. She was 35. Just a year prior, she had also scored a #1 global album that went triple platinum in the States and had sold well over 10 million worldwide with 'A New Day Has Come' which was used to promote the residency. 'One Heart' was also a global success and was certified double platinum in less than a month. She was still a relevant force in the industry and 'My Heart Will Go On', arguably her biggest song, was only just five years prior to that. 

Britney was also in her 30s (slightly younger) but she was well into more of a decline than Celine was when she began her residency. She just made more dance-pop music and notably started off as teen act. Then again, the trend of younger or teen-oriented solo artists became more prominent after 1998 which was partly spearheaded by Britney's instant wave of success. When Celine broke into the industry, it was all about adult-contemporary and power-ballads which by nature gravitated towards an older audience.

Point is that Britney wasn't this 'newer' artist in 2013 or hardly any less 'newer' than Celine when she started hers. 

And in addition to her worldwide anglophone success, she’s the best selling francophone singer as well to the extent of being awarded the Legion of Honour medal for her work.

[Daniela.tomasseli]

I attended 4 times and it was amazing.. I remember attending the opening night for the POM 2.0 remixed and revisited 

I also took a picture with her dad  , he was outside the meatballs place next to the theatre.. I recognized him and asked him for a picture and he was very accesible.. little did I know 

[Hypnotherapy]

It’s scary there’s roughly the same amount of time between Vegas and Toxic and Vegas and today. Vegas seems like yesterday.

[PokemonSpears]

49 minutes ago, BadBunny said:

Celine was 35. Britney was 32. How exactly is that 'way older'?

In 2002-03 (prior to her residency), Celine scored 2 very successful international hits so yes she did have "current hits". Sure, maybe they weren't as big in the States but the U.S. isn't the world. Celine was very much as current or relevant than Britney was when beginning her residency. She wasn't a tabloid starlet or made dance-pop or teen music like Britney (or like many of the 2000s girlies) but again, she was still very much current.  'My Heart Will Go On', her biggest hit, was just 5 years prior and still fresh in people's minds as the Titanic was being played and promoted on all television stations across the world for years like hotcakes. Remember that when Celine broke mainstream into the industry, it was all about adult-contemporary and power-ballads which by nature gravitated her towards an older audience. The same applied to Mariah, Whitney and everyone who started off as a vocalist. Also, Britney became mainstream as a teenage act at the height of a teen pop movement whereas prior to that, most solo artists would reach their peaks at 25 or older. 

As far as Britney, a residency made the most sense for her lifestyle and was bound to happen (if not Britney, it was going to be someone else from the 90s/00s generation crop of stars who had dominated for years). If it wasn't Britney, it was going to be JLo, Christina, Avril or some other nostalgia act who wanted to settle down. It became the nature of the industry and the economy in the 2010s as the evolution of entertainment in Vegas was reaching a new age. Ironic enough, Britney essentially retired after her residency. She even hinted that she wanted to retire from as early as 2011 so again, a Vegas residency was a good way for her to balance that kind of lifestyle where she didn't have to travel the world but instead have fans come to her. 

Also in 2023, who exactly is a "fresh" artist in Vegas who is doing a residency right now other than Adele and maybe Lady Gaga? Like Britney, they were also 10+ years in their mainstream careers when they began theirs and were into their 30s. Last, a Britney stan wrote this article so it's going to be biased towards Britney. The same way if you decided to study journalism and cater your articles towards Britney for Forbes.

you may be right about the age difference, if it wasn't that much, but still, Celine had already a career of over 20 years, vs Britney's 15, who had just released Scream & Shout the year before and WB that same year.

Celine might've not been that old herself, but her audience was definitely an older one, because of the nature of her music or for whatever reason. She ended up blending with people that had already had their residencies there, she didn't change the landscape, she just went there and claimed her spot, and she definitely didn't have lots of other contemporary artists following her steps. The concept or perception of a Vegas residency remained the same after Celine Dion's.

Britney was still targeting a younger audience 10 years ago, I'm talking people in their 20's and even younger. People didn't think her music style was suitable for a show in Las Vegas, or that young people would travel there to see her (or that the old people that visit Las Vegas would go to see her show), or that she even had enough hits in her catalogue that were worthy of a show like this.

Her residency didn't only prove to be successful, but it didn't take too long before a lot of her contemporaries, and even younger artists (or artists with "younger" careers if you like) started to join her, from Pitbull to Gaga to Bruno Mars, JLo, Adele, Katy Perry, Xtina, Gwen Stefani, BSB, etc. None of them were met with the same skepticism as Britney when they were announced, because Britney had already done the job of shifting the paradigm. She had already proved that a young/young-ish, active/current artist could join Las Vegas without meaning their career was over, or that their audience was old, or that their music had to be classy or boring.

 

Nobody is denying Celine's success, or anyone that was there before Britney, but you don't have to be a Britney stan to see the difference before and after POM, the immediate effect it had, and how the entire perception of a Vegas residency was changed forever, which is what this article talks about.

You say someone would've done it sooner or later, but whatever the case, Britney ended up being the first one. And tbh, I'm not sure anyone else of her contemporaries would've dared to take that step at that age and that point in their careers without having a precedent.

If no young artist is doing residencies now, I don't know what are their reasons, but I'm completely sure that if someone like Taylor Swift or Dua Lipa or Ariana Grande or whoever you like announced a residency today, nobody would bat an eye, because it would be seen as something completely normal and inoffensive to their careers.

 

And yeah, she ended up retiring ironically, but not because of lack of success but completely unrelated motives that had to do with her personal life and that were definitely not forseen. Ironically as well, is that if the conservatorship was still in place, Domination would've continued for idk how many years. With that deal she would've become the highest paid artist ever in Las Vegas.

[princessmimi]

4 hours ago, MikeHunt said:

 

 

[PlatinumB]

3 hours ago, PokemonSpears said:

Everyone that keep trying to deny Britney's impact, and saying that Celine and Shania did it first, are completely missing the point.

They not only were way older than Britney when they started their residencies, but they didn't really have current hits anymore and their audience was just older people in general. They were just part of the same basket as Elton or Cher: legendary acts that had their hits back in the day but could no longer compete with the current music scene or even target the same public demographic as current acts. Of course they were successful doing this formula, but Britney's residency was just unprecedented.

Britney was mocked in the beginning by critics and fans of other artists alike, because it meant that at 32 years old, her career had already come to this state, the end of her career. It was just a weird and questionable career decision, but she proved to be something completely different and successful.

Now JLo, BSB, Ricky Martin, Gaga, Katy Perry, Adele, Christina Aguilera herself (whose fans mocked Britney the most) and idk how many more people have had their residencies and it's seen as something completely normal, but only because of Britney's Piece of Me. And Vegas residencies are no longer seen as something exclusive to older public, or artists who are on the verge of retirement.

 

The most ironic part, she did this while being in an abusive conservatorship, and still it was a game changer. Had she had all the artistic freedom and the chance to choose how many shows to do, etc, the impact could've been bigger. She might've done more residencies, alternated with tours, and she could've kept releasing more albums and hits to keep the setlist interesting and fresh.

YOU SAID IT ALL! 

[Gutterguppy]

10 minutes ago, PlatinumB said:

YOU SAID IT ALL! 

is that Cade in that gif??

[PlatinumB]

2 minutes ago, Gutterguppy2.0 said:

is that Cade in that gif??

Yes!!  Lmao they were clapping Britney's VMA 2016 performance! Such a good gif 

[BadBunny]

2 hours ago, PokemonSpears said:

you may be right about the age difference, if it wasn't that much, but still, Celine had already a career of over 20 years, vs Britney's 15, who had just released Scream & Shout the year before and WB that same year.

Celine might've not been that old herself, but her audience was definitely an older one, because of the nature of her music or for whatever reason. She ended up blending with people that had already had their residencies there, she didn't change the landscape, she just went there and claimed her spot, and she definitely didn't have lots of other contemporary artists following her steps. The concept or perception of a Vegas residency remained the same after Celine Dion's.

Britney was still targeting a younger audience 10 years ago, I'm talking people in their 20's and even younger. People didn't think her music style was suitable for a show in Las Vegas, or that young people would travel there to see her (or that the old people that visit Las Vegas would go to see her show), or that she even had enough hits in her catalogue that were worthy of a show like this.

Her residency didn't only prove to be successful, but it didn't take too long before a lot of her contemporaries, and even younger artists (or artists with "younger" careers if you like) started to join her, from Pitbull to Gaga to Bruno Mars, JLo, Adele, Katy Perry, Xtina, Gwen Stefani, BSB, etc. None of them were met with the same skepticism as Britney when they were announced, because Britney had already done the job of shifting the paradigm. She had already proved that a young/young-ish, active/current artist could join Las Vegas without meaning their career was over, or that their audience was old, or that their music had to be classy or boring.

 

Nobody is denying Celine's success, or anyone that was there before Britney, but you don't have to be a Britney stan to see the difference before and after POM, the immediate effect it had, and how the entire perception of a Vegas residency was changed forever, which is what this article talks about.

You say someone would've done it sooner or later, but whatever the case, Britney ended up being the first one. And tbh, I'm not sure anyone else of her contemporaries would've dared to take that step at that age and that point in their careers without having a precedent.

If no young artist is doing residencies now, I don't know what are their reasons, but I'm completely sure that if someone like Taylor Swift or Dua Lipa or Ariana Grande or whoever you like announced a residency today, nobody would bat an eye, because it would be seen as something completely normal and inoffensive to their careers.

 

And yeah, she ended up retiring ironically, but not because of lack of success but completely unrelated motives that had to do with her personal life and that were definitely not forseen. Ironically as well, is that if the conservatorship was still in place, Domination would've continued for idk how many years. With that deal she would've become the highest paid artist ever in Las Vegas.

Not everyone gains overnight success like Britney though. For years, Celine was working hard to hit the mainstream market until she got her first break in the early 90s. Even Shakira didn't become an international success overnight. Celine was about 13 years into her mainstream success prior to launching her residency. Britney was about 14-15.

To deny Celine's impact on Las Vegas is delusion at its absolute finest and there are sources, links, articles, journals that claim otherwise. 

Again, that shift in paradigm was bound to happen. Celine represented a generation before Britney's but there was already a noticeable effect once she had launched her residency. The president of Live Nation who was responsible for bringing acts to the Las Vegas strip stated: "Céline was a pioneer without question. Twenty years ago, we couldn't have got someone the stature of Britney Spears to appear in Vegas. Stars like her would never have considered it if Céline hadn't paved the way. She changed the face of modern Vegas."

As someone who grew up in Las Vegas, Celine's residency was the hottest show on the strip and drew in all different crowds during the 2000s/10s. It was that, David Copperfield and the Blue Man Group. Even I wanted to go and I wasn't even a teenager. I also remember Elton John being popular too but he was mostly for the older generation. Point is that Celine's presence felt alive in Las Vegas and appealed to all demographics. Yes, Celine was never a teen pop act or did dance-pop/EDM but she was still very much current and her audience wasn't necessarily "old". Then in the 2010s, the landscape of music went through another shift where you had the EDM wave with DJs like Skrillex, Kaskade, Deadmau5, etc. You had the millennial crop of stars like Britney or JLo who weren't pulling numbers like before and who wanted to settle down while still making their money and drawing in audiences. Of course, the pop girls appealed to mostly the gay millennials and girlies whereas the EDM crowd was mostly for straights. Ultimately, Las Vegas went through a lot of transformation but to credit Britney but not Celine for changing the face of modern Vegas is a blind delusion.

Also where you're wrong is that if Ariana, Taylor or Dua announced a residency, there would absolutely be some level of outcry. Right now, the youngest artist to have a residency is Adele and even that, she's considered a veteran act at this point in her career (maybe a nostalgia act even though she's still pulling great numbers). Aside from Gaga and Adele, most of the people doing residencies nowadays are still from the Britney/Beyonce/JLo/Shak/Christina generation of stars. Usher's is making big waves right now and then you have a bunch of older acts. As of date, there hasn't been any pop girl or boy from the 90s who is doing a residency. Ultimately, I can see Ariana doing broadway on Vegas but I really cannot not forsee any Gen-Z or other millennial acts after Adele doing a residency at this point consideering that many are now 10-15 years into their mainstream careers.

Like I said, Britney subtly hinted that she wanted to retire from as early as 2011 (maybe even sooner) but the conservatorship didn't really allow her to take "breaks". A residency was a good way for her to settle down and balance a kind of lifestyle where she didn't have to travel the world but instead have fans come to her while still making money off of her brand. There was also nothing ironic about her retiring because you could tell by Britney's body language that she wanted nothing to do with show-business for years. Britney's priority was getting married and raising children. She didn't want to be this formalized or structured pop act who played by the rules beyond her fourth album. It was all played out for her. 

Edited September 13, 2023 by BadBunny

[Eternalhouse]

She really did have an impact and paved a new way for more current artists.

Can't believe it's been ten years.

I am very grateful for Britney for doing her best even in her situation.

[Tomyum]

7 hours ago, BadBunny said:

Thank you Celine Dion!

Yes. It’s Celine Dion who truly changed Las Vegas in 2003 with her legendary show A New Day. Of course Britney brought a younger audience and more pop stars came after her, but the first gamble in LV for a residency was Celine. And it paid off. 

[Tomyum]

5 hours ago, CrazyButItFeelsAllright said:

Love Celine, but she is not to thank for this. Britney is the one that made the impact for newer artists to have a Vegas residency 

Without Celine’s residency, there is no POM. Thats a fact. 

[e_ffen]

Celine had impact and changed Vegas in a major way. And then Britney came along and did it again much later. It’s not one 

[RadicalOptimism]

1 hour ago, Tomyum said:

Without Celine’s residency, there is no POM. Thats a fact. 

That is not a fact. Celine popularized it for Gen X and Boomers. Britney popularized it for Millennials and Gen Z