Britney Spears’s discography —
Ranking each album and formulating a final opinion on this musical journey
Britney Jean
Britney Spears released her eight-studio album, Britney Jean, on November 29, 2013. The project contains 13 tracks.
This is the different intro I’ve heard in all of her projects: this dream pop beautiful thing? Wow okay this introduction is promising it’s not a known banger but it’s slow and decently put. It’s being set to be a bad b*tch reflective album and it gets into sad b*tch hours as well during the whole project run.
Quite the interesting transitions and sound choices, like super hard chorus beats this isn’t dance pop this is full electronic now. Also almost mid-album and it seems something made for a club – where’s the story, the diversity, it almost feels like they were targeting something way too much and got lost in the middle of it. Almost all of the tracks start so promising but the transitions, the fading and the sound placements compromise almost all of them.
First listen brings a final score of 56/100 and, as standout tracks, there is Alien and Work B**ch.
...Baby One More Time
Britney Spears released her debut studio album, …Baby One More Time, on January 21, 1999. The project contains 14 tracks.
So, this album starts with a banger – one of the most known tracks Britney has released, and it sets quite an interesting vibrant tone to the project. However, going through it can be way more surprising that a few might expect.
There are a few instrumental repetitions, similar melodies, and approaches on multiple tracks, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but it’s a bit too noticeable here.
Maybe the problem overall it’s not feeling dated because it’s pretty old, but it seems like a lot of elements are out of place or put in a rush, it seems like there was a lot of genre experimentation here as well but yet it all seems safe, it would be interesting if the album went crazy experimental since it’s the debut. It seems so bland at multiple moments and quite underwhelming honestly.
It shows the potential of the singer to make catchy songs, catchy bridges and vocal plays as well (doesn’t always work the best but she does them and it brings versatility in a way) and since it’s the debut this clearly leaves a lot of room for improvement.
The first listen brings a final score of 58/100 and, as standout tracks, there is …Baby One More Time, (You Drive Me) Crazy and Sometimes.
Oops!...I Did It Again
Britney Spears released her sophomore studio album, Oops!... I Did It Again, on May 21, 2000. The project contains 12 tracks.
This album started, just like the debut, with a banger, another of the very known Britney songs, quite timeless actually. In the beginning the album seems to be somewhat darker, bolder, with an empowerment and sassy quality to it, quite different from the debut.
However, this quickly changes on the course of the album, where it gets very bright with the dreamy production, similar choices already heard and also a very similar approach to the first project also. But, interestingly enough, this project feels a lot more focused, not so much all over the place trying to see what fits, and it approaches what can be seen as a cohesive album.
The gem of this album belongs to the few moments where we see a proper build and a chorus with vocal layering that doesn’t sound rush or messy or misplaced – again, it seems to aim for the cohesiveness of the whole.
But there are still some sound repetitions with the debut, and even with feeling looser overall and more determined, it still lacks and underperforms where it seems they got a bit safe on the artistic choices and overall making of the tracks.
The first listen brings a final score of 67/100 and, as standout tracks, there is Oops!... I Did It Again, Stronger and Don’t Let Me Be the Last to Know.
Circus
Britney Spears released her sixth studio album, Circus, on November 28, 2008. The project contains 15 tracks.
This album opens with a banger – a common denominator on Britney’s albums. It seems that dance pop is getting disco and electronic vibes to it, you can see this intention peeking through at times.
Also, it’s slow to show diversity most likely but it seems too forced, too rushed and not as smart or as thought as we already seen before.
The artistry seems a little bit faded on this project, it gets so messy and out of place this time, maybe If it were a bit shorter it could have a better sound story to tell? Who knows, but like this it seems a lot of things at once: some aspects do work in an interesting way, but some do miss the mark.
First listen brings a final score of 68/100 and, as standout tracks, there is Womanizer, Circus, If U Seek Amy and Radar.
Femme Fatale
Britney Spears released her seventh studio album, Femme Fatale, on March 25, 2011. The project contains 16 tracks.
Not only starts with a banger of a song but with dance pop mixed with edm which sets the tone of the album to be just that which makes you think it’s taking the approach of her last album.
It is extremely dance pop and focuses a lot on what can be seen as the commercial aspect of music, with too many repetitive beats and a safe radio friendly approach of sound.
It’s very bubble-gum too at times which is not ideal and makes the artistry lack a little bit as well. This feels like we are going back it’s so bland, similar sounds, not amusing placements, almost equally sonic tracks.
The ending portion of the project however is so promising, and it leaves to wish there was much more of that during the entire album.
The first listen brings a final score of 70/100 and, as standout tracks, there is Till the World Ends, Hold It Against Me, I Wanna Go and Criminal.
Glory
Britney Spears released her ninth studio album, Glory, on August 26, 2016. The project contains 17 tracks.
It’s her longest album to date It opens with a very dreamy track just like in Britney Jean – and yet again it sets potential to a very conceptual sound story on the album.
First feature is okay, it’s going to have a sexual connotation, but it seems more toned back on the instrumentals. Her voice seems different, altered for sure, but also the technique, more baby-like just like when she first started – leaving dance pop and going for dream pop, slow and commercial-ish too.
The electronic addition on the vocals can be a little bit too much at times, the alteration, but it’s smoother than a lot of her previous stuff as well. The whole cohesiveness seems way better already even if dreamy pop meets dance pop, not too many elements fighting for attention are making the songs work so beautifully. The Tinashe feature is one of her best features; they both dominated the song and made it what it is, a banger.
First listen brings a final score of 74/100 and, as standout tracks, there is Invitation, Just Luv Me, Do You Wanna Come Over, Slumber Party, Love Me Down, Change Your Mind and If I’m Dancing.
Britney
Britney Spears released her third studio album, Britney, on November 21, 2001. The project contains 15 tracks.
Starting the albums with a banger seems to be the main thing here – and this is such a banger. Being that said, this project took a huge run for the neck of people who doubted Britney as an artist.
The dark route seems to be intensifying, pop infused with rock instruments There’s a lot more drama in here, more simple effects at certain times, it’s quite surprising actually. It doesn’t seem as childish anymore, more mature, even more cohesive, and more purposefully made – a huge jump from the first two albums by a mile.
Very tiny aspects are still present from the other two albums but it’s not as impactful now as the new artistic approaches shine a lot more and help blending those small moments way better.
The first listen brings a final score of 74/100 and, as standout tracks, there is I’m A Slave 4 U, Overprotected, Lonely, I Run Away and Before the Goodbye
Blackout
Britney Spears released her fifth studio album, Blackout, on October 25, 2007. The project contains 14 tracks.
We open with a sexy sultry banger that defines the mood of the album to be the continuation of in the zone in terms of emancipation, sexuality, and freedom of speech – also one of her most known songs and until this day it’s a banger.
The instrumental cohesiveness seems even more thoughtful here, but crazy far from the sounds she started with, instead this is darker, bolder, sultrier, powerful. It’s being so heavy, what a difference, much intense, straightforward, adding little elements here and there, the build ups are fantastic as well.
Maybe starting with all those bangers isn’t a good idea in this project specially. It can create the hell of a hype that can fade. Towards the end it seems like the sounds from the beginning are returning more – it blended weirdly with a lot of edm sounds, it’s dance pop but some elements weren’t really necessary to make the songs.
What makes this project not even greater is the sound placement, the clear two types of approach divided that compromised the whole cohesive aspect of the album, even tho it’s one of her best projects.
First listen brings a final score of 75/100 and, as standout tracks, there is Gimme More, Piece of Me, Radar, Break the Ice and Perfect Lover.
In The Zone
Britney Spears released her fourth studio album, In The Zone, on November 10, 2003. The project contains 12 tracks.
It starts with a bang one of her best collaborations – interesting, it starts with the losing control message, facing the music, facing the public. She started to show herself on the previous project, so this is the continuing of her personality and hopefully it builds from there.
This project took my heart during its course, island vibes inspiring instrumental with arabic sounds but not as cliché as before. The sassiness is increasing even more on this project, it feels mature, conscient and actually even bolder.
It seems way more cohesive even if with similar sounds, it’s not so crazy experimental as the previous works, it seems to aim more for a sensual, grown woman expressing herself, and honestly that’s great – the overall sound transition that drives you insane of how much emancipation this album screams is amazing.
The sounds play between softer and harder songs, inside the instrumentals chosen, so it offers a bit of variety but doesn’t kill the cohesiveness and it ends perfectly.
The first listen brings a final score of 78/100 and, as standout tracks, there is Me Against the Music, Breathe on Me, Toxic, Touch of My Hand, Shadow and Everytime.
Overall score
Had listened to the discography it’s safe to say this was a hell of a ride. Britney Spears is heavily known for her catchy singles since the beginning and for someone who didn’t adventure through her catalogue, album-wise, there are a lot of mixed feelings.
The projects seem, as a personal opinion, to fight each other, where there is this initial rise, from the artist who is being presented to the public to the artist that Britney wants to be, but then a lot of push backs are felt as the years progress and the projects get released.
Britney is an artist, every single project proves it, even if the album doesn’t work as it could, you can get little elements that show she is passionate, she has intention, delivery and honestly a lot of smart thinking at times.
The projects mostly lack due to the heavy experimentation, being this an approach to see what it sticks or an approach to something very little that will be pleasing to a very few number of people only. There is an ongoing problem with cohesiveness when it comes to her albums, and it would be amazing to see a more revamped In the Zone and even Blackout sound, where so much was promising there, and one could just imagine the development of that.
Nonetheless, Britney did get her name by right in the industry, and her whole discography has many more layers than most people might think, it’s very interesting to see the whole progress of her albums but also how deep she got, how raw and emotional she delivered at times too.