It's time for the Britney Spears Tournament: 30 Videos for 30 Years, MTV News' celebration of all things Britney to honor the pop star's 30th birthday! In the lead up to the big day, we're asking you, Brit's most loyal fans, to help us decide which video from her legendary career is your favorite by participating in a winner-take-all tournament. MTV News' resident Britney experts assigned 30 of Britney's videos seeds and put them up against one another in a series of single-elimination match-ups. Fan voting will determine which of her amazing clips is named the fan-favorite. So vote now and vote often for your favorite video. The winner will be announced on December 2 – Britney's 30th birthday!

"Hold It Against Me" vs. "Me Against The Music"

Another insanely close call! Another early Britney clip falling to a newer video. You guys are seriously rallying hard around your favorite Britney videos.

Sure, "Me Against The Music," with its fantastic dancing, high production values and Madonna appearance, is technically a better video, but here in the MTV Newsroom we were certain that nostalgia would rule the day and "(You Drive Me) Crazy" would sweep Round Two right out from under "Me Against The Music." Wrong! Like the competitions between "Everytime" and "Lucky" and "Criminal" and "Lucky," this was, essentially, another 50/50 runoff, but in the end when the final numbers were tallied, "Me Against the Music" was the one left standing.

That means it will square off in the Elite 8 against the video for the lead single from Britney's most recent album, Femme Fatale. In one of Round Two's stronger victories, the futuristic video for "Hold It Against Me" took down Britney's VMA Video of the Year-winning "Piece of Me." Given the support "Hold It Against Me" received in Round one of Britney Spears: 30 Videos For 30 Years," we're actually not that surprised the video performed so well as part of the Sweet 16.

"Toxic" vs. "I'm A Slave 4 U"

Finally, a bracket runoff that panned out exactly as we expected!

Listen, the videos for "Circus" and "Womanizer" are fantastic (heck, "Womanizer" is itself a VMA winner for Best Pop Video), but it just wouldn't have been right if the legendary clips for "Toxic" and "Slave" didn't make it to the Elite 8. (Of course, we would have said the same thing about "…Baby One More Time" – but that's just us!) "Slave" bested "Womanizer" 61.61 percent to 38.39 percent, while "Toxic" triumphed over "Circus" with the largest victory in the second round – 67.41 percent to 32.59 percent.

The only thing is … That puts two of our absolute favorite Britney videos up against each other in the Elite 8, meaning one of them won't make it into the final four! So which will it be, Britney fans? Do you love "Toxic" or is "I'm A Slave 4 U" more your jam? Vote below.

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It's time for the Britney Spears Tournament: 30 Videos for 30 Years, MTV News' celebration of all things Britney to honor the pop star's 30th birthday! In the lead up to the big day, we're asking you, Brit's most loyal fans, to help us decide which video from her legendary career is your favorite by participating in a winner-take-all tournament. MTV News' resident Britney experts assigned 30 of Britney's videos seeds and put them up against one another in a series of single-elimination match-ups. Fan voting will determine which of her amazing clips is named the fan-favorite. So vote now and vote often for your favorite video. The winner will be announced on December 2 – Britney's 30th birthday!

"Till The World Ends" vs. "Lucky"

In one of the stronger wins from Round Two, Britney's apocalyptic, VMA-winning "Till The World Ends" handily defeated the steamy clip for her cover of Bobby Brown's "My Prerogative." That means one of Britney's latest videos will square off against one of her earliest in the Elite 8. In one of the closest races (among many very close showdowns) Britney's clip for "Lucky" just pulled past her controversial video for the In The Zone ballad "Everytime." How close were they? Well, 51,694 votes were cast in this category alone and the split came down to 50.03 percent for "Lucky" and 49.97 percent for "Everytime". That's close, y'all!

"Stronger" vs. "Criminal"

But guess which race was unexpectedly even closer than the runoff between "Lucky" and "Everytime"? In perhaps the biggest surprise so far in Britney Spears: 30 Videos For 30 Years, "Criminal," the hot and sexy video for Britney's most recent single, defeated arguably her most iconic video of all, "…Baby One More Time." You heard that right. "Baby" took 49.999 percent of the vote, but "Criminal" snagged just a few more key votes to snag 50.01 percent, taking the round. We suspect Brit's boy and "Criminal" co-star Jason Trawick will be quite pleased.

That pits another new video against an early Britney classic, as "Criminal" will go up against "Stronger," which itself knocked another Britney classic out of the competition, in the Elite 8. Going into the holiday weekend, the showdown between "Stronger" and "Oops! I Did It Again" looked was shaping up to be the neck-in-neck contest of Round Two. How wrong we were! Sure, it was a tight race, but in the end "Stronger" ruled the day with just over 52 percent of the vote, leaving the big budget, otherworldly lip for "Oops" with just under 48 percent of the 56,085 votes cast in this frame.

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Round Two of MTV News' Britney Spears Tournament: 30 Videos For 30 Years is underway and everyone in the MTV Newsroom is ultra excited about it!

So excited that we called up our friend Tamar Anitai from MTV Buzzworthy to join MTV News' own Christina Garibaldi and Kara Klenk to get into an in-depth discussion of the second round of competition. The fierce ladies of MTV are joined via Skype by one of Britney's biggest fans, celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, who reveals his favorite Britney video!

Check out the red-hot discussion below:

And don't forget to vote Round Two of Britney Spears: 30 Videos For 30 Years:
>>> Round Two, East Division
>>> Round Two, West Division

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It's time for the Britney Spears Tournament: 30 Videos for 30 Years, MTV News' celebration of all things Britney to honor the pop star's 30th birthday! In the lead up to the big day, we're asking you, Brit's most loyal fans, to help us decide which video from her legendary career is your favorite by participating in a winner-take-all tournament. MTV News' resident Britney experts assigned 30 of Britney's videos seeds and put them up against one another in a series of single-elimination match-ups. Fan voting will determine which of her amazing clips is named the fan-favorite. So vote now and vote often for your favorite video. The winner will be announced on December 2 – Britney's 30th birthday!

"Till The World Ends" vs. "My Prerogative"

After receiving a by in Round One because it was Britney's most recent MTV Video Music Award winner for Best Pop Video, "Till The World Ends" enters the race in Round Two and it is facing the unexpectedly formidable "My Prerogative." In round One, we thought "Prerogative," despite the video's quality, might fall to its competition, "Sometimes," because we assumed nostalgia would be a major factor in voters' decision-making. Across the board, that hasn't seemed to be the case, which makes this race particularly interesting because it pits the video that essentially ushered in Spears' new era against one of her most recent hits.

"Everytime" vs. "Lucky"

While Round Two is largely dominated by more recent clips (save iconic videos like "…Baby One More Time" and "Oops! I Did It Again," which seem bound to be major contenders to the end), "Lucky" was, well, lucky. It took down "Boys" in a close race and now finds itself going up against "Everytime," one of Spears' most controversial clips and one of only two ballads to advance to the second round.

"Oops! I Did It Again" vs. "Stronger"

It's an Oops! I Did It Again album showdown, as the otherworldly, colorful, dance-heavy, big budget video for the title track goes up against the more stark clip for "Stronger." "Oops" had it pretty easy in Round One, squaring off against the lesser-known ballad "Someday (I Will Understand)," but "Stronger" fought a tough fight again "Gimme More."

"Criminal" vs. "…Baby One More Time"

In one of the bigger surprises of Round One, "Criminal" defeated "I Wanna Go" by a substantial margin. Fans really rallied behind Spears' most recent single and the amount of support the clip received makes it seem like it could put up a serious fight against "…Baby One More Time." And it will be one heck of a fight. "Baby" is one of the most iconic music videos of all time. We mean, there seriously isn't a single person on the planet who cannot conjure up an image of Spears in a schoolgirl uniform with her shirt tied up to reveal her naval.

Second round voting continues through Sunday night (Nov. 27) at midnight. Vote now and vote often! The videos you voted to move on to Round Three will be announced first thing Monday (Nov. 28).

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It's time for the Britney Spears Tournament: 30 Videos for 30 Years, MTV News' celebration of all things Britney to honor the pop star's 30th birthday! In the lead up to the big day, we're asking you, Brit's most loyal fans, to help us decide which video from her legendary career is your favorite by participating in a winner-take-all tournament. MTV News' resident Britney experts assigned 30 of Britney's videos seeds and put them up against one another in a series of single-elimination match-ups. Fan voting will determine which of her amazing clips is named the fan-favorite. So vote now and vote often for your favorite video. The winner will be announced on December 2 – Britney's 30th birthday!

"Piece of Me" vs. "Hold It Against Me"

"Piece" enters the competition after receiving a by in Round One for being Britney's only video to receive the top prize at the MTV Video Music Awards. In the Video of The Year-winning clip, Spears addresses the mania that surrounded her private life at the time of the song's release. It goes up against the tech-heavy video for "Hold It Against Me," the lead single from Spears' most recent album, Femme Fatale. On her "Hold It Against Me" video, she worked with a huge name in the video game, Jonas Akerlund. Akerlund has worked with some of pop's biggest names, from Madonna ("Ray of Light") and Christina Aguilera ("Beautiful) to Pink ("Sober") and his most recent muse, Lady Gaga ("Paparazzi," "Telephone"). Can her VMA-winner take down her all-star recent hit? That's for you to decide.

"(You Drive Me) Crazy" vs. "Me Against the Music"

"Me Against the Music" handed "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" its backside in Round One, joining "Toxic" as one of the clips to defeat its competition with over 80 percent of the vote. The elaborate clip for "Music" throws Britney into the ring (or more accurately, the maze) with her idol, Madonna. When these two came together for this song, it was a pop culture event – it was the moment when the Princess and the Queen came together to make some magic. How will it stack up against one of Britney's early fan favorites, "(You Drive Me) Crazy." Only time will tell.

"Toxic" vs. "Circus"

Two of Miz Spears' most elaborate videos go head-to-head here as "Toxic" takes on "Circus" in Round Two. Both videos are, of course, among Spears' most beloved and neither faced a particularly formidable foe in Round One – "Toxic" easily handed "Radar" its backside in a landslide victory, while the only real competition "Circus" faced form "I'm Not A Girl, Not Yet a Woman" came from sentimental longtime fans.

"Womanizer" vs. "I'm A Slave 4 U"

This is one exciting face-off! In one corner is the ultimate comeback video, "Womanizer," which our girl used as a forum to show off her buff bod and return to musical form after a few tough years. Like its sister clip "Toxic," it was a big, elaborate story-driven spectacle. In the other corner is one of Spears' most iconic clips, "I'm a Slave 4 U." In Francis Lawrence's legendary clip, Spears sweats it with her hot and heavy dance crew in a futuristic urban setting. The ultra sexy video was a major change from the more family-friendly clips that dominated Spears' early career. Which hot and heavy vid will rule Round Two? Vote below and make your voice heard.

Second round voting continues through Sunday night (Nov. 27) at midnight. Vote now and vote often! The videos you voted to move on to Round Three will be announced first thing Monday (Nov. 28).

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While we're still in Round One of our Britney Spears Tournament: 30 Videos For 30 Years, it's never too early to speculate about the races, right? Right?

So that's exactly what MTV News' team of Britney experts – joined via Skype by Breathe Heavy's Jordan Miller – did. Some races are shaping up in surprising ways, with "Boys" holding up strong against the early Britney classic "Lucky" and "Gimme More" putting up a real fight in its showdown with "Stronger."

Also, Jordan gives us a little insight into which Britney clip he thinks will rule after all is said and done.

Check it out below:

Read More...

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Britney Spears

Yesterday, MTV News' Britney Spears Tournament: 30 Videos For 30 Years kicked off with a bang!

Nearly 220,000 votes have already been cast in 14 different showdowns with just over 13 hours still to go in Round One! Vote now and vote often!

Britney's biggest fans are loving our celebration of all things Britney. Facebook user Natalia echoed the sentiment of the MTV Newsroom, saying, "Tough decision. Hope Womanizer wins, it's her ultimate comeback... although I love her old classic vids, like Lucky, Stronger, Oops, BOMT, Sometimes (sooo sweet)... OMG! I just remembered how much I love her!"

We feel the same way, Natalia! We had the great pleasure of putting together the polls and writing about the different bracket showdowns, which meant two days of diving in Britney's catalog of videos (many of which we haven't seen in some time). It was an awesome assignment!

What are some other fans saying? Read on for more and be sure to cast your vote!

>>> Region 1: "Sometimes" vs. "My Prerogative" / "Everytime" vs. "If U Seek Amy" / "Lucky" vs. "Boys"

>>> Region 2: "Oops! I Did It Again" vs. "Someday (I Will Understand) / "Stronger" vs. "Gimme More" / "I Wanna Go" vs. "Criminal" / "…Baby One More Time" vs. "Overprotected"

>>> Region 3: "Don't Let Me Be The Last To Know" vs. "Hold It Against Me" / "(You Drive Me) Crazy" vs. "From the Bottom of My Broken Heart" / "Me Against the Music" vs. "I Love Rock 'n' Roll"

>>> Region 4: "Toxic" vs. "Radar" / "Circus" vs. "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman" / "Womanizer" vs. "3" / "I'm A Slave 4 U" vs. "Do Somethin'"

Read More...

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Britney Spears

Hey there, Britney fans! We hope you're enjoying MTV News' Britney Spears: 30 Videos For 30 Years tournament. In the lead-up to the Princess of Pop's 30th birthday on Friday, December 2, we will be hosting a March Madness-style single-elimination showdown to find out which of Spears' legendary videos is your favorite.

Let's start with some ground rules. Though a traditional bracket has 32 spots/teams, we decided to keep it to 30 videos in honor of Britney's big day. To do this, we had to disqualify a few of Britney's clips while also giving two of her videos a "by" in Round One. We chose "Piece of Me" and "Till the World Ends" to move automatically on to Round Two because both won major MTV Video Music Awards – "Piece" was 2008's Video of the Year (Spears' only clip to claim the top VMA prize) and "World Ends" earned Britney her most recent VMA for Best Pop Video and she was able to attend the ceremony to accept the prize. We chose to disqualify "Break the Ice" because Britney does not appear in the animated video and "Born to Make You Happy" because the song did not chart commercially in the United States.

Make sure you vote in Round One of our Britney Spears Tournament: 30 Videos For 30 Years (and be sure to encourage other Britney fans to get in on the action!):

>>> Region 1: "Sometimes" vs. "My Prerogative" / "Everytime" vs. "If U Seek Amy" / "Lucky" vs. "Boys"

>>> Region 2: "Oops! I Did It Again" vs. "Someday (I Will Understand) / "Stronger" vs. "Gimme More" / "I Wanna Go" vs. "Criminal" / "…Baby One More Time" vs. "Overprotected"

>>> Region 3: "Don't Let Me Be The Last To Know" vs. "Hold It Against Me" / "(You Drive Me) Crazy" vs. "From the Bottom of My Broken Heart" / "Me Against the Music" vs. "I Love Rock 'n' Roll"

>>> Region 4: "Toxic" vs. "Radar" / "Circus" vs. "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman" / "Womanizer" vs. "3" / "I'm A Slave 4 U" vs. "Do Somethin'"

Now, let's take a look at some of the more exciting races in Round One and try and predict the winners! Read More...

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It's time for the Britney Spears Tournament: 30 Videos for 30 Years, MTV News' celebration of all things Britney to honor the pop star's 30th birthday! In the lead up to the big day, we're asking you, Brit's most loyal fans, to help us decide which video from her legendary career is your favorite by participating in a winner-take-all tournament. MTV News' resident Britney experts assigned 30 of Britney's videos seeds and put them up against one another in a series of single-elimination match-ups. Fan voting will determine which of her amazing clips is named the fan-favorite. So vote now and vote often for your favorite video. The winner will be announced on December 2 – Britney's 30th birthday!

Note: Because a traditional bracket contains 32 teams/spots and we wanted to keep it to 30 in honor of Brit's big year, we gave two videos – "Till The World Ends" and "Piece of Me" – a by because they scored major MTV Video Music Awards.

(3) "Toxic" vs. (30) "Radar"
Our girl is a super spy assassin in the clip for arguably her best single, "Toxic." (Hey, it's the tune that won Spears a Grammy.) In the high-octane video, Spears sports a number of sexy looks, including a nude crystal studded bodysuit (a signature look, yes?) and a super short flight attendant's uniform. She has plenty of outfit changes in the video for "Radar" too, many of them culled from her Candies line at Kohl's. In "Radar," Spears plays an aristocrat with the hots for a sexy polo player.

>>> Watch the video for "Toxic"
>>> Watch the video for "Radar"

(14) "Circus" vs. (19) "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman"
Britney Spears has always understood the importance of good photography. Many of her videos are filmed with the same care and quality as a Hollywood film, and two great examples of this are "Circus" and "Girl." "Girl" arrived early in Britney's career – so early it weaves in clips from Britney's film "Crossroads" – but holds up courtesy of the gorgeous cliffs that a serve as a location for a buff and blonde Spears to belt out the ballad. Meanwhile, the more recent Francis Lawrence-directed video for "Circus" is epic, showcasing spectacular costumes and dazzling lighting effects.

>>> Watch the video for "Circus"
>>> Watch the video for "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman"

(11) "Womanizer" vs. (22) "3"
A pretty serious knee injury in 2004 sidelined Spears, inarguably one of the strongest dancers in pop, for a few years, but when she returned to the dance scene in 2008 with "Womanizer" she seemed to have battled past the worst of her injury. She kicked things up even further a year later in the video for "3," which ditched the narrative structure and sets that made "Womanizer" such a strong return to form for simple set pieces and more complex moves. (Oh, and she looked better than ever.) Which makes for a better clip is for you to decide!

>>> Watch the video for "Womanizer"
>>> Watch the video for "3"

(6) "I'm A Slave 4 U" vs. (27) "Do Somethin'"
It's a true Britney classic versus a video that people might not be nearly as familiar with because it never received a single release in the United States. "Do Somethin'," which appears on Spears' greatest hits package, was a minor worldwide hit for the pop star but never got a formal push here, so its video, which features Spears and four friends hitting the club and riding around in a truck in the sky (yep!), hasn't gotten a lot of love. The exact opposite can be said for "I'm a Slave 4 U" – one of Britney's most iconic videos. In Francis Lawrence's legendary clip, Spears sweats it with her hot and heavy dance crew in a futuristic urban setting. The ultra sexy video was a marked change from the more family-friendly clips that dominated Spears' early career.

>>> Watch the video for "I'm A Slave 4 U"
>>> Watch the video for "Do Somethin'"

First round voting continues through Tuesday night (Nov. 22) at midnight. Vote now and vote often! The videos you voted to move on to Round Two will be announced first thing Wednesday (Nov. 23).

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It's time for the Britney Spears Tournament: 30 Videos for 30 Years, MTV News' celebration of all things Britney to honor the pop star's 30th birthday! In the lead up to the big day, we're asking you, Brit's most loyal fans, to help us decide which video from her legendary career is your favorite by participating in a winner-take-all tournament. MTV News' resident Britney experts assigned 30 of Britney's videos seeds and put them up against one another in a series of single-elimination match-ups. Fan voting will determine which of her amazing clips is named the fan-favorite. So vote now and vote often for your favorite video. The winner will be announced on December 2 – Britney's 30th birthday!

Note: Because a traditional bracket contains 32 teams/spots and we wanted to keep it to 30 in honor of Brit's big year, we gave two videos – "Till The World Ends" and "Piece of Me" – a by because they scored major MTV Video Music Awards.

(4) "Oops! I Did It Again" vs. (29) "Someday (I Will Understand)"
We're not sure if two more different videos are squaring off anywhere else in this competition. In one corner is "Oops!" the otherworldly (literally), colorful, dance-heavy, big budget video that helped launch Britney's massive second album. In the other corner, "Someday," a low budget, black and white clip for a promo ballad that features a very pregnant Spears walking around a big old house and lush garden. Which is better? That's not for us to say. Different strokes for different folks, you know?

>>> Watch the video for "Oops! I Did It Again"
>>> Watch the video for "Someday (I Will Understand)"

(13) "Stronger" vs. (20) "Gimme More"
Oh, boy! These two videos came at very different periods in Spears' career. "Stronger" hit the scene as the third single from Oops! I did It Again, though it is arguably the biggest hit from the album, having topped the Billboard sales chart. The video includes a memorable solo dance number that sees Spears engaging in some serious choreography with a metal chair. "Gimme More" features a very different style of dancing … and it involves a pole.

>>> Watch the video for "Stronger"
>>> Watch the video for "Gimme More"

(12) "I Wanna Go" vs. (21) "Criminal"
A Femme Fatale battle royale! How do Britney's two most recent videos compare when pitted against each other? Well, we suppose it's a matter of taste – the clip for "I Wanna Go" is a fun, tongue-in-cheek send-up on modern celebrity, with Spears escaping a press conference to embark on a wild ride that includes a sexy policeman and some robotic photographers, while "Criminal" strives for something darker and sexier, as Spears and real-life boyfriend Jason Trawick go on a crime spree and spend some quality time in a steamy shower.

>>> Watch the video for "I Wanna Go"
>>> Watch the video for "Criminal"

(5) "…Baby One More Time" vs. (28) "Overprotected"
It almost seems unfair to put a simple video of Britney dancing with her crew in an abandoned warehouse against the clip for the title track from Britney's debut album, …Baby One More Time, one of the most iconic music videos of all time – there isn't a single person on the planet who cannot conjure up an image of Spears in a schoolgirl uniform with her shirt tied up to reveal her naval – but that's how these things pan out sometimes. "Overprotected" may be lesser known, but it begs for a little attention … any video that focuses on Spears busting a move is just fine with us.

>>> Watch the video for "…Baby One More Time"
>>> Watch the video for "Overprotected"

First round voting continues through Tuesday night (Nov. 22) at midnight. Vote now and vote often! The videos you voted to move on to Round Two will be announced first thing Wednesday (Nov. 23).

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