Britney Spears' Big 2011
Maybe Britney Spears' lucky number is 30. The singer turned 30 this year, marking the landmark birthday on December 2 with a fan-voted MTV News tournament that crowned the Best Britney Video of All Time. But her 30th year also proved to be an incredibly successful period in her career.
For the first time in a while, she seemed comfortable being the pop megastar that she is. More than a decade into her career, Spears re-emerged as a Femme Fatale, giving fans a fist-pumping album, embarking on a flashy tour and dropping more memorable music videos. Britney Spears fandom was reenergized as the singer came out of her shell, opening up about this phase in her career as well her personal life in several high-profile interviews. So it's probably not surprising that Spears will cap off the year at #4 on MTV News' Top Newsmakers of 2011 list, just behind Lil Wayne.
"When I was younger, I was busy, busy, and I was always singing and dancing all the time. I was just really creative," she recalled in the MTV special "I Am the Femme Fatale." "That's when my mom realized I'm a really creative person."
She let that creativity shine over the past 12 months. From "Hold It Against Me" to "Till the World Ends" to her Chris Marrs Piliero-directed "I Wanna Go" and "Criminal," Britney made headlines every time she dropped a music video. But no vid stirred up as much controversy as her "Criminal" clip, which featured real-life boyfriend (now fiancé) Jason Trawick - and his abs.
"At the end of the day, Jason killed it," Piliero told MTV News of Trawick's cameo. "That was one of those things I was really stoked [about], as much as I went into it like, 'Wow, he's not an actor. This is going to be interesting,' but I really do like a challenge, and I really do like the idea that I'm a director and my job is to direct and get the performance. For me, it was a fun challenge to be like, 'I'm gonna make sure that you are awesome,' and he was."
Between video shoots, Spears hit the road with the likes of Nicki Minaj, Joe Jonas, and DJ Pauly D. Spears fully embraced her sensuality on the Femme Fatale Tour, a spectacular show full of costume changes, elaborate stage setups and stunning mini-films.
And while much of the 2011 VMA buzz was about Beyoncé's baby bump and Jo Calderone, Spears stole the spotlight by walking away with a Moonman for Best Pop Video and the prized Video Vanguard Award. She also had tongues wagging after an onstage kiss from Jo (a.k.a. Lady Gaga), just before she was honored with an electrifying dance tribute that highlighted some of biggest career moments.
"It was really crazy. I had no idea what to expect," Spears told us backstage at the VMAs. "The kids were amazing and so entertaining, and it was a really fun night. It was really cool. I was like, 'Wow, that's really sweet!' "
As 2011 came to a close, Spears wrapped up her tour, and MTV News threw her a birthday bash in the form of the "30 Videos for 30 Years" tournament. The competition was heated but in the end, Spears' iconic "I'm a Slave 4 U" took home the prize. And just when it seemed things couldn't get any better, Britney confirmed she was engaged to Trawick after dating for two years. She showed off her Neil Lane ring during a celebratory weekend in Las Vegas.
Source: MTV News
21 December 2011
Femme Fatale Tour DVD Certified RIAA Platinum
Britney Spears Live: The Femme Fatale Tour has sold over 100,000 copies, and in turn, has been certified Platinum by the RIAA!
Source: RCA Records
16 December 2011
Britney Rules Billboard.com's Readers Poll 2011
The year's most recognizable pop divas remained the fan favorites in the Billboard.com 2011 Readers' Poll, with Adele, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga and Nicki Minaj scoring the most votes the poll's major categories.
Once Billboard.com readers weighed in on their favorite songs, albums and artists over the past 12 months and the hundreds of thousands of votes were tallied, Spears emerged as our 2011 MVP.
Spears, who returned with a new album, "Femme Fatale," that topped the Billboard 200 albums chart upon its March release, was narrowly edged out by Adele for the top prize in the Favorite Billboard 200 No. 1 category. But the veteran pop star came in on top for Best Music Video for her sultry "Til The World Ends" clip, and her Femme Fatale trek beat out U2 and Taylor Swift for Best Tour. Spears also shared the Best Awards Show Performance trophy with Rihanna, whom she joined onstage for the "S&M" remix at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards.
2011 MVP
1. Britney Spears (43%)
2. Lady Gaga (22%)
3. Adele (17%)
Favorite Hot 100 No. 1
1. Adele, "Rolling in the Deep" (32%)
2. Britney Spears, "Hold It Against Me" (31%)
3. Lady Gaga, "Born This Way" (16%)
Favorite Billboard 200 No. 1
1. Adele, "21" (35%)
2. Britney Spears, "Femme Fatale" (33%)
3. Lady Gaga, "Born This Way" (17%)
Best Music Video
1. Britney Spears, "Til The World Ends" (45%)
2. Lady Gaga, "Born This Way" (23%)
3. Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris, "We Found Love" (11%)
Best Tour
1. Britney Spears' Femme Fatale Tour (58%)
2. U2's 360 Tour (11%)
3. Taylor Swift's Speak Now Tour (10%)
Best Awards Show Performance
1. Rihanna & Britney Spears, Billboard Music Awards (47%)
2. Adele, MTV Video Music Awards (17%)
3. Beyonce, Billboard Music Awards (13%)
Source: Billboard.com
15 December 2011
Britney Spears Wraps Femme Fatale Tour
After taking her tour around the world, Britney Spears wrapped up the elaborate Femme Fatale trek on Saturday in Puerto Rico.
But before she took the stage, Spears celebrated her big 3-0 with a party on Friday night. The belated birthday bash took place a week after her December 2 birthday. The pop star tweeted all about the party, giving fans a picture of her blowing out the candles on her elaborate, multitiered birthday cake.
"Having an amazing time at my end of tour/ belated bday party!" she wrote on Twitter on Saturday. "Thx so much to the Conrad Condado Plaza for giving us a place to celebrate this tour & my 30th bday last night - we all loved the party!"
But the fun hardly ended with the party. For her final performance of the Femme Fatale shows the following day, Spears was joined by some of her family and friends onstage.
"That's a wrap! The Femme Fatale tour is officially over :( Gotta give some end of tour shout outs," she tweeted, before showing some online love to her pals. "To [my assistant] Brett [Miller] and her fierce dance moves! She surprised me on stage tonight during 'Big Fat Bass.' To all my dancers - u all are basically family. Thx so much for an unforgettable year! Look at this good looking group. To every single INCREDIBLE person on my crew - none of this would of been possible without you. I'm gonna miss u!"
Britney saved her ultimate Twitter thank-you for all her devotees. "And last but DEFINITELY not least - to all of the amazing fans who I saw on this journey around the world," she wrote. "<3 u all."
For the final bow of the tour, Spears was joined by her sons, Sean Preston and Jayden, her beau Jason Trawick, sister Jamie Lynn and JL's daughter, Maddie, as she said goodbye to life as a femme fatale, Radaronline.com reports.
In addition to all the stage love from those closest to her, Spears was also joined by San Juan tour opener Pauly D. She thanked him by giving him one of her signature mid-show lap dances during "Lace and Leather." It wasn't the first time for the tourmates: Spears had awarded him one once before when he opened for her on a number of dates on a previous leg of the tour.
Source: MTV News
12 December 2011
"Criminal" - The Remixes
A remix EP for Britney's latest single "Criminal" is now available on iTunes. Click here to download.
06 December 2011
Happy 30th Birthday Britney Spears!
02 December 2011