Saurabh and Gaurav on pop princess Britney Spears, who has been declared the highest-selling female artiste of this century.

The 23-year-old superstar has left such artists as Madonna, Kylie, Dido, Celine Dion, Buyonce and Christina Anguilera behind and is displaying a near-unprecedented annual selling power. Britney Spears has released five albums and her overall sale is a massive 60 million. This year she received her seventh Grammy nomination in the category of Best Dance Recording for Toxic.

The admiration of female singers appears to be something of a cyclica1 occurrence. In the mid-nineteenth century, prima donnas were celebrated and venerated in operas of the Bel Canto ("beautiful singing") style, which showcased their vocal abilities. When the Bel Canto operas were revived, featuring soprano Maria Callas, in the mid-twentieth century, diva worship resurfaced. Now, the millennium has brought diva deification to popular music. Without a doubt Britney is one singer who fits in the league of ’90s’ divas and teen pop idols like no other. Britney Spears is a cultural phenomenon. Though there have been pop music princesses before her, none have had the impact, success and influence that she has.

Illustrations by the writers

Britney’s musical intensity and her evolution from a teen renegade into a provocative young woman have been remarkable. She was destined to be in showbiz, but few could have predicted the impact that the former Disney Channel’s New Mickey Mouse Club member would have. From Africa to Asia, her posters, albums, and style can be seen in almost every teenager’s bedroom.

In 1999, 17-year-old Britney made history as the youngest female artiste in Billboard to have her debut single and debut album (Baby One More Time) top the charts. At 18, she had another No.1 album on her hands, Oops!...I Did It Again, which spawned hit singles like Stronger and Don’t Let Me Be The Last To Know.

Britney’s racier second album Oops!...I Did It Again sold 9 million units. It seemed the good-girl Britney became the naughty-girl Britney practically overnight, followed by a series of hits like I’m a Slave 4U accompanied by videos that began to equal and even surpass Madonna on various aspects.

Trying her luck on the big screen, Britney starred in 2002’s Crossroads, along with actress-singer Taryn Manning. Unfortunately, the movie bombed, but Britney bounced back the following year, with the album In The Zone. The album was at No.1 with more than 600,000 copies sold in its first week and with hits like Me Against The Music (featuring Madonna) and Toxic, it was clear that Britney meant business.

On January 3, 2004, she pulled a big publicity stunt by marrying childhood friend Jason Allen Alexander after a night of drinking and partying in Vegas. The bride wore ripped jeans and a Von Dutch cap to the chapel, and to nobody’s surprise, the wedding was annulled some 55 hours later. On September 18, 2004, it was back to the altar for Britney when she married her former back-up dancer Kevin Federline in a surprise wedding.

Not only does Britney sell millions of records (Forbes estimated her net worth at $123 million), she is a media fixture regardless of what she is (or isn’t) doing. Among female singers (many of whom follow in her footsteps), her celebrity star power is rivalled by none other today. If only Britney could concentrate more on her music — she has a long way to go to match Madonna’s overall career sales of 145 million records.

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