Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
Yes, Britney Spears is performing at this weekend’s MTV Video Music Awards, but no, don’t you dare call it a comeback. Homegirl has been slaying her Las Vegas residency for almost 3 years now! With today’s release of her new album Glory, it only makes sense that she would bless the VMA stage with her presence. Does any other artist even come close to providing the MTV award show with as many jaw-dropping performances as Britney, bitch? Nope.
Britney has a long history with the VMAs, which dates all the way back to 1999 when she hit the stage for the very first time with “…Baby One More Time” along with *NSYNC, a performance that made going back to school actually seem kind of fun. She followed that up with her best performance of all time. ALL TIME. The “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction”/ “Oops!…I Did It Again” mashup, complete with the sparkly nude pants and bra combo, was nothing short of legendary. It’s the best she’s ever looked and danced, and even though she got more attention for the tux outfit she ripped off to reveal the sparkly one, the VMAs would never be the same.
2001 was a strong year for her as well, with the “I’m a Slave 4 U” performance, featuring a live python. Brit handled it like a true pro, proving she was the reigning Queen of MTV. The next year, she presented an award to Michael Jackson, but sadly we were not honored with a performance from her.
And then the slide begins. Just moments into the 2003 show, Britney appeared on-stage with Christina Aguilera to swap kisses with their idol, Madonna. You might remember Justin Timberlake’s unamused look from the audience? Britney stepped away from the show for the next 3 years, only to return in 2007 with a performance that gave viewers more chills than the snake. Britney opened the show with her latest single, “Gimme More”, which is a total jam, but the performance left much to be desired. The outfit, the hair, even the dance moves were not the quality we had come to expect. It was an uninspired, directionless cringe-fest, and we were scared that might be the last we’d see of Britney at the VMAs.
Not to be discouraged though, she returned in 2008, welcoming everyone to the show, before Rihanna kicked off the festivities with a performance. This is also the first time Britney won a VMA after 16 nominations. What took you so damn long, MTV? 2009 launched the feud of the century between Taylor Swift and Kanye West, and Britney knew it was best to stay away.
She returned in 2011 to accept the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard award from presenter Lady Gaga, and that’s the last time we saw her at the VMAs. Needless to say, she will be very much welcomed back when she performs during the show at Madison Square Garden on Sunday night. Her first time performing her own songs in 15 years! Can we expect live animals and rip-away pants and girl-on-girl make outs? Probably not. She’s toned things down in her performances lately, in terms relative to Britney. Don’t expect her to show up in a poncho, but also don’t bet on her being the most provocative moment of the show, either. After all, Kanye West will be present. Britney will show up, look amazing and sexy, dance to one of her new singles, and get the heck out of there. And we’ll just be glad she did it again.
