Greatest Hits: My Prerogative is the first greatest hits album by American singer Britney Spears. It was released on November 3, 2004, by Jive Records. Alongside singles from Spears' studio albums ...Baby One More Time (1999), Oops!... I Did It Again (2000), Britney (2001), and In the Zone (2003), the compilation included three new tracks—a cover of Bobby Brown's "My Prerogative", "Do Somethin'", and "I've Just Begun (Having My Fun)". It was released in standard and limited editions, with the latter containing a bonus disc with remixes, as well as a DVD form featuring 20 of Spears' music videos.
Greatest Hits: My Prerogative received mixed to favorable reviews from music critics, some of whom felt that it was an accurate portrayal of Spears as the defining figure of American pop culture, while others stated that she did not have enough material for a greatest hits album and also deemed it premature. A commercial success, it debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200, with first-week sales of 255,000 copies, but became Spears' first album not to reach the summit. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and has sold over five million copies worldwide.
Greatest Hits: My Prerogative received little promotion as Spears injured her knee in June 2004 and was left unable to perform, but produced two singles. The titular track was released as the lead single and peaked within the top 10 in most international countries, but failed to enter the US Billboard Hot 100, instead peaking atop the US Bubbling Under Hot 100. "Do Somethin'" was released as the second and final single from the album, and peaked at number 100 on the US Billboard Hot 100 despite not being released in the US, while reaching the top ten in numerous countries.
Background
In 1997, 15-year-old Britney Spears signed a record deal with Jive Records after plans for her to join the girl group Innosense fell through. Her debut single "...Baby One More Time" was released in September 1998, peaking atop the US Billboard Hot 100 and almost everywhere it charted. Her debut studio album of the same title was released in January 1999, and made Spears the first artist in history to have their debut single and debut album simultaneously atop the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard 200, respectively. It was followed by Oops!... I Did It Again in May 2000, which debuted atop the US Billboard 200 and registered the highest first-week sales for a female artist at the time, selling 1,319,000 copies in its first week. Both albums were eventually certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and became two of the best-selling albums of all time. Spears' subsequent studio albums Britney (2001) and In the Zone (2003) both debuted atop the US Billboard 200, albeit selling slower than their predecessors. Regardless, both received multi-platinum certifications from the RIAA, and made Spears the second female artist after Janet Jackson to have four consecutive US number-one albums. The latter produced "Toxic", Spears' most commercially successful single since "Oops!... I Did It Again" (2000); it won Spears her first Grammy Award, for Best Dance Recording in 2005.
The Onyx Hotel Tour, on which Spears embarked in support of In the Zone, was abruptly cancelled in June 2004, following Spears' knee injury while filming the accompanying music video for "Outrageous", the final single from In the Zone. During the tour, Spears had recorded two new songs, which would appear on Greatest Hits: My Prerogative, and began a relationship with American dancer Kevin Federline. The couple became engaged in July and got married on September 18. Within that period, Spears embarked on a prolonged hiatus from performing, both due to the injury and to start a family; she wouldn't release another studio album until Blackout (2007). Retrospectively, Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic noted that Spears "hadn't been out of the pop culture headlines since she released her debut album, ...Baby One More Time, in January 1999. In the nearly six years separating that debut album and the release of Greatest Hits in November 2004, Britney was omnipresent, representing both the entire teen pop phenomenon of the turn of the millennium, plus the teasing, Maxim-fueled sexuality of the time".
New material
Greatest Hits: My Prerogative included three previously unreleased tracks—"My Prerogative", "I've Just Begun (Having My Fun)" and "Do Somethin'"—all of which were produced by Bloodshy & Avant. "My Prerogative" is a cover of Bobby Brown's 1988 song of the same title, with the original version's lyrics altered to fit a woman's perspective: "They say I'm nasty, but I don't give a damn / Getting boys is how I live / Some ask me questions, why am I so real? / But they don't understand me, or really don't know the deal / About a sista trying hard to make it right." Spears recorded the cover during the European leg of the Onyx Hotel Tour in May 2004, at the Murlyn Studios in Stockholm, Sweden, and the Teldex Studio in Berlin, Germany. The cover is musically different from the bass-infused new jack swing original, showcasing a more contemporary synthpop sound, driven by synthesizers and elements typical of Bloodshy & Avant productions. Jennifer Vineyard of MTV commented the cover could be interpreted as a statement on Spears' life and the media reactions to some of her decisions at the time, including her engagement to Kevin Federline.
"I've Just Begun (Having My Fun)" was originally recorded for Spears' fourth studio album In the Zone (2003), but was left unused until the release of the video album of the same title in April 2004; the DVD+CD set included an extended play (EP), whose international editions included the song. In the US, it was made available as a free digital download on the Walmart-exclusive edition of In the Zone, due to an exclusive deal with Walmart and Sony Connect. A dance and electro track, "I've Just Begun (Having My Fun)" was noted for its resemblance to No Doubt's 2001 song "Hella Good". Lyrically, it describes a "make-believe encounter with a boy at a party that made her feel a little wild but leaves her falling asleep in a chair". Like "My Prerogative", Spears recorded "Do Somethin'" during the Onyx Hotel Tour, at the Battery Studios in New York City and the Murlyn Studios in Stockholm. "Do Somethin'" is an electric guitar-driven dance-rock track, "filled with faux string bursts and mock-'70s synth gurgle (think Zapp/Gap Band era) and plenty of treated guitar and bass". Lyrically, the track refers to having fun while being watched by other people, encouraging them to "do something".
Marketing
On August 13, 2004, Spears announced through Jive Records the release of her first greatest hits album, titled Greatest Hits: My Prerogative, for November 16. "I've Just Begun (Having My Fun)" was released as a promotional single via iTunes Store on August 17, following the end of the deal between Jive, Walmart and Sony Connect. The track listing for the album was officially revealed on September 13, including "I've Just Begun (Having My Fun)" alongside two previously unreleased tracks. The album's release would later be advanced to November 9 in the US, being released internationally starting in Sweden on November 3. A limited edition was also released, including a bonus disc with remixes of Spears' songs by different producers, as well as a Chris Cox-produced megamix of Spears' hits. Greatest Hits: My Prerogative was simultaneously released on DVD, featuring all of Spears' music videos, including "Outrageous", which had been left unfinished. In addition, alternative versions for 10 of the 20 videos are included on a separate menu, displaying previously unreleased footage.
"My Prerogative" was released as the lead single from Greatest Hits: My Prerogative on September 20, 2004. It went on to achieve international commercial success, topping the charts in Finland, Ireland, Italy and Norway, and reaching the top 10 in numerous other countries. In the US, it peaked atop the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles and failed to enter the Billboard Hot 100, hence becoming Spears' first lead single not to enter the chart. The song's Jake Nava-directed accompanying music video was described by Spears' mother Lynne as being "about capturing gorgeous close-ups and very subtle movement" since Spears could not do any choreography due to her knee injury, and as having "an element of old Hollywood glamour and mystery". Although no more singles were planned, Spears wanted to film an accompanying music video for "Do Somethin" and pushed for its release. The song was released as the second and final single from Greatest Hits: My Prerogative outside North America on February 14, 2005. Like its predecessor, it reached the top 10 in numerous countries, including Australia and the UK. Though not released as a single in the US, it reached number 100 on the Billboard Hot 100 due to digital sales. The accompanying music video was directed by Spears herself, who was credited as her alter ego Mona Lisa, and Bille Woodruff. It follows the song's lyrical theme, with Spears and her entourage dancing at a nightclub whilst being stared at by other attendees.
Due to her knee injury and the consequent cancellation of the Onyx Hotel Tour, Spears embarked on a prolonged hiatus from performing. She thus made no televised appearances upon the release of Greatest Hits: My Prerogative, much unlike her heavily promoted previous albums. Spears would not perform live again until the M+M's Tour in May 2007, during which she performed "Do Somethin'" live for the first time, wearing a hot pink bra, a white fur coat and a jean skirt and mimicking the music video's choreography. Following the cancellation of Spears' concert residency Britney: Domination, which was planned for 2019, its creative directors Tabitha and Napoleon D'umo revealed that Spears would have performed "My Prerogative" live for the first time during the residency.
Critical reception
Greatest Hits: My Prerogative received mixed to positive reviews from music critics. Mary Awosika of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune selected "I've Just Begun (Having My Fun)" as the best of the new tracks, and added that "The rest of the album is a romp down memory lane of when Spears was the 'It' girl of popular culture, ruling the pop charts as a multi-million dollar entertainment should. [...] In all honesty, no one can deny Spears has recorded some great dance songs, and this album is the best way to get all the songs in one swoop". Faridul Anwar Farinordin of the New Straits Times said "rest assured, fans will surely grab this one" and selected "Oops!... I Did It Again" and "Overprotected" as the best tracks. Annabel Leathes of BBC Online deemed it "calorific as the KFC burgers dished up at her chav-style wedding; twenty finger lickin' tracks that mirror her trajectory from pretty pop puff to lusty strumpet". Christy Lemire of the Associated Press stated that it was premature for Spears to release a greatest hits album after only five years, but highlighted "I'm a Slave 4 U", "Toxic" and "Everytime". Andy Petch-Jex of MusicOMH highlighted the first four tracks and commented "true some of the tunes are complete pony plops, but beneath the occasional reek there beats a solid gold pop heart". Kitty Empire from The Guardian described the album as "an aural history of the past five years. It leaves you knowing nothing about the woman herself, but plenty about the absurd and joyous strut and fret of contemporary sound confectionery." While reviewing the Greatest Hits: My Prerogative DVD for the same publication, James Griffiths praised Spears as "the ultimate video performer" and described her videography as "MTV video age in human form".