Britney Spears is 40 and free! In honor of the singer’s first birthday as a free woman in 13 years, we’re ranking the top ten songs of the icon’s lengthy reign as the Princess of Pop.
Believe us, narrowing down Brit’s catalog of bangers, bops and ballads to just 10 tracks was no easy task. Between nine albums, nearly 50 singles and countless fan favorite deep cuts, the pop star has given the Britney Army more than two decades of hits and hidden gems to choose from across multiple eras.
But no matter which song is your personal number one, there are two things every Britney fan can agree on: she will always be the people’s princess and we’re all celebrating her freedom.
Read on for Consequence‘s full ranking of Brit’s ten best songs — from “Overprotected” and “Lucky” to “Toxic” and “Gimme More,” and beyond.
10. “Mood Ring”
Justice for Glory! Originally included as a bonus cut on the Japanese edition of Spears 2016 studio set, “Mood Ring” wasn’t officially released on this side of the Pacific until almost four years later. And while some fans wondered at the time whether the release of the atmospheric mid-tempo jam release was merely a cash grab by Brit’s conservator, now that she’s free from her legal shackles, we can stream the fan-fave track to our hearts’ content.
9. “Overprotected”
There’s the radio edit. There’s the Darkchild remix. But in every variation, “Overprotected” remains an underrated gem in Britney’s discography. Building on the themes of autonomy and self-empowerment that had been established on fellow Britney-era singles like “I’m a Slave 4 U” and “Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman,” and would become so central to her personal narrative in later years, this 2001 banger feels eerily prescient knowing what was to come.
