LAS VEGAS, NV – MAY 22: Singer Britney Spears attends the 2016 Billboard Music Awards at T-Mobile … [+]
It’s been years since Britney Spears last released new music, and it might be quite some time before she does so again. The singer was recently released from a decade-plus-long conservatorship, and she is seemingly happy living her life. There have been suggestions that she might not record for a long while, but surprisingly, that hasn’t stopped her from scoring a new hit on the Billboard charts. In fact, this week, she not only earns another placement on two tallies, but she reaches one of them for the first time in her career, adding to her already-historic discography.
A new song titled “Toxic Pony” debuts on two Billboard charts this week, and Spears is one of the three artists named on the tune. The track is a mashup of Spear’s “Toxic” and R&B powerhouse Ginuwine’s “Pony,” and it is credited to both of those stars as well as the remixer Altego. Spears and Ginuwine likely had nothing to do with the creation of the tune, but since it’s their voices and melodies, Altego included them properly, and now they’ve all landed wins on a pair of lists.
“Toxic Pony” rises highest on the R&B Digital Song Sales chart, the weekly ranking of the bestselling tunes in America that can be classified as R&B. On that tally, the mashup starts at No. 7, earning not only the loftiest beginning, but the only debut of the frame. The Grammy-winning pop star has appeared on dozens of Billboard rosters throughout her decades as one of the most famous women in the music industry, but many genre-specific options have evaded her, for obvious reasons.
The same track starts at No. 17 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales chart, which includes many of the tunes featured on the R&B Digital Song Sales ranking as well as those labeled as either hip-hop or rap. While she was never known for crafting hip-hop cuts in her prime, Spears has actually appeared on the more all-encompassing purchase-only tally before. In 2013, a remix of Will.I.Am’s hit “Scream & Shout,” which originally featured Spears, spent one week at No. 19. The reworking also credited Hit Boy, Waka Flocka Flame, Lil Wayne and Diddy, making it more appropriate for that list. “Toxic Pony” brings Spears to a new high point on that roster.
“Toxic Pony” also gives Altego his first hits on the Billboard charts mentioned, but Ginuwine has found space on them before. On the R&B Digital Song Sales ranking, he lands his second top 10, as “Pony,” one of the two tunes featured in the new smash, once rose as high as No. 4. The same cut lifted to No. 10 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Song Sales list.
It is becoming more common for rising producers in various genres to remix, cover or somehow rework beloved smashes and to credit the original artist on the new composition. Should those tunes become popular enough on streaming sites or digital download stores, the first act can enjoy a new win on the Billboard charts, usually without lifting a finger. Fellow stars like Travis Scott and Madonna have also earned hits in the past few months as other artists borrow their music and make it feel fresh again.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2022/02/01/britney-spears-reaches-a-billboard-chart-for-the-first-time-with-a-surprising-new-hit/