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[Jade]

20. Britney Spears - I'm A Slave 4 U
(chart-run: 4-7-12-20-23-36-44-57-51-48-48-49-59-72)

19. Groove Armada - Superstylin'
(chart-run: 12-16-28-41-56-75-67R(2))

18. The Supermen Lovers - Starlight (feat. Mani Hoffman)
(chart-run: 2-3-7-12-15-19-24-27-35-42-46-56-62-69-75R(3)-70)

17. Basement Jaxx - Romeo
(chart-run: 6-11-13-17-24-32-35-44-52-60)

16. Riva - Who Do You Love Now? (Stringer) (feat. Dannii Minogue)
(chart-run: 3-5-10-17-20-19-19-24-32-42-46-45-56-67-64)



Kicking off the top 20 is Britney Spears with 'I'm A Slave 4 U'! I was reminded of this exact song just this morning so this is pretty good timing. I was watching some Glee episodes with my brother a few hours ago (we both have the day off work!) and the Season 2 episode Britney/Brittany was one of them. In this episode, Heather Morris' character Brittany has her first solo with 'I'm A Slave 4 U'. It was a memorable launchpad for sure with a daring song, many iconic looks squeezed in and a fantastic opportunity to showcase her dancing talent. This episode was filmed almost 10 years after Britney initially shocked the world with it. In 2001, it was time for Britney's third era 'Britney', my second favourite album of hers after 'In The Zone'. Up to this point, Britney had flashes of the shock factor, such as the school-girl uniform idea for the '...Baby One More Time' video. But generally, she was seen as America's sweetheart who made fun pop music and was idolised by young girls. Well, this was all about to change. 'I'm A Slave 4 U' marked a departure from the 'girl next door' image to a far more provocative look for Britney. At this point she was 19 years old and in her own eyes she was just naturally growing up, but others were not so understanding. She received huge backlash from The Parents Association of America, plus other conservative outlets, due to the controversy of 'I'm A Slave 4 U'. Britney hit back by saying: "I can never win, when I did '...Baby One More Time' they were saying I was too controversial, so you can never win." Despite the initial reaction, the song and its accompanying visuals have gone down well in pop culture history. The song and video are now seen as "groundbreaking" and became influential for other stars - with the likes of Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez and Lindsay Lohan citing 'Slave' as an influence on their own material. 'I'm A Slave 4 U' is about Britney wanting to forget about everything and just go out and dance. So she's a 'slave' to the rhythm essentially. The song, as well as Britney's other hit 'Boys' from this era, was initially offered to Janet Jackson. She turned them down so it was Britney who made them her own instead. I could definitely imagine Janet singing both! But it does feel weird to imagine a Britney back catalogue without 'Slave' in it. Besides, Janet was doing just fine at that point with her 'All For You' era. Unfortunately for Britney, 'I'm A Slave 4 U' only managed to chart at #27 on the Billboard Hot 100. It at least managed a far more impressive #4 peak here in the U.K. I feel like its impact far outweighs whatever chart position it received in the States. The music video for this single was a brilliant demonstration of her dancing skills. The choreography for the breakdown in particular is iconic! The VMAs performance in 2001 was also a memorable moment in this campaign, as Britney performed with a python around her shoulders. It was controversial for sure and was heavily criticised by animal rights organisations. It is still talked about to this day as a standout VMAs performance. At just 19, Britney was an effortless talking point with her antics. She was a pop star who wasn't afraid to be a little different and have her own visions. We were previously used to bubblegum pop Britney songs with insanely catchy melodies. But the 'Britney' era marked a shift in sound, with 'Slave' for instance relying less on melodies and more on the hypnotic R&B beats. It was Pharrell and Chad Hugo of The Neptunes who worked their magic on this one. 'I'm A Slave 4 U' is a mysterious club banger that feels like a refreshing switch-up for Britney after listening to her first two albums. Every element is entrancing from the slightly off-kilter production to Britney's breathy vocals. She turned this lead single into a real pop culture moment with the associated looks, choreography and live performances. This was such an underrated era for singles - with the likes of 'Boys', 'I'm Not A Girl Not Yet A Woman' and 'Overprotected' taking a back seat in her singles discography these days. 'I'm A Slave 4 U' feels like the most appreciated single from 'Britney' in the long-run but of course was robbed of a better peak originally. This era truly deserves more love, well, minus 'I Love Rock 'n' Roll'

I'm feeling a little burned out just from writing so much about Britney but the show must go on! These incoming paragraphs, that will still be a respectable length really, will feel pitiful following that. But hey, there always seems to be a lot of fanfare and information about Britney lead singles. Anyway, let me mentally move on from that one now. Next at #19 is another club-ready hit! 'Superstylin' is Groove Armada's second appearance in my countdown so far. The first time was of course 'At The River' back when I was covering 1999, thanks to its re-release that year. These two songs are worlds apart sonically. 'At The River' was a sample-heavy ambient offering, while 'Superstylin' is all down to the vocal talents of MC M.A.D. and has boundless energy. He is Groove Armada's long-time vocalist and really is the heart of this song. As ever, Groove Armada offer their irresistible house grooves, but he provided a more cross-genre sound for the song, with additional dancehall, reggae and dub layers. Finally, the bassline is executed in a speed garage style which charges the song forward in a dynamic fashion. It feels like a very unifying, upbeat song and this is only amplified through the video. The visuals start with a Groove Armada interview where they talk about rhythm being a language understood by all and this sets the tone for the rest of the video. It's a real celebration of music. There's a bright, summery feel to it which feels perfect for the sound of 'Superstylin' and its initial August release date. We had the likes of 'Lady (Hear Me Tonight)' and 'Groovejet' soundtracking the previous summer and now this is standing out as one of the most essential summer songs of 2001 so far. I'm not entirely sure how I discovered 'Superstylin' but I do recall being instantly hooked thanks to its addictive nature and my love for dance music. It still refuses to get even the slightest bit tiring. Groove Armada aren't really up there with the likes of Basement Jaxx and The Chemical Brothers with output that I consistently adore, but they really do have their moments and this is one of them. 'Superstylin' was their biggest hit to date with its #12 peak. It would take 6 more years for them to achieve a top 10 single or two!

At #18 we have the song with the highest peak in this section! This is 'Starlight' by The Supermen Lovers. He is joined by Mani Hoffman on vocals. 'Starlight' managed to chart as high as #2 back in the day. You may be wondering what blocked it from the top. Well, this was actually Bob The Builder with 'Mambo No.5'. Mess. The Supermen Lovers would unfortunately remain a one-hit-wonder, as this was his only top 40 hit, but the #2 peak is nothing to be sniffed at. This feels well remembered all these years on too. The YouTube comments are filled with people rediscovering this as they get older after remembering the music video back in the day. I can definitely see why this would be the case! It revolves around an animated potato so that already feels like a standout selling point. There's something a little creepy about the animation too. Anyway, this potato feels frustrated when his potato parents seem uninterested in his song-writing talents and instead are distracted by the talent on the TV. But he soon finds a mouse friend who also has a knack for song-writing and the two become a duo. They end up on TV together and are noticed by aliens. Again, casual. These aliens like what they see and decide that they want the potato and mouse to join them on their planet. However, it's a sad ending as only the mouse can fit on the spaceship, so potato's dreams are crushed once more. Ouch! For such an upbeat song this is quite an exhausting video. I suppose it could act as a representation of the highs and lows of fame. That would make sense as the lyrics seem to point towards themes of wanting to be a star. Hoffman delivers a really soulful vocal performance and sells the song with ease. The chorus is stupendously catchy. Plus The Supermen Lovers delivers some incredibly funky French House / nu-disco production that makes it feel all the more uplifting. The potato video was something I have not thought about in a while... I'm perfectly happy to return to this song in isolation again going forward.

Next up at #17 is Basement Jaxx with 'Romeo'! They still have another appearance coming later in 2001 as well. But first, it's time to shine the spotlight on the lead single from their sophomore studio album 'Rooty'. This felt like a smart choice of single to kick off the campaign. 'Romeo' still has Basement Jaxx's house charms to it but feels decidedly less manic than their usual output and adopts more of a commercial dance-pop style. Its catchy sing-a-long chorus would soon be a winner with the public and bagged the duo another top 10 single, as 'Romeo' peaked at #6. It definitely feels like one of their signature songs all of these years later. I still catch it on Radio 1 sometimes during their 'Anthems' show and Kisstory are of course intent on spamming it. 'Romeo' is about a lover who blows hot and cold. One minute, this guy is romantic and doting, but the next he doesn't treat her so well. The female in the equation has had enough and quickly states that "You know I wish you'd make your mind up". R&B singer Kele Le Roc is the lady behind the vocals and provides a sassy performance that vents these frustrations perfectly. The music video, like the song, is also less crazy than what Basement Jaxx usually have to offer. But it's very enjoyable all the same, as it pays tribute to Bollywood films and sees Indian actress Divya Dutta leading a dance troupe. Like the song, the visuals show frustrations - as Dutta can be seen crying over her man at one point. But generally, I feel like the whole package has an over-arching feel-good message, with the empowering "let it all go" lyric and the unifying dancing in the video. It's a must have in the stellar Basement Jaxx singles catalogue. It not only proved popular with the public, but also on BuzzJack, as it finished 5th in my Basement Jaxx - 'The Singles' rate last year.

Rounding off this section is 'Who Do You Love Now? (Stringer)' by Riva featuring Dannii Minogue! I have BuzzJack to thank for my appreciation of this song. Back in 2015, two different sources lead me to this at around the same time. One was through my very own 'One Hit Wonders of the Millennium' thread as Radio 1 chose this as one of their picks. Dannii Minogue is of course not one of those but it was the only charting single for the Riva project. This would pop up again on BuzzJack thanks to the 00s dance BJSC spin-off, which was the first ever spin-off that I entered on the forum. I quickly fell in love with this song and it remains the best that Dannii has ever been involved with. I think 'I Begin To Wonder' was the first of hers that I was introduced to, thanks to SingStar, but this was quite late on as well - really I knew her as a TV personality first, thanks to her X Factor judging stint. It was sister Kylie whose material I was a lot more familiar with. But this song changed everything and swiftly became a Dannii essential. Riva was a project of Dutch DJs Zki & Dobre who also formed the Chocolate Puma project - more about that later as they have a song under that group name that is still to come for 2001! I guess they had different projects for differing musical styles, as the Chocolate Puma song on the way is more house leaning while 'Who Do You Love Now? (Stringer)' is most definitely a trance song. It was originally born under the title 'Stringer' as an instrumental, but then Dannii Minogue jumped on it with her vocals and 'Who Do You Love Now? (Stringer)' was born. The instrumental, in all its trance glory, is very intense. I do think a vocal version was the right way to go, as Dannii's vocals particularly make the chorus soar. The lyrics are quite scathing, particularly: "You're still promising perfection, with empty words". But this scornful take matches the dark edges of the production well. It takes anger and flips it into a dancefloor staple. This section was full of even-number peaks until we got to 'Who Do You Love Now? (Stringer)', that broke the streak with its impressive #3 peak. Dannii would later better this with the aforementioned 'I Begin To Wonder' at #2.