Britney Spears Hits Us One More Time With a 20th Anniversary Tribute to Her Debut Album

Bust out the schoolgirl outfits and fuzzy scrunchies because it's the 20th anniversary of Britney Spears's debut album, . . . Baby One More Time! That's right, on Jan. 12, 1999, the world was officially introduced to the musical talents of the pop star, who was just 17 years old at the time. Two decades later, Britney remembers the release that launched her career and made her one of the most influential pop stars of the new millennium.

On Saturday, she shared a throwback photo of her album cover and wrote a sweet tribute to her premiere soundtrack. "Can you believe that this album was released 20 years ago today??!!" she captioned the post. "I can't. It's definitely been the journey of a lifetime, full of ups and downs, but I'm grateful for every single moment of it all." She also addressed her dedicated fans, adding, "Getting to know you all over the years has been such an incredible experience, and has made this all worth it. Thank you for your support from 20 years ago, all the way to today. I am blessed."

The album, which features popular songs such as "From the Bottom of My Broken Heart" and "Deep in My Heart," was a huge success for the young singer. In 1999, the hit track ". . . Baby One More Time" won a Teen Choice award for choice single. The following year, the soundtrack was nominated as the international album of the year at the Juno Awards show. It also earned a nomination in the favorite CD category at the Blockbuster Entertainment Awards event. That same year, the Guinness Book of World Records dubbed it the bestselling album by a teenage solo artist. It's now sold more than 25 million copies worldwide, making it one of the bestselling albums of all time.

So, yeah, this is a pretty important day. Celebrate 20 years of Britney with these iconic photos of her from 1999, then check out some of the best music videos of her career.