TGJ Replay: Celebrating 20 Years of Britney Spears’ Sophomore Album ‘Oops!…I Did It Again’

In celebration of the 20th anniversary of her sophomore album, ‘Oops!…I Did It Again,’ we’re saluting Pop icon Britney Spears again.

Join us inside:

Barring Madonna circa 1983-85, there is arguably no female Pop artist before Britney Spears that could boast such inconceivable levels of superstardom so early in her career. Sure, history’s granted us several out-of-the-box successes in terms of sales and accolades. But, to accompany that with a permeation of Pop culture so deep one becomes THE Pop star to be and beat before releasing a sophomore album was not only exceptional, it was almost unprecedented.

Having inducted music videos, choreography, and fashion into iconography status seemingly overnight (also like Madonna before her), Britney-mania induced emulation from young girls around the world – much to the disdain of parents. Unknown to them at the time, their complaints about the then-teen sensation hadn’t nearly reached its apex.

Before fans had time to call for more new music from the budding diva, she had already begun cooking up the follow-up to her Diamond-certified debut effort (which stands as one of the best-selling albums in history). In addition to reassembling Max Martin, Rami, Eric Foster White, David Kreuger, and other members of that project’s dream-team for another round, Spears’ label home called on hitmaking songwriters and producers like Rodney Jerkins and Diane Warren to assist with the successor.

Together, they crafted her second LP ‘Oops!…I Did It Again.’ It spawned four singles:

‘Oops!…I Did It Again’

Hot 100 Chart Peak: #9

RIAA certification: Gold

‘Lucky’

Hot 100 Chart Peak: #23

RIAA certification: N/A

‘Stronger’

Hot 100 Chart Peak: #11

RIAA certification: Gold

‘Don’t Let Me be the Last to Know’

Hot 100 Chart Peak: N/A

RIAA certification: N/A

The residual hype from its predecessor alone almost guaranteed ‘Oops!’ success. However, when the era was amplified by cinema-quality music videos, high octane choreography, and even more icon-stamped fashion to accompany it, Spears’ already untouchable star shot into the stratosphere. Aided by an onslaught of media promotion, ‘Oops!’ – released May 16, 2000 – landed at #1 on the Billboard 200 with a whopping 1.3 million sold in one week (500,000 reportedly shifted on its first day alone). The numbers made her the first female artist in history to sell over 1 million copies of a project in its debut week. Much like its forerunner, ‘Baby,’ eventually ‘Oops!’ reached Diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America.

In contrast to its gargantuan commercial success, the album was riddled with mixed reviews as some critics asserted its sound and positioning felt more formulaic and calculated than organic artistry. Nevertheless, the Recording Academy did reward the effort with a ‘Best Pop Vocal’ GRAMMY nod at the 2001 ceremony.

On this side of history, ‘Oops’ is a celebrated component of Spears’ catalog. A fitting forerunner to her own ‘I’m Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman,’ the opus – her first as an adult – acts as a transitional piece in her musical story. Coming into womanhood and owning her sexuality, yet still innocent enough to be played on Radio Disney, the opus was her last attempt to appeal across the age board before launching into full-on sex kitten status with its successor, the ‘I’m a Slave 4 U’-led ‘Britney.’

While we replay on our jam, ‘Don’t Let Me be the Last to Know,’ look below and vote: