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5 things you didn't know about Britney Spears
Britney Spears is one of the most recognizable figures in pop culture history and a true icon who shaped the sound and style of a generation. She is known as the "Princess of Pop.” Britney burst onto the scene in 1998 with her debut single …Baby One More Time.
The single was a hit, and it became a global phenomenon and sold over 25 million copies, forever changing the pop music landscape. Her follow-up albums, like Oops!... I Did It Again and In the Zone, cemented her as a household name.
Over the years, Britney has been a Grammy Award winner for her song Toxic, a nine-time Billboard Music Award winner, and even received the prestigious Millennium Award in 2016. At just 21 years old, she earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and it made her one of the youngest artists to do so.
Financially, her albums have collectively sold over 150 million copies worldwide, making her one of the best-selling artists of all time. Her debut album alone generated nearly $200 million.
5 lesser-known facts about Britney Spears
1) Britney Spears was once almost cast in The Notebook
Britney Spears was close to landing the role of Allie Hamilton in the 2004 romantic drama The Notebook. This wasn’t just a random rumor—in her memoir The Woman in Me, Britney shared that she actually auditioned for the role, and Ryan Gosling, who played Noah in the movie, admitted she did a great job. According to reports, Britney was one of the top contenders for the part, and her audition left an impression.
But the role eventually went to Rachel McAdams. While Britney was already a global pop sensation at the time, this role could have added a completely new dimension to her career. Instead, she continued focusing on her music, leaving acting to the side after her debut film, Crossroads.
2) Britney turned down Umbrella and other huge hits
Rihanna's 2007 hit song Umbrella was originally offered to Britney Spears. According to MTV News, Spears' management at the time rejected the track. She was also recording her fifth album Blackout at the time.
That wasn’t the only hit she turned down. Britney also said no to Lady Gaga’s Telephone, which went on to become a massive duet with Beyoncé. Even Milkshake, the iconic Kelis hit, was offered to Britney before it became a pop-culture phenomenon.
While it’s easy to imagine these songs becoming even bigger if Britney had recorded them, it’s also possible that their success hinged on the unique styles of the artists who eventually performed them. Either way, it’s wild to think about how different the pop music landscape could have been if Britney had said yes to any of these tracks.
3) She almost went to space for a Pepsi Ad
Britney Spears’s stardom in the early 2000s and her endorsement deals were equally iconic, especially her partnership with Pepsi. Britney was once in talks to shoot a Pepsi ad in space. In the early 2000s, Pepsi was reportedly working with space tourism companies to create the ultimate ad featuring the singer in orbit.
At the time, space tourism was being touted as the next big thing, and Pepsi wanted to capitalize on it with one of the world’s biggest stars. The plan was to send Britney up in a commercial spaceship and film her in zero gravity.
Unfortunately, logistical and safety concerns grounded the project before it ever took off.
4) The …Baby One More Time video was Britney’s idea
The music video for Britney Spears’s debut single, …Baby One More Time, is iconic. The schoolgirl outfits, the choreographed hallway dances, and the overall vibe defined pop culture in the late 1990s. What most people don’t know is that the concept for the video was entirely Britney’s idea. The original plan was much different—director Nigel Dick had envisioned a futuristic video with a Power Rangers theme.
Britney, however, didn’t think it would connect with her teenage audience. She suggested setting the video in a high school, with students breaking into dance as they daydreamed about love and crushes. Even the now-famous schoolgirl outfit was Britney’s suggestion. She wanted the look to be relatable yet playful, and it worked perfectly.
The video was shot at Venice High School in Los Angeles, the same school where Grease was filmed. Britney’s instincts proved spot-on, as the video became a cultural phenomenon and set the tone for her career.
5) She inspired Barry Manilow’s album and a Hollywood movie
It might sound strange, but Britney Spears’ life and struggles inspired two major works in entertainment. The first is Barry Manilow’s album 15 Years. Manilow was reportedly moved by how Britney’s personal life was being exploited by the media during the peak of her struggles in the mid-2000s.
He described watching her life unfold in the tabloids as heartbreaking and used that as inspiration for an album about fame and its darker side. Similarly, Britney’s battles with fame and personal issues inspired the 2010 film Country Strong. The movie, which starred Gwyneth Paltrow as a troubled country music star, was seen as a loose reflection of Britney’s life at the time.
Britney Spears' most recent studio album, Glory, was released in 2016.
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