Britney Spears in her "Radar" video
Photo: Jive

Britney Spears has been compared to Madonna since she leapt onto the pop scene, dancing around in a schoolgirl uniform. The two did eventually hook up for "Me Against the Music," but Britney's video for "Radar," from her Circus album, really paid tribute to the pop queen and her ultra-glamorous Bedtime Stories period.

In the video, Britney is stuck in a love triangle with two very sexy polo players, who spend a good part of their time trying to woo Spears or riding their horses. Spears hooked up with "Boys" director Dave Meyers for an ode to Madonna's "Take a Bow."

"That was the premise behind 'Radar.' [We were] looking for a way to take her into a contemporary, classy environment," Meyers explained. "I felt empowered by referencing Madonna's video. Britney hasn't done anything like that."

Meyers had a very clear idea of how he wanted the story line to work. "There is a narrative going on, a romantic triangle on a weekend at this polo mansion," he said. "A soap-opera romance."

Britney Spears Video Throwback
	» ' ... Baby One More Time' Director Looks Back
	» Spears Wanted '(You Drive Me) Crazy' Video To Take Her 'To The Next Level'
	» Britney Fought For The 'Oops! ... I Did It Again' Catsuit
	» How Britney's 'Stronger' Video Made Her A Diva
	» Britney Declared Her Independence With 'I'm Not A Girl'
	» When Britney & Madonna Hooked Up For 'Me Against The Music'
	» Leaving Very Little To The Imagination In 'Toxic'
	» Taking Aim At The Media In 'Piece Of Me'
	» 'Womanizer' Proved She Still Had It

Britney apparently got nervous around the guy playing her lover (not her official boyfriend) in the clip, but Meyers said that shyness captured the essence of Britney. "She was really shy with this guy. She's really pretty here too," he said. "I think it's the Britney a lot of us know and love. It was nice to bring that out in her."

Despite the song's midtempo dance groove, the video is noticeably choreography-free. "I don't miss the dancing," he said. "When I watch, I feel like all the cuts and the dissolves keep the pace of the song alive."

With the release of Britney Spears: The Singles Collection, MTV News is looking back on the pop star's career through interviews with video directors, music-industry insiders and Spears herself, as she reflects on some of her greatest hits. Keep coming back for all things Britney, and let us know your favorite Brit songs, videos, memories and more in the comments below — and if you think you're Britney's biggest fan, enter our contest to win a free copy of the album!

• Britney Spears: The Singles Collection

• Britney Spears

Photo: Jive

• Britney Spears

Britney Spears in her video for "Womanizer"
Photo: Jive

By the time 2008 rolled around, Britney Spears had once again taken her rightful place as the pre-eminent princess of pop. There was no question about it: Britney was back and "Womanizer" confirmed it. After all, what better way to show everyone you're back than to appear naked in a sauna?

"It was an actual sauna and we built a big tent around it ... and Britney, naked again. I guess I have one of the best jobs in the world," Joseph Kahn, who also shot Britney in the nude for her "Toxic" clip, told MTV News. "I was like, 'You know, if we do this video, and she went through all this work to get a new paint job, I was gonna show off the paint job — she's gonna be naked in this video.' "

The idea, however, like so many videos before, was all Britney's suggestion. "She pitched to me a very detailed idea of what she wanted to do," Kahn explained. "She wanted to dress up in costume, she wanted to follow her man to work, and she eventually wanted to show at the end that she is all three of those women."

He went on to say that this video was the one where he and Britney would prove that she was still at the top of her game. "It was, like, her first video that no one really knew if she could even come on set, you know? It was just a big question as to you know, like, what would that video look like?" he said. "What shape would she be in? Can she really dance? Can she perform? Who is she at this point?

Britney Spears Video Throwback
	» ' ... Baby One More Time' Director Looks Back
	» Spears Wanted '(You Drive Me) Crazy' Video To Take Her 'To The Next Level'
	» Britney Fought For The 'Oops! ... I Did It Again' Catsuit
	» How Britney's 'Stronger' Video Made Her A Diva
	» Britney Declared Her Independence With 'I'm Not A Girl'
	» When Britney & Madonna Hooked Up For 'Me Against The Music'
	» Leaving Very Little To The Imagination In 'Toxic'
	» 'Womanizer' Proved She Still Had It

" 'Womanizer,' for me, was a great experience on a personal level, because it completely verified that she was coming back," he continued. "By the time I worked with her on 'Womanizer,' you know, that was the Britney that I knew and it was a fun experience for me."

Kahn had to basically turn the video around overnight, and it was worth all the hard work — the video quickly became a fan favorite. "By the time it got out — and the beautiful thing about the Internet is that you get instant reaction — the reaction seemed to be very positive. I'm going to sound like such a wuss, but I think I cried," he said. "That sounds super lame, but come on, man — that's five days of some serious stress. And I had to end the video on her smiling, for sure. Like, we just need to tell everybody that she's OK."

With the release of Britney Spears: The Singles Collection, MTV News is looking back on the pop star's career through interviews with video directors, music-industry insiders and Spears herself, as she reflects on some of her greatest hits. Keep coming back for all things Britney, and let us know your favorite Brit songs, videos, memories and more in the comments below — and if you think you're Britney's biggest fan, enter our contest to win a free copy of the album!

• Britney Spears: The Singles Collection

• The Evolution Of: Britney Spears

• Britney Spears

Britney Spears in her video for "Piece Of Me"
Photo: Jive

Britney Spears might not have been at her personal peak when she released Blackout in 2007, but she also wasn't afraid to show the world that she was in on the joke.

On her single "Piece of Me," Britney sings about how every move she makes is reported by the media. And what better place to film a video for the song than in a nightclub with reporters and paparazzi trying to capture Brit's every move?

"On 'Piece of Me,' I really just wanted to put the mirror back onto the whole experience," director Wayne Isham told MTV News about the video's concept, which finds Britney flirting with boys and dancing around the club. "You can see that she had that kind of confidence. And, literally, every take became a more and more confident take, so that she could have fun with what was going on. Not being over-the-top sarcastic, but ... having a laugh at everything that was going on around her, with confidence."

At the time, Britney had become a tabloid staple. And, even when she was trying to get her career back on track, it seems the paparazzi were there to mess with any comeback plans. "She was late," Isham recalled. "People made a big thing about it, [but] how could she not be late, when you have 50, 65, 75 people running down the street chasing her car? That was a long day for the crew. It was literally a 20-hour day for the crew. She was there for the last six hours of it. She got there late, showed up and just kicked ass."

Isham encouraged the pop star to get loose for the video and (literally) let her hair down.

"The very last dance of the piece, she had her hair up, and I go, 'Can you just do one for me with your hair down?' She dropped her hair down," Isham recalled. "You'll see we intercut with her hair up and her hair down. That was the last piece. She just rocked it from her heart. She choreographed that last dance at the very end. She did that on her own and said, 'Let's go for it.' "

The video, which earned the singer three VMAs in 2008, would prove that no matter what was happening in her life, she could bring it. "When she goes for it, she goes for it," Isham said. "You know, it's about the story line, it's about her dance, it's about her appearance," he said. "I just love that she's one of the few that are still left that step up to what music videos are about."

With the release of Britney Spears: The Singles Collection, MTV News is looking back on the pop star's career through interviews with video directors, music-industry insiders and Spears herself, as she reflects on some of her greatest hits. Keep coming back for all things Britney, and let us know your favorite Brit songs, videos, memories and more in the comments below — and if you think you're Britney's biggest fan, enter our contest to win a free copy of the album!

• Britney Spears: The Singles Collection

• The Evolution Of: Britney Spears

• Britney Spears

Britney Spears
Photo: Kevin Mazur/ Getty Images

Are you Britney Spears' biggest, most enthusiastic fan? Want to prove it? Want to win a copy of Britney Spears: The Singles Collection? Of course you do!

Well, we here at MTV News are giving you the chance to prove that you are her fan numero uno. How? Submit a short video demonstrating why you are Britney's biggest fan. Shoot the videos on your phone or webcam or whatever, and submit them — by 11:59 p.m. on Monday, December 7 — to Your.MTV.com. Videos should be approximately 30 seconds long and must include contact information, but beyond that, all bets are off! Make up a dance or a song (remember, you can't use copyrighted songs!), paint a picture, tell a story — get creative!

We'll take a look at all the videos, and if you manage to convince us that you're Britney's biggest fan, you'll win your very own copy of Britney Spears: The Singles Collection! The album includes all of her biggest hits, including " ... Baby One More Time," "(You Drive Me) Crazy (The Stop Remix!)," "I'm a Slave 4 U," Toxic" and "Oops! ... I Did It Again" and many more, including her latest single, "3."

We'll announce the winner at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, December 8.

So put on your thinking caps, turn on your cameras, show us why you love Britney — and the prize can be yours! Good luck!

With the release of Britney Spears: The Singles Collection, MTV News is looking back on the pop star's career through interviews with video directors, music-industry insiders and Spears herself, as she reflects on some of her greatest hits. Keep coming back for all things Britney, and let us know your favorite Brit songs, videos, memories and more in the comments below!

• Britney Spears: The Singles Collection

• Britney Spears

Britney Spears in "Toxic"
Photo: Jive Records

When Britney Spears shot the video for "Toxic" in 2003, she had already started to play with her image and was emerging as a pop vixen. When the clip for "Toxic," the second single from In the Zone, was released, fans saw Spears as a spy out to seek revenge on her lover.

"It's basically about a girl addicted to a guy," Spears told MTV in 2003. "I really like 'Toxic.' It's an upbeat song. It's really different, that's why I like it so much. This villain girl, she'll do anything to get what she wants. She goes through different obstacles."

For the video, Britney seems to be a flight attendant, but she's actually a secret agent in disguise. "The plot is pretty nonsensical," director Joseph Kahn told MTV News. "It's just fun. [It's like] James Bond flicks and sex."

That combination only got better when Britney appeared in a suit made of nude material covered in diamonds. "Britney said she wanted to shoot a scene wearing diamonds and nothing else, and I'm like, 'How do I make this work?' " Kahn said. "She said she wanted to dance. I didn't like the bikini she was wearing."

Instead, the pair opted to leave very little to the imagination. "Joseph's very ambitious. He's a professional," Britney said. "I came up with the concept and threw it out there. ... There are jewels all over my body. There's nothing actually underneath."

With the release of Britney Spears: The Singles Collection, MTV News is looking back on the pop star's career through interviews with video directors, music-industry insiders and Spears herself, as she reflects on some of her greatest hits. Keep coming back for all things Britney, and let us know your favorite Brit songs, videos, memories and more in the comments below!

• Britney Spears: The Singles Collection

• The Evolution Of: Britney Spears

• Britney Spears

Britney Spears in "Me Against The Music"
Photo: Jive Records

It was the changing of the guard — or at least the meeting of two of the most influential pop divas of all time — when Britney Spears and Madonna hooked up for Brit's single "Me Against the Music," from 2003's In the Zone. The superstars tantalize the audience (and each other) throughout the flirty video.

"Madonna is an icon of an earlier generation, and then Britney of the newer generation. She was at her peak at that point," director Paul Hunter told MTV News about the video. "So it was a challenge to kind of bring both of the worlds together. I wanted it to be a bit of a cat-and-mouse sort of game and a little bit of a foreplay between Britney and Madonna and just sort of tease the audience."

A few years back, Britney revealed that the collaboration came together thanks to the 2003 VMAs — you know, the show where Britney and Madonna locked lips. "I was in the middle of rehearsals for the VMAs and I played her the song, and she was like, 'That's your first single, right?' " Britney recalled. "I was like, 'Yeah, hopefully.' She was like, 'I really like it.' I was like, 'Really?' I was like, 'Well, you wanna do it with me?' She said, 'Yeah.' "

Hunter said the video was all about setting Spears and Madonna apart. "I try to play opposites, when you have Britney in dark and Madonna in white," he said. "And then we see them kind of dance around the bed ... and you think they're gonna get on top of each other and do something crazy."

Britney Spears Video Throwback
	» ' ... Baby One More Time' Director Looks Back
	» Spears Wanted '(You Drive Me) Crazy' Video To Take Her 'To The Next Level'
	» Britney Fought For The 'Oops! ... I Did It Again' Catsuit
	» How Britney's 'Stronger' Video Made Her A Diva
	» Britney Declared Her Independence With 'I'm Not A Girl'
	» When Britney & Madonna Hooked Up For 'Me Against The Music'
	» Leaving Very Little To The Imagination In 'Toxic'
	» 'Womanizer' Proved She Still Had It

But Spears said nothing crazy was supposed to happen; it was all about teasing people. "I never actually see Madonna or touch her; I just feel her presence there," she said. "[The song is] basically about just going to a club and letting yourself go and battling with whoever is around you and battling against the music as well. This is my first time doing a collaboration, and it's with Miss Madonna herself."

With the release of Britney Spears: The Singles Collection, MTV News is looking back on the pop star's career through interviews with video directors, music-industry insiders and Spears herself, as she reflects on some of her greatest hits. Keep coming back for all things Britney, and let us know your favorite Brit songs, videos, memories and more in the comments below!

• Britney Spears: The Singles Collection

• The Evolution Of: Britney Spears

• Britney Spears
• Madonna

Christian Siriano
Photo: MTV News

Britney Spears has made a career out of crawling around onstage and dancing through her videos in barely there outfits. But when it comes to really nailing down the one moment that Britney was at her most stylish, designer Christian Siriano says it's all about her understated look when she performed onstage with Madonna in 2008.

"My favorite Britney moment was when she was kind of having this tiny bit of a comeback, right at the beginning," he told MTV News. "And it was when she wore the beautiful black pants and that white blouse onstage with Madonna. I thought that was so chic and so not her, so that's why I really liked it."

Britney also dazzled Siriano's senses at the 2008 VMAs. "And then obviously when she won all of her music awards recently in that sequin dress," he recalled. "And she looked really chic, but I liked it. I think it worked."

She also could do no wrong at the 2001 VMAs. "She did wear a black Dolce and Gabbana minidress, like, years and years ago," he remembered. "That was good. That was really good. Even though it was crazy, that was good."

Siriano said he would love to tackle the challenge of designing a little something for the pop star. He's already got Lady Gaga on his résumé, so why not?

"I always say, 'Britney, I would love to do it,' " he said. "I would love to make something fabulous for her because fashion-wise, it's very interesting. She's one of the biggest pop icons but ... it's never about clothes ever. It's so weird, because every other of these pop divas it's so much about clothing and fashion, and it's not with Britney. It's very strange."

But, Siriano applauded her down-to-earth, girl-next-door sense of style. "On her down days, she's just a normal girl and in her cutout jeans and Uggs and cutoff T-shirt," he said. "And I think it's kind of cool that it's so real."

• The Evolution Of: Britney Spears

• Britney Spears

Britney Spears in "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman"
Photo: Jive Records

Britney Spears had been grappling with her budding adulthood when she released her third album, simply titled Britney, in 2001. With songs like "Overprotected" and "Let Me Be," Spears seemed to be letting out her adolescent angst. But on the single "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman," which was also featured on the soundtrack for her flick "Crossroads," the singer wanted the world to know that she was ready to be treated like an adult.

For the video, director Wayne Isham just wanted to have Britney out in nature — even if the setting seemed a bit dangerous for a pop star. "I go, 'Let me check it out first,' " Isham told MTV News about having Britney stand on the edge of a cliff. "She understood that if my fat ass was out there and I could stand there, then she could stand there," he laughed.

The singer might have been willing to take the risk, but she still had some trepidation about standing on a cliff. "The wind started picking up a lot and almost dropped me over," Spears recalled. "And I was like, 'OK, gotta go.' "

Nonetheless, Isham loved the way the video looked and said there was no green screen involved. "She went out there and, without a safety cable, just stood there with those cowboy boots on," he said. "She was standing on the edge in her cowboy boots, looking hot. We'd be right on the edge, and she had not a blink of fear."

Britney Spears Video Throwback
	» ' ... Baby One More Time' Director Looks Back
	» Spears Wanted '(You Drive Me) Crazy' Video To Take Her 'To The Next Level'
	» Britney Fought For The 'Oops! ... I Did It Again' Catsuit
	» How Britney's 'Stronger' Video Made Her A Diva
	» Britney Declared Her Independence With 'I'm Not A Girl'
	» When Britney & Madonna Hooked Up For 'Me Against The Music'
	» Leaving Very Little To The Imagination In 'Toxic'
	» 'Womanizer' Proved She Still Had It

Spears said in 2001 that the song was actually intended for the "Crossroads" soundtrack before she included it on her album. "The song was written for the movie once we had the decision to make the music part of the movie," she said. "It's an inspirational song, and it's probably one of my favorite songs that I've ever sang."

And the video is one of Isham's favorites too. "I have nothing but positive things to say about my experience with her and what she's doing right now," he said. "She stepped into it with positive energy. She ended up stepping out and kicking ass."

With the release of Britney Spears: The Singles Collection, MTV News is looking back on the pop star's career through interviews with video directors, music-industry insiders and Spears herself, as she reflects on some of her greatest hits. Keep coming back for all things Britney, and let us know your favorite Brit songs, videos, memories and more in the comments below — and if you think you're Britney's biggest fan, enter our contest to win a free copy of the album!

• Britney Spears: The Singles Collection

• The Evolution Of: Britney Spears

• Britney Spears

Bon Jovi's <i>The Circle</i>
Photo: Island

Music fans appear to have taken a break from holiday shopping last week, as sales of the top albums took a noticeable dip, and the latest #1 debut did just about half the business Carrie Underwood's Play On did the week before to hit #1.

Jersey icons Bon Jovi take over the top spot on next week's Billboard albums chart with their latest, The Circle, which sold just about 163,000 copies according to figures provided by Nielsen SoundScan. That was just over half of what the band's previous #1, the country-tinged Lost Highway, did in its first week in 2007. It was enough, however, to keep tenor Andrea Bocelli's My Christmas at #2 (136,000) and to knock Underwood down to #3 (128,000) as her second-week sales plummeted by 60 percent.

The only other debut in the top 10 is from righteous metallers Flyleaf, whose Memento Mori lands at #8 on sales of 56,000. The rest of the top 10: the "Michael Jackson's This Is It" soundtrack (#4, 117,000), Taylor Swift's Fearless (#5, 91,000), Now That's What I Call Music! Vol. 32 (#6, 68,000), Michael Bublé's Crazy Love (#7, 58,000), Glee: The Music Vol. 1 (#9, 56,000) and the soundtrack to "New Moon" (#10, 53,000).

Among other new releases, Switchfoot touch down at #13 with Hello Hurricane (39,000), and Dashboard Confessional's Alter the Ending hits #19 (30,000). Buzz rapper Wale sneaks in at #21 with Attention Deficit, followed by Britney Spears' Singles Collection at #22 (27,000).

Quite a few country acts got a bump after winning big at the CMA Awards, including Lady Antebellum, whose self-titled disc shoots up 130 percent and 13 spots to #11 (45,000), and best "new" artist Hootie and the Blowfish singer Darius Rucker, whose country disc Learn to Live jumps more than 20 spots to #27 (23,000). Other country gainers that performed or won on the show included the Zac Brown Band, Miranda Lambert and Jason Aldean.

Otherwise, the chart has been pretty quiet, with masked party rappers Hollywood Undead slamming to #29 with the remix CD/live DVD Desperate Measures (21,000), Jason Mraz a bit behind at #35 with the live disc Jason Mraz's Beautiful Mess (16,000) and an AC/DC box set, Backtracks, debuting at #39 (16,000).

Some of last week's top debuts had serious falls. The Foo Fighters' Greatest Hits stumbles 17 spots to #28 after business fell by 50 percent (22,000). Weezer's Raditude shed more than 73 percent of its debut business to nose-dive 25 spots to #32 with sales of 18,000. And Slayer's World Painted Blood skidded 67 percent, dropping 32 spots to #44 on sales of 13,000.

The deck should get shuffled next week with the long-awaited release of 50 Cent's Before I Self-Destruct, the latest from Norah Jones, John Mayer, Leona Lewis and OneRepublic, as well as debuts from Justin Bieber and Kris Allen.

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