It’s late May, months deep into the country’s extended period of self isolation, but Justin Tranter—coming to me live via Zoom from their Hollywood home—says they’ve just written one of the best songs of their career. Considering that the veteran songwriter has helped pen some of the biggest hits of the past decade—including Justin Bieber’s "Sorry," Imagine Dragons' "Believer" and Selena Gomez’s 2019 chart-topper "Lose You To Love Me"—those words carry real, certifiable weight.

But it’s not hard to believe them when you look at Tranter's track record—just ask Britney Spears, Fall Out Boy, Halsey, Bebe Rexha, Nick Jonas, Cardi B, Gwen Stefani and Janelle Monáe what they think about their GRAMMY-nominated collaborator, a writer whose lyrics are not easily quantifiable beyond, simply, singular and necessary. And it’s equally easy to believe Tranter when they say they’ve actually been artistically thriving lately—"I know that saying that comes from an extreme place of privilege," they’re quick to note—as they enjoy the fruits of time, creativity and the ability to (for once) not overwork themselves.

Beyond their prestigious, prolific songwriting career, Tranter spends much of their time advocating for others. They're a vocal champion for the LGBTQIA+ community, including their continued work with singer Shea Diamond (their Emmy-contending song "I Am America" soundtracks HBO's "We're Here," which was just picked up for a second season) and their spot on the board of GLAAD. Just last year, Tranter received the ACLU of Southern California's Bill of Rights Award. "Justin Tranter has not only redefined popular music through their work with some of the biggest artists on the planet, but has redefined what it means to be an advocate through music," the organization wrote. "As an activist, I wanted the ACLU Bill of Rights Award, and as a songwriter, I want Song of the Year," Tranter says now with a grin.

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They may not be far off. Their work with fellow songwriter Julia Michaels on Selena Gomez’s most recent album, Rare, carries on a fruitful partnership that began with 2015’s Revival. In the last year alone, Tranter has racked up credits on Dua Lipa’s exceptionally well-received sophomore album, Future Nostalgia ("Boys Will Be Boys"), Kesha’s High Road, Camila Cabello’s Romance and Lady Gaga’s long-awaited return to dance-pop, Chromatica ("911" and "Alice")—the latter of whom they’ve known as friends for decades, and even previously opened for on tour with their band Semi Precious Weapons.

Over the course of an hour, Tranter spoke with the Recording Academy about their banner year, songwriting in the time of COVID-19, the importance of intersectionality and protest in Pride’s history and future and more.

Hi Justin!

[noticing my Selena Gomez "Bad Liar" poster behind me] I've never felt more welcome in a Zoom in my life.

How has work been for you now that you’re homebound? I’m sure historically you’ve done some of it remotely anyway.

Exactly. The people that I write with a lot, we're able to figure out ways to do stuff virtually. I'm very heavily involved in the [upcoming] Bebe Rexha album, who's so amazing and such an underrated talent. She sings her ass off. She writes her ass off. And I think on this album the world is finally gonna really see the Bebe that we all know. And since me and Bebe are so close, and most of the songs are done, it’s just doing little tweaks here and there. That’s easy to do.

This week was the first week that I actually had some really successful cowrites over FaceTime. I've had to minimize the amount of people in a session, because us pop queens, we love to have five people in a room. I needed to be like, "OK, someone send us a track and then me and the other songwriter will just write to your track. I can’t have you on FaceTime while we do this, it’s too much."

The Zoom thing is great for conversations, but it has the mute feature, which is so helpful for conversations but not really helpful when you’re trying to hear music. I’m figuring it out, but it just started to click the last couple of days. My thing was: I’ll just work more than anybody, and that’s how I’ll survive in this business. I definitely just said yes to literally everything… why did I say yes to everything? [Laughs.]

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When we entered this period of social distancing a few months ago, did you already have your spring and summer mostly booked?

My schedule is always booked three months out, for the most part. Of course stuff changes because artists have to cancel, but I was pretty much booked through June when this started.

It’s a bummer, but also I try to find the positive in everything. One of the main positives for us super activist radical-type people: we all knew capitalism was a shit show, but this has really just been like… "OK… so you think this is working? Because our essential workers don’t make a living wage, so if this is capitalism’s plan, I think it’s pretty clear now this is the wrong plan."

So much of your career is focused on activism: you’re a GLAAD board member, you’re so supportive of LGBTQIA+ artists and writers and talent behind the scenes. What does Pride look like in 2020 when we can’t actually be together?

My definition of what Pride means—I can’t impose this on anybody else—is to just live your truth at all times. Celebrate your truth. But fight for those in our community that are less fortunate, that are less privileged, that are still being marginalized in many ways. Obviously, Pride started as a protest, and we always have to remember that energy.

I love that Pride has become a celebration, because a celebration of our truth is so important. But we always have to keep in mind the protest part of it. I think that we can do that virtually. It may not feel as crazy, and the celebration part might feel different, and the protest part might not have that community energy where you can literally smell the sweat and you can hear the screams. But I think we can still do that.

One of my favorite artists that I love to work with is a woman named Shea Diamond, a trans singer-songwriter who’s one of the best talents of our time. She makes all her money during Pride season. There are so many amazing people in this world for whom Pride is the time that they actually get hired and celebrated enough that someone cuts them a f**king check.

Obviously we need to be supporting black trans talent all year round. And it’s amazing that there is this season where you know you are getting f**king paid, but now that season is gone for her. A lot of our artistic community survive off of Pride season. Having in-person Pride disappear in that way is really sad, but I think in terms of the celebrations and protests, we can get the job done online.

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You've been vocal on social media about the epidemic of anti-Black police brutality, and ensuing protests, in America. How best can we show up as allies in this moment?

The best way to always be a good ally is to listen and support. Seek out leaders of the BLM movement on social media and listen to everything they are saying and support it. Support it with your voice, with your time, and with your wallet if possible. Also look at your own life, and places where you can make change. How are you hiring at your company? How are you talking to racist family members? Are you spending money at black-owned businesses? Oh, and f**king vote. 

So many members of our LGBTQIA+ community have wisely advised pivoting our Pride efforts this year to supporting the BIPOC communities in America. As someone with extensive advocacy work, in what ways would you advise people looking to help?

Since this is the GRAMMYs, let’s focus on music. Stream black LGBTQ artists. Buy their merch. Share their songs and videos on your socials. Book them and pay them for gigs even if they are virtual. Shea Diamond’s music has always been speaking about what the whole world is finally waking up to in the past few weeks and deserves a million streams a day. VINCINT’s voice, passion and musicality is at the highest level and deserves to be heard on repeat. serpentwithfeet speaks to my soul in ways I never imagined—I’m sure the music will speak to everyone’s soul if they listen. 

You worked with Shea Diamond on the theme song for the new HBO show We’re Here, "I Am America." How did that opportunity come along?

The two creators of the show, Steve Warren and Johnnie Ingram, saw her perform "American Pie" and fell in love and couldn’t believe her talent, her lyricism, her voice, everything. Then, through the magic of the internet, they found out that we worked together. They were like, “Oh my god, the two of you have to write a song for this show.”

We watched the show and me and Shea were actually sitting in this very room, on that couch right there, and I was like, "It still needs to feel like this is your song." We definitely say "we’re here" like four or five different times in the song. "But to make it feel believable, it still needs to feel like your f**king song. If you, Shea Diamond, were gonna write a Pride anthem, what could you say that nobody else could say?” And she was like, "I don’t know… I am America?" I was like, "Welp! Song’s written, bitch! We can go home!"

You had another banner moment just a few months ago with Selena Gomez’s Rare, which found you reuniting with someone whose recent musical career carries so much of your DNA in it. What is it about her that makes you want to keep going back?

First and foremost, she’s a great person. She couldn’t be sweeter. She couldn’t be more honest. I love my job, and there are people that I work with who I make amazing music with, together, and Selena’s one of those people. But she’s also a real friend.

I got the call that I was gonna receive the ACLU Bill of Rights award on the way to the studio to work with her. I was telling her about it because I was excited, and she was like, "Is there anything I can do to help? Do you have someone to present you with the award yet? I would love to do that." So much of my fundraising and advocacy involves having to ask celebrities awkward questions. She’s just one of those people I don’t have to ask. She just was like, "Well I’ll be there. Fierce! What’re we wearing?"

Creatively, what me, Selena, and Julia [Michaels] have together is just so, so, so special. My first hit was Fall Out Boy’s "Centuries," but my first pop hits were all with Selena, which opened the pop doors for me. What me, Julia, and Selena did together has changed my life, time and time again. I’ve been so blessed to have so many songs connect, but only two that’ve gone No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and one of those was Selena.

And she's so honest in the studio. She's like, "Here’s my whole life and here’s my whole feelings, because I trust you with them. Let’s try to make a song." It’s just too fun. She's the best.

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A partnership like that that can be so rare in creative industries. So often those turn out to be, no malice intended, work-for-hire deals. Yours, though, feels like an equal playing field.

It’s so equal and so collaborative. Also, she’s such a great storyteller on the microphone. I think what really sets her apart is she has unbelievable taste, and she’s not afraid to make decisions. She’s like, "'Bad Liar' this is the coolest song ever, this is my single."

Everyone loved "Good For You." She was the one who was like, "This is the first single, everyone please stop talking. This is the song. Thank you!" We are living in a singles era. I think it’s starting to get a little different, because streaming’s leveled the playing field, but we’re still in a singles game. So pop stars can get really nervous about what songs should come first. Selena knows what’s cool, and she knows what she wants to do, and isn’t really worried about whether that is the biggest hit or not. What she’s worried about is: does it tell the story she wants to tell? And because she knows what story she wants to tell, she makes the decision. That is such a priceless gift in any creative industry. Working with her is a dream.

What is it about Lady Gaga, who you just worked with on Chromatica, that checks those same boxes for you?

One listen to "Bad Romance" and not a person alive can deny that Gaga is one of the best songwriters of our time, with one of the clearest perspectives of our time. She checks all the boxes—always has, always will. Having "Alice" and "911" be fan favorites is such an unbelievable, full-circle moment. Seeing the fans that used to tweet my band [Semi Precious Weapons] in 2010 be so excited that we worked on these songs together in 2020 is really special. 

I'm sure you saw last month the #JusticeForGlory campaign that launched Britney Spears' most recent album—on which you cowrote several songs—to the top of the iTunes charts worldwide. What was it like seeing such a masterpiece finally be so publicly warmly regarded?

It’s a f**king trip, I tell you. I love that woman so much. I love her as a fan. I love her as a collaborator. I love her as a vocalist. I knew this was happening because the Britney fandom was letting me know. But obviously Julia [Michaels], having sung hit songs, her social media is way f**king bigger, so she was not aware. She sent me a screenshot of iTunes, and the "Slumber Party" video was either No. 1 or No. 2 and she was like, "Hey, um, what the f**k is going on with ‘Slumber Party’? I’m not complaining, but what is happening?" I was like, "Yeah there’s been this whole campaign..." [Laughs hysterically.]

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I would kick myself if I didn’t ask you about my favorite song on Glory, "Do You Wanna Come Over?" What do you remember about recording that one with her?

Me, Julia, and Mattman & Robin are all signed with Warner Chappell for our publishing. My now business partner Katie Vinten dreamed up this whole amazing [writing] camp in Vegas, and we went. We got invited to see Britney’s show, so we all went.

The next morning, it was Julia’s birthday and she had an early flight, so we had to write quickly so she could pack and get out of there. We wrote "Do You Wanna Come Over?" after seeing her show and being so inspired by it, and what worked in the show and what it needed and what it didn’t. We called Britney’s team and had them come over immediately to listen to it, and then they played it for her and she loved it. Her next day off that she could get back to L.A., we went and recorded it.

That was the first time that we had heard her sing where we were in the room, in the studio. In the most polite way, Britney asked me and Julia to leave because we were freaking out. We were just like, "Oh my god, she sounds so good, that just comes out of her face. She doesn’t put that tone on, that’s just her tone. She just does that." We were literally losing our f**king minds. She was like, "Hey y’all, I don’t want to be rude but… I need to focus. Thank you for the support, but I can’t sing like this." I was like, "Oh, yeah, of course you can’t. No one can sing like that!" [Laughs.]

Putting aside the current pandemic, what does a dream session look like for you?

What I actually have learned from this pandemic is: I’m finding real joy in making every syllable count. As someone who’s mainly a lyricist, that’s what I wanna do now, every day. I don’t have to write every lyric! If the artist is amazing at lyrics, great, but I wanna make sure every fucking syllable counts, and not take for granted the fact that people might listen. I wanna tell that story the best way possible.

That is my new dream, to just creatively really challenge myself. I’m fortunate enough that I’ve had all the different kinds of hits somebody can have. I thought I wanted to just have hits forever and ever, but I’m learning that actually I just want to push myself as a songwriter and as a lyricist. I wanna just really figure out how I can still be excited about this. I find a lot of joy in it now. I feel like a whole new era is about to start.

Shea Diamond Sings "Don't Shoot" For Special Pride Month Edition Of Press Play

"...and you're watching Disney Channel!" For anyone who grew up in the 2000s, those five words likely trigger some pretty vivid imagery: a glowing neon wand, an outline of Mickey Mouse's ears, and every Disney star from Hilary Duff to the Jonas Brothers. 

Nearly 20 years later, many of those child stars remain instantly recognizable — and often mononymous — to the millions of fans who grew up with them: Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato. Nick, Kevin and Joe. 

Each of those names has equally memorable music attached to it — tunes that often wrap any given millennial in a blanket of nostalgia for a time that was, for better or for worse, "So Yesterday." And all of those hits, and the careers that go with them, have the same starting point in Hollywood Records, Disney Music Group's pop-oriented record label.

This time in Disney's history — the core of which can be traced from roughly 2003 to 2010 — was impactful on multiple fronts. With its music-oriented programming and multi-platform marketing strategies, the network launched a procession of teen idols whose music would come to define the soundtrack to millennials' lives, simultaneously breaking records with its Disney Channel Original Movies, TV shows and soundtracks.

Now, two decades later, Disney Music Group launched the Disney 2000s campaign, honoring the pivotal, star-making era that gave fans a generation of unforgettable pop music. The campaign will last through August and lead directly into D23 2024: The Ultimate Fan Event with special vinyl releases of landmark LPs and nostalgic social media activations occurring all summer long. April's campaign activation was Disney 2000s Weekend at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, which featured special screenings of 2008's Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert and 2009's Hannah Montana: The Movie and Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience.

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But before Miley and the JoBros, Hollywood Records' formula for creating relatable (and bankable) teen pop stars began with just one name: Hilary Duff. At the time, the bubbly blonde girl next door was essentially the face of the network thanks to her starring role in "Lizzie McGuire," and she'd just made the leap to the big screen in the summer of 2003 with The Lizzie McGuire Movie. In her years with Disney, Duff had dabbled in recording songs for Radio Disney, and even released a Christmas album under Buena Vista Records. However, her first album with Hollywood Records had the potential to catapult her from charming tween ingénue to bonafide teen pop star — and that's exactly what it did.

Released on August 26, 2003, Duff's Metamorphosis sold more than 200,000 copies in its first week and debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. The following week, the bubblegum studio set performed the rare feat of rising from No. 2 to No. 1, making the then-16-year-old Duff the first solo artist under 18 to earn a No. 1 album since Britney Spears.

The album's immediate success was no fluke: Within a matter of months, Metamorphosis had sold 2.6 million copies. Music videos for its radio-friendly singles "So Yesterday" and "Come Clean" received constant airplay between programming on the Disney Channel. (The latter was eventually licensed as the theme song for MTV's pioneering teen reality series "Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County," giving it an additional boost as a cultural touchstone of the early '00s.) A 33-date North American tour soon followed, and Hollywood Records officially had a sensation on their hands. 

Naturally, the label went to work replicating Duff's recipe for success, and even looked outside the pool of Disney Channel stars to develop new talent. Another early signee was Jesse McCartney. With a soulful croon and blonde mop, the former Dream Street member notched the label another big win with his 2004 breakout hit "Beautiful Soul."

"When 'Beautiful Soul' became the label's first No. 1 hit at radio, I think that's when they really knew they had something," McCartney tells GRAMMY.com. "Miley [Cyrus] and the Jonas Brothers were signed shortly after that success and the rest is history.

"The thing that Disney really excelled at was using the synergy of the channel with promoting songs at pop," he continues. "I did appearances on 'Hannah Montana' and 'The Suite Life of Zack & Cody' and my music videos were pushed to Disney Channel. The marketing was incredibly brilliant and I don't think there has been anything as connected with an entire generation like that since then."

By 2006, Disney had nearly perfected its synergistic formula, continually launching wildly popular tentpole franchises like High School Musical and The Cheetah Girls, and then giving stars like Vanessa Hudgens and Corbin Bleu recording contracts of their own. (Curiously, the pair's HSM co-star Ashley Tisdale was never signed to Hollywood Records, instead releasing her first two solo albums with Warner.) 

Aly Michalka showed off her vocal chops as sunny girl next door Keely Teslow on "Phil of the Future," and fans could find her off-screen as one half of sibling duo Aly & AJ. In between their 2005 debut album Into the Rush and its electro-pop-charged follow-up, 2007's Insomniatic, Aly and her equally talented younger sister, AJ, also headlined their own Disney Channel Original Movie, Cow Belles. (Duff also helped trailblaze this strategy with her own early DCOM, the ever-charming Cadet Kelly, in 2002, while she was simultaneously starring in "Lizzie McGuire.")

Even after years of proven success, the next class of stars became Disney's biggest and brightest, with Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers all joining the network — and record label — around the same time. "Hannah Montana" found Cyrus playing a spunky middle schooler by day and world-famous pop star by night, and the network leveraged the sitcom's conceit to give the Tennessee native (and daughter of '90s country heartthrob Billy Ray Cyrus) the best of both worlds. 

After establishing Hannah as a persona, the series' sophomore soundtrack introduced Miley as a pop star in her own right thanks to a clever double album that was one-half Hannah's music and one-half Miley's. It's literally there in the title: Hannah Montana 2: Meet Miley Cyrus.

From there, Cyrus' stardom took off like a rocket as she scored back-to-back No.1 albums and a parade of Top 10 hits like "See You Again," "7 Things," "The Climb," "Can't Be Tamed," and the ever-so-timeless anthem "Party in the U.S.A."

At the same time, Gomez had top billing on her own Disney Channel series, the magical (but less musical) "Wizards of Waverly Place." That hardly stopped her from launching her own music career, though, first by fronting Selena Gomez & the Scene from 2008 to 2012, then eventually going solo with the release of 2013's Stars Dance after the "Wizards" finale aired.

For her part, Lovato — Gomez's childhood bestie and "Barney & Friends" costar — got her big break playing Mitchie Torres in Camp Rock alongside the Jonas Brothers as fictional boy band Connect 3, led by Joe Jonas as the swaggering and floppy-haired Shane Gray. Much like Duff had five years prior in the wake of The Lizzie McGuire Movie, Lovato released her debut solo album, 2008's Don't Forget, just three months after her DCOM broke records for the Disney Channel. 

Building off their chemistry from the movie musical, nearly the entirety of Don't Forget was co-written with the Jonas Brothers, who released two of their own albums on Hollywood Records — 2007's Jonas Brothers and 2008's A Little Bit Longer — before getting their own short-lived, goofily meta Disney series, "Jonas," which wrapped weeks after the inevitable Camp Rock sequel arrived in September 2010.

As the 2000s gave way to the 2010s, the Disney machine began slowing down as its cavalcade of stars graduated to more grown-up acting roles, music and careers. But from Duff's Metamorphosis through Lovato's 2017 LP, Tell Me You Love Me, Hollywood Records caught lightning in a bottle again and again and again, giving millennials an entire generation of talent that has carried them through adulthood and into the 2020s.

To commemorate the Disney 2000s campaign, GRAMMY.com crafted a playlist to look back on Disney's golden age of pop with favorite tracks from Hilary Duff, Vanessa Hudgens, the Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus and more. Listen and reminisce below.

Theron Thomas has won the GRAMMY for Songwriter Of The Year, Non-Classical at the 66th GRAMMY Awards. 

He beat out Edgar Barrera, Jessie Jo Dillon, Shane McAnally, and Justin Tranter, who hosted the 2024 GRAMMYs Premiere Ceremony, for the award. He was nominated for several hip-hop and R&B hits, including "Been Thinking" by Tyla and "All My Life" by Lil Durk featuring J. Cole. 

Thomas, a native of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, was extremely excited to win the award, shouting into the mic "Let’s go!" 

"My father told me when I was nine years old, Theron, you're gonna win a GRAMMY," he said. 

The win marks Thomas’ first GRAMMY win. He was previously nominated for his work on Lizzo’s "About Damn Time" and "Best Friend" by Saweetie. 

Jimmy Jam gave Thomas the trophy during the GRAMMYs Premiere Ceremony. Thomas is the second-ever winner in this category. Tobias Jesso, Jr. won the first-ever GRAMMY for Songwriter Of The Year last year. 

Keep checking this space for more updates from Music’s Biggest Night!

2024 GRAMMY Nominations: See The Full Winners & Nominees List

Britney Spears recently posted a message on Instagram that asserted she'd never return to the music business. She later deleted it, which could be taken as a sign that she hasn't made this big decision with such finality. But it was certainly an alarming statement to her diehard fans eagerly awaiting new music.

It's fair to hold out hope that Spears will want to be a public entertainer and recording artist again in some ways — after all, she did just release a memoir, The Woman in Me, in October, and the book reveals a healing woman. And, of course, she scored a worldwide hit in 2022 with Elton John in "Hold Me Closer." 

Even if she never releases another piece of music, Spears already has quite the legacy. Between five No. 1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, six No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200, and a GRAMMY win, her mark on pop music is undeniable. Part of that impact is courtesy of "Toxic," the danceable smash that was released as a single in January 2004 (and won Spears her GRAMMY in 2005).

In honor of the 20th anniversary of "Toxic," GRAMMY.com surveyed the pop superstar's hits and deep cuts from 1998 to the present in order to break down some of the most essential tracks in Spears' catalog. Between beautiful ballads and brazen bops, let the reminiscing commence.

"...Baby, One More Time," ...Baby One More Time (1998)

Written and co-produced by powerhouse Swedish pop producer Max Martin — a frequent collaborator throughout Spears' career — the singer's debut single was rewarded with some of the highest honors of the music industry when she was just 17 years old.

"...Baby, One More Time" topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 42nd GRAMMY Awards. It has since sold over 10 million copies, and to this day remains one of her defining hits. (And to think it almost wasn't hers: According to Yahoo! News Australia, the song was reportedly originally offered to the Backstreet Boys.)

The song's instantly meteoric success was undoubtedly catapulted by its memorable video, which sees Spears dance her way through private school halls in a (now iconic) skimpy uniform. Seeing it performed visually cemented her image as a young, belly-baring flirt with girl-next-door looks, approachable style and enviable dancing skills, an archetype that little girls everywhere wanted to emulate.

"Oops!... I Did It Again," Oops!... I Did It Again (2000)

Spears further played with her innocent image on "Oops!... I Did It Again," a sassy song that suggests suitors aren't exactly safe with their heart in her hands. It was nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 43rd GRAMMYs.

"I think I did it again," she sings at the top of the track. "I made you believe we're more than just friends." Spawning another classic video and another trademark look (this time, a red catsuit), "Oops" emphasized Spears' further pivot into naughtiness and had thousands learning her choreography in a pre-YouTube era. 

Another Max Martin and Rami Yacoub production, "Oops" stuck at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100, but the album of the same name debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and set first-week records for sales by a woman artist at the time with 1,319,913 copies sold.

"Lucky," Oops!... I Did It Again (2000)

"Lucky" is a peppy song with a sprinkle of sadness on top. Its titular character is a Hollywood girl who seems to have it all, but there's no one to share her success with, so she is lonely and cries at night. It was a poignant sentiment, given her fame at the time, and was re-examined by fans in recent years as she fought for freedom from her conservatorship overseen by her father, Jamie Spears.

While it didn't manage to break the top 20 of the Hot 100, "Lucky" has always been a fan favorite. The song did break through internationally, though, becoming a No. 1 hit in three European countries as well as on Europe's overall pop chart.

"Dear Diary," Oops!... I Did It Again (2000)

Spears has worked with a global roster of songwriters and producers over the years, but the Oops! ballad "Dear Diary" marked a special moment for the star: it was the first album cut that she co-wrote.

While Oops!... I Did It Again largely showed a maturing Spears, the innocence and sweetness of "Dear Diary" served as a reminder that she was still just a teenager in the beginning of her stardom. The track also seemingly gave her the confidence to co-write more of her songs, as she had a hand in writing almost half of 2001's Britney and almost all of 2003's In the Zone.

"I'm a Slave 4 U," Britney (2001)

Spears went rather gritty on the lead single to her third, self-titled album. While earlier singles may have had a sexy wink within their words, the lyrics of "I'm a Slave 4 U" took a deeper plunge into the erotic zone. "All you people look at me like I'm a little girl," she sings defensively. "Well, did you ever think it'd be okay for me to step into this world?"

Along with the racy lyrics, Spears' visual performances of the song — a music video depiction of a steamy basement club night and a VMA performance that included dancing with an Albino Burmese python around her neck — added more cultural moments to her repertoire. 

"Overprotected," Britney (2001)

Spears' massive fame made her an early paparazzi magnet and led her to be sheltered by her management, record label and family. These topics are addressed head-on over the soaring notes of "Overprotected."

"Say hello to the girl that I am/ You're gonna have to see through my perspective," she declares on the opening verse. "I need to make mistakes just to learn who I am/ And I don't wanna be so damn protected."

The anthem foreshadowed her future hit "Piece of Me" — and the struggle for independence she'd later fight for during her conservatorship — but ultimately showed that she isn't afraid to speak her mind and fight for what's hers.

"I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman," Britney (2001)

After two bold statements with Britney's first two singles ("I'm a Slave 4 U" and "Overprotected"), Spears pumped the brakes on the notion of her growing up too fast in the ballad "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman." The song appeared on her third album, Britney, and in the soundtrack for the road trip dramedy Crossroads.

"There is no need to protect me," she sings powerfully on the track, which appears to mirror her experience in real life at that moment in time. "It's time that I/ Learn to face up to this on my own/ I've seen so much more than you know now/ So don't tell me to shut my eyes." 

"Toxic," In the Zone (2003)

"Toxic" is an uptempo whirlwind of sampled Bollywood strings and Swedish pop drama crafted by the popular dance pop producers Bloodshy & Avant. Another single that took on a life of its own visually, the video served up another set of iconic looks: the deadly assassin, the sparkly nude bodysuit and the perky flight attendant.

"Toxic" remains Spears' biggest hit as of press time, now certified six-times platinum by the RIAA and the only song with more than one billion streams on Spotify. It also won Spears her one GRAMMY, for Best Dance Recording at the 47th GRAMMY Awards.

And 20 years after its release as a single, "Toxic" has had remarkable staying power on the pop charts. As of 2023, the song appeared on the Hot 100 in three different incarnations: the original track and the mash-ups "Toxic Pony" by Altégo and "Toxic Las Vegas" by Jamieson Shaw. 

"Everytime," In the Zone (2003)

By this era of Spears' discography, fans were more than used to autotune and other processed treatments on her singing — but "Everytime" is Spears in a more vulnerable and unplugged state. Co-written by Spears, the slow, melancholic ballad hit even harder because it was released after her public breakup with Justin Timberlake.

Fans hadn't heard anything quite as sad from Spears in her career as the pining lyrics of the chorus on "Everytime": "And every time I try to fly I fall/ Without my wings/ I feel so small/ I guess I need you, baby." The song became a fan favorite for the rawness of her vocal delivery, and was also a personal favorite for Spears during her Las Vegas concert residency.

"Womanizer," Circus (2008)

Spears' father began his role as her conservator in February 2008. Seven months later, she released "Womanizer," the lead single to her sixth album, Circus — which proved that no one was going to hold her down.

"You say I'm crazy," she sneers on the chorus of the engine-roaring uptempo track, which pokes fun at recent troubles with her ex-husband Kevin Federline. "I got your crazy!" she adds, sarcastically.

While the song's message focused on telling off a, well, womanizer, its commercial success showed Spears' new conservatorship meant nothing for her staying power. "Womanizer" was her first No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 since "...Baby, One More Time" topped the chart in January 1999; it also earned Spears her seventh GRAMMY nomination, for Best Dance Recording at the 2010 GRAMMYs.

"If You Seek Amy," Circus (2008)

If the title to the sing-songy "If You Seek Amy" is said out loud, it sounds like a sexual proposition. And that's exactly what makes this Max Martin-produced track so enjoyable.

Despite everything she was experiencing in her personal life, it offered evidence that Spears still knew how to poke fun at her staying at the center of attention. It's a perfect time capsule to an era when she was most wanted by the paparazzi.

"Hold It Against Me," Femme Fatale (2011)

Spears' "Hold It Against Me" flips an old chauvinistic joke into girl power — another clever piece added to the singer's puzzle. After being objectified so much over the course of her career, this song was her bid to put an end to it.

"Hold It Against Me" continued Spears' late 2000s hot streak into the 2010s. It earned the singer her fourth No. 1 on the Hot 100, following the chart-topping success of "3," her cheeky ode to threesomes, in 2009. 

"Work B—," Britney Jean (2013)

Spears assumes a faux British accent for "Work B—," a bossy cut made for gyms or the club. "You want a hot body? You want a Bugatti? You want a Maserati?" she asks over an insistent beat. "You better work, b—… now get to work, b—!"

Shortly after the track was released in 2013, Spears told English talk show host Alan Carr that the song is a tribute to her gay male friends, with whom she uses the word b— playfully and affectionately as a term of endearment. It became both a gay club anthem and a top 20 hit on the Hot 100 chart, and the video revived interest in Spears' dancing chops.

"Slumber Party (feat. Tinashe), Glory (2016)

A slightly different sound for Spears compared to her pop and dance productions, "Slumber Party" features Tinashe with a lyrical cadence that is more in the R&B singer's realm. It's perhaps the Spears song with the most urban radio feel since "I'm a Slave 4 U."

Fans may also remember "Slumber Party" fondly for what was once a romantic reason: Spears' now ex-husband Sam Asghari was cast as the leading man in the lingerie-heavy music video; it's how they first met each other.

"Hold Me Closer" with Elton John, The Lockdown Sessions (2022)

What better way to celebrate a big feat than with a massive collaboration? Nine months after Spears' long-fought conservatorship was terminated, she dropped a team-up with none other than Sir Elton John.

The unexpected duo released "Hold Me Closer," a soaring duet that interpolates parts of John's beloved hits "Tiny Dancer," "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" and "The One" into a singular modern mix. And though Spears is more of a background vocalist, her first release in six years marked quite the comeback: "Hold Me Closer" topped the Billboard Adult Top 40 and the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs charts, and reached No. 6 on the Hot 100.

As of press time, "Hold Me Closer" is the last song that Spears has released to date. While it's possible that there may not be any more recordings to follow, it's also safe to say she has surprised the world more than once before.

How Many GRAMMYs Has Britney Spears Won? 10 Questions About The "Hold Me Closer" Singer Answered

A quick Google search of "top 2004 songs" can be summarized simply: What a time to be alive.

While it was arguably the year of Usher — who scored four Billboard Hot 100 chart-toppers in 2004, including the year's biggest song, the Lil Jon- and Ludacris-assisted "Yeah!" — there were countless hits that have aged impeccably. Even 20 years later, there isn't a dance floor or karaoke bar that wouldn't go wild for J-Kwon's "Tipsy" or Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone."

Whether you were jamming to them on your iPod Mini or ripping them off of Limewire, revisit 24 tracks that made an impact — and still serve up the vibes 20 years later.

Listen on Spotify, Amazon Music, or Apple Music below.