Britney Spears (born December 02, 1981) was born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised Southern Baptist in Kentwood, Louisiana. Her parents are James Parnell Spears, a building contractor, and Lynne Irene Bridges, a former grade school teacher. Spears's brother, Bryan, is one of her managers, and her sister, Jamie-Lynn, is an actress and singer.
Towards the end of 1998, Britney's debut single "...Baby One More Time" began to appear on MTV. Accompanied by a music video that featured the pop princess in a Roman Catholic schoolgirl outfit, the song became an international success, earning double platinum sales and going to number one in the UK, as well as going number one in a large number of countries throughout the world. Her first solo single achieved nine million sales worldwide. Released in early 1999, her debut album ...Baby One More Time topped the charts in several countries, including USA (where it is certified 14x Platinum).
In the summer of 1999 she kicked off her first headlining tour, the ...Baby One More Time Tour. By late 1999, Spears had become one of the year's biggest stars. In December, she took home four Billboard Music Awards including one for Female Artist of the Year, and the next month won for Favorite Pop/Rock New Artist at the American Music Awards. At the 2000 Grammy Awards Spears received two nominations, including one for Best New Artist which she lost out to Christina Aguilera. The other was for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "...Baby One More Time" but she lost that to Sarah McLachlan.
Following the short-lived Crazy 2K Tour, the lead single from Spears's second album, "Oops!... I Did It Again", was released. The song broke a record for most radio station adds in a single day, and quickly became a U.S. top ten hit and number one single in other countries. Released in May 2000, the album Oops!... I Did It Again debuted at number one in the U.S., where it sold 1,319,193 units during its first week, breaking the record for biggest first-week sales of an album by a solo artist, male or female. Concerning both musical content and sales, the album was very similar to Spears's debut, although it fared better with critics. "Oops..." also had input from country singer Shania Twain, who penned the track "Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know" with husband Mutt Lange. Twain contributed her adult-40 brand of country-crossover infusion to the record. Spears kicked off her first world tour, the Oops!... I Did It Again World Tour, in the summer of 2000, and co-wrote the book Britney Spears's Heart-to-Heart with her mother, Lynne which was a bestseller. In late 2000, she won two Billboard Music Awards, and in early 2001, she was nominated for two American Music Awards. At the Grammys, her two nominations were for Oops!... I Did It Again in the categories of Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance but again she did not win.
In early 2001, Spears struck a multi-million promotional deal with Pepsi which included numerous television commercials, point-of-purchase promotions and Internet ties between Spears's and Pepsi. In September of the same year, she performed at the MTV Video Music Awards.
In November, she released her third album Britney. It debuted at number one on both the U.S. and Canadian charts, selling 745,744 units during its first week in the U.S. The success of this album made Spears the only female artist in SoundScan history to have her first three albums debut at number one. Britney was the first album on which Spears assumed some creative control co-wroting five of the album's tracks. To help promote the album, Spears embarked on the Dream Within a Dream Tour during the same year. Spears was nominated for two Grammy Awards, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for the song "Overprotected" and Best Pop Vocal Album for Britney. She lost both to Norah Jones.
In February 2002, Spears had her first starring role in the film, Crossroads. The next month, Spears's four-year relationship with Justin Timberlake ended. The break-up was publicized, with rumors circulating that Spears had been unfaithful due to Timberlake's impression that she had cheated on him through his song "Cry Me a River", and its subsequent music video.
That same year Forbes named her the most powerful celebrity in the world.
Spears returned to the spotlight in August 2003 when she performed at the MTV Video Music Awards with Madonna, pop singer Christina Aguilera and rapper Missy Elliott. Spears and Aguilera performed Madonna's song "Like a Virgin", and each locked lips with Madonna. Spears's kiss with Madonna attracted publicity that lasted several months, while Aguilera's kiss with Madonna attracted less publicity.
br Cover for In the Zone (2003)In the Zone is generally considered Spears's most overtly sexual album to date. November 2003 saw the release of Spears's fourth studio album, In the Zone. Jettisoning the Max Martin-produced synthpop of her earlier releases, the album took in lesser-known producers such as RedZone and big names including Moby and R. Kelly. Spears co-wrote eight of the album's thirteen songs and co-produced some of her material for the first time. In the Zone went to the top of the U.S. charts in its debut week, selling over 609,000 copies. This made Spears the only female in music history to have her first four studio albums debut at number one. The album spawned the international number one and U.S. number nine hit single, "Toxic", which won Spears her first Grammy in the category of Best Dance Recording.
Britney's first hits collection, Greatest Hits: My Prerogative, was released in late 2004. The album debuted at number four on the U.S. charts with over 255,000 copies sold. In addition to her biggest hits, it featured three new songs, including "My Prerogative" and "Do Somethin'".
In 2005 she made an album of remixes B in the Mix: The Remixes.
Spears is one of the highest selling modern female artists, with over 76 million albums sold worldwide. In 2002, she was ranked as the most powerful celebrity in the world by Forbes. Spears was ranked number 20 out of the 200 top pop culture icons of all time by VH1 and People. She topped FHM magazine's "100 Sexiest Women 2004" and "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2004" polls. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Spears was a notable trendsetter within the United States and the world, inspiring several fashion crazes and fads, such as the use of low-rise jeans lower back tattoos, navel piercings, and the whale tail among young women. She has also topped Yahoo!'s annual list of the most-searched names five times in the past six years. In 2007 Britney Spears ranked 12th in Forbes The 20 Richest Women In Entertainment. Forbes estimates her net worth at around $100 million. She also has became the youngest music icon to be honored with a star on Hollywood's prestigious Walk of Fame.