Britney Spears' 'Oops!... I Did It Again' Turns 16: Facts You Didn't Know

It's official: Britney Spears' Oops!... I Did It Again is 16-years-old.

In an era that saw labels produce an avalanche of prepackaged pop stars using her formula, Britney led the pack for females from the minute she burst on the scene in late 1998. Still, the folks at Jive Records were determined to prove that the then-17-year-old star was far more than just a pigtails-rocking flash in the pan than her debut presented, so in came her sophomore effort, Oops!... I Did It Again, only about a year later.

Released on May 16, 2000, the tightly-produced collection, which spurred pop classics like the set's title track, "Lucky" and "Stronger," helped emphasize what's known today as the Britney-esque sound over the course of 12 songs and the impact was everywhere. While criticism surrounding vocal talents only grew stronger, there was no undermining her star quality or performance capability, particularly when she delivered an intense mix of athleticism and sexual ferocity at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards. Do we need to remind you of the diamond-encrusted nude ensemble? We think not. 

In honor of the LP's Sweet 16 anniversary, iHeartRadio decided to take a walk down memory lane, grab a copy of the CD and revisit the blockbuster album. We sifted through old interviews, spoke with former collaborators and even took a glance at the album artwork, you know, the paper pages inside the jewel case that you used to read. Take a look below!

1. Not only did Max Martin produce a majority of the songs on Oops, but he also voiced that geeky astronaut that pops up mid-way on the title track. Cue your "Britney, before you go, there's something I want you to have" imitation.

2. Years before her 2004 cover of "My Prerogative," Britney (or at least her 2000 album sessions) crossed paths with R&B singer Bobby Brown. If you take a look at the production credits, you'll notice that Bobby is credited as one of the assistant recording engineers on the project.

3. There's a batch of famed songwriting credits on the LP, including Shania Twain and her then-husband/producer Robert "Mutt" Lange ("Don't Let Me Be The Last To Know"), Diane Warren ("When Your Eyes Say It") and even Britney herself ("Dear Diary" was her very first foray into the writing game). Mick Jagger and Keith Richards also make appearances, courtesy of Darkchild's makeover of The Rolling Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction."

4. Even though her cover of "Satisfaction" was panned by critics, the song was a glimpse of Britney's authoritative nature. As the story goes, B used to listen to the 1965 classic with her girlfriends when she was younger, so she approached her record label to cover the song. After they shut down the idea, she went ahead and recorded the song anyway.

5. There's also another cover song on Oops if you own one of the various imports of the LP. Britney's rendition of The Jets' 1986 "You Got It All" (from her ...Baby One More Time sessions) appears as a bonus cut on alternate import editions of the album.

6. Jason Blume, the co-writer of "Dear Diary," told iHeartRadio that the original ending of the song involved a guy cheating on her, but the label didn't like that kind of outro, so he wrote six alternative endings and ended up meeting with Britney to work on lyrics for an idea she had to offer.

7. Blume went on to admit that B's raspy inflection made it sound like she was singing "dear diarrhea," so that one took quite a few takes to get right.

8. No one really knows when Britney and Justin officially became a thing, but Blume admitted that JT was actually in the studio during the recording of "Dear Diary." "You don't fly yourself to another city with somebody unless you're pretty involved," he explained of the then-rumored couple. "It was obvious. She just lit up when he walked in the room."

9. Speaking of Pinky and Stinky, the last portion of the album's liner notes is completely worth revisiting. "And lastly, as I sit here twisting my hair - so wishing it was yours - thinking of if there is any way to thank you for all the lifts, smiles, and surprise visits. You will be a part of my heart and soul ALWAYS!!!" she wrote.

10. Britney was not a fan of her 15-year-old self on the cover of ...Baby One More Time. In fact, she "hated" the girly shot so much that she made sure that she had a say in the cover for Oops. Even though she initially wanted legendary photographer Herb Ritts to shoot the album campaign, she ended up with Jon Ragel for the beaded curtain shot.

11. Britney recorded half of the album in just one week.  During her 2000 Rolling Stone cover story, she acknowledged that the process was rushed. "The new album is really hot, but I just know how much better it could be," she said. "I think about the third album, and I'm so excited because I know I'll be able to have, like, six months. I want to be able to be in the studio 24/7 and just do my thing. I won't be having to do the commercials and all that. I'll just be motivated by one thing."

12. Does Britney prefer "...Baby One More Time" or "Oops!... I Did It Again"? Back in 2000, she chose the latter, admitting that the future pop anthem was better than her debut single.

13. Even though Britney only had one writing credit on the LP, she still had a lot of say in vocal production. Album collaborator Barry Eastmond told iHeartRadio that she "tried a lot of different melody ideas" during album sessions. "Britney does some melodic riffs that show her upper range as well. I was very impressed at how hard she worked on these vocals. I think we worked six hours one day and then she came back the next day and sang for another three hours," he said of his work on "Dear Diary."

14. In the early 2000s, B might have received a lot of flack for her rack, but in her defense, her figure was just an occasional illusion. Speaking with Allure, she confessed that designers sewed in fake boobs into her now iconic red vinyl catsuit from the "Oops!... I Did It Again" video because she didn't exactly fit into the one-piece. "I had to wear those fake boobs, but then they started falling down and I was so humiliated. We ended up having to sew them in," she explained.

15. Oh, and in case you weren't aware, Oops!... I Did It Again held the title for the biggest first-week sales for a female artist in the United States for 15 years. It sold a whopping 1,319,000 copies in the first seven days of release and was only dethroned last year by Adele's massive selling 25, which moved 3.38 million copies.

16. B used to make up melodies in her head and jot down journey entries or leave voice memos for her producers. "The more and more I did it, the better I got," she said of the melody creations.

Photo: Wendy George for iHeartRadio