Chart Article
Happy Birthday to Britney Spears! The pop star and Billboard charts-dominating diva turns 30-years young today (Dec. 2). The entertainer was just 16 years old when she made her debut on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart on Nov. 21, 1998 with the now classic "... Baby One More Time." The song shot to No. 1 less than two months later and the rest was history. Since then, she's had a single on the chart every year (save for 2006) and has recently found the some of the biggest hits of her career in 2011. Her "Femme Fatale" album, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, has launched three top 10 Hot 100 singles, including the No. 1 "Hold It Against Me."
To celebrate Spears' birthday, we've compiled her 20 Biggest Billboard Hot 100 hits ever -- and trust us, the list will surprise you. (Wait until you see what No. 19 is -- and how it ranked above No. 20!)
This chart of Spears' 20 Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits is based on actual performance on the weekly Billboard Hot 100, through the chart dated Dec. 3, 2011. Songs are ranked using an inverse point system, with weeks at No. 1 earning the greatest value and weeks at No. 100 earning the least.
Photos: Britney Spears's 30 Most Outrageous Outfits | Britney's 10 Best Music Videos
20
I'm A Slave 4 U
Hot 100 Peak Position: 27 (2001)
So many milestones in Spears' career coincided with her memorable music videos, with 2001's "I'm a Slave 4 U" -- from her third album, "Britney -- serving as the perfect example. The sultry sauna-meets-orgy clip not only made Brit's uber-toned body a common topic of conversation, it served as a grown-up coming out for the then 19-year-old singer. Yet somehow, the Pharrell-produced track reached only No. 27 on the Hot 100, a low position considering the song's top 10 ranking in many international markets.
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19
Break The Ice
Hot 100 Peak Position: 43 (2008)
The icy synth track, produced by Danja, found Ms. Spears singing, "I know it's been a while, but I'm glad you came." She was only half right. It had only been a few months since she rocketed to No. 3 on the Hot 100 with "Gimme More," but we're sure she was glad fans flocked to the tune despite the distraction of all the tabloid drama that surrounded her in the year before the song hit the charts in 2008. It's little wonder the real Britney doesn't appear in the animated video.
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18
Lucky
Hot 100 Peak Position: 23 (2000)
Britney's midtempo nod to doo-wop, "Lucky," turned out to be less than pure fiction when the singer later went through personal problems in the very public eye. But before all that, in 2000, the song -- a take on the "lonely at the top" concept -- peaked at No. 23 on the Hot 100.
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17
From The Bottom Of My Broken Heart
Hot 100 Peak Position: 14 (2000)
Still a teenager when this Eric Foster White-produced single was released in 2000, Spears' convincing take on love lost helped "Broken Heart" reached the top 20 of the Hot 100.
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16
Stronger
Hot 100 Peak Position: 11 (2001)
Brit Brit kicked the potential sophomore slump to the curb with one of her best songs of female empowerment. The dance-y "Stronger," off "Oops!... I Did It Again" not only hit the Hot 100 hard, it also landed in the top 20 of the Pop Songs radio airplay chart, as 19 other singles of hers have done.
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15
Sometimes
Hot 100 Peak Position: 21 (1999)
"Sometimes," Spears' second single, epitomizes the innocence of the pop star's first album, especially in its sunny music video. Wearing all white, Spears and her dancers overtake Kenny's Cove and perform some unoffending dance moves while the singer yearns for her hunky man.
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14
Piece Of Me
Hot 100 Peak Position: 18 (2008)
"Miss American Dream since [she] was 17" addresses her harshest critics in this woozy synth hit. Clearly, we did want a piece. In addition to its top 20 peak on the Hot 100, it went to No. 8 on the Digital Songs chart and won her the MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year in 2008.
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13
If U Seek Amy
Hot 100 Peak Position: 19 (2009)
The third single from her comeback album, "Circus," captures Britney playing bad girl. (Say the title fast). The 2009 track finds Spears singing of society's perception of her life over electro-pop synthesized beats.
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12
Everytime
Hot 100 Peak Position: 15 (2004)
This breathy ballad came after her break-up with Justin Timberlake and rumors quickly swirled that her song was a response to his "Cry Me a River." Although Brit has never denied or confirmed, the lyrics are certainly curious. "I may have made it vague," she sings. "Please forgive me. My weakness caused you pain. And this song is my sorry."
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11
(You Drive Me) Crazy
Hot 100 Peak Position: 10 (1999)
"Crazy" snuck into the top 10 of the Hot 100 as the third single off "... Baby One More Time" and the lead cut from the soundtrack of the 1999 romantic comedy "Drive Me Crazy," starring Melissa Joan Hart and a pre-"Entourage" Adrian Grenier in his first major role.
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Text by Jeff Benjamin, Keith Caulfield, Michael Depland, Jason Lipshutz, Jillian Mapes, Erika Ramirez and Marc Schneider
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