She must confess ... it's been 16 years since Britney Spears released "...Baby One More Time," her biggest hit ever. The song reached No. 1 in every country where it charted, is one of the best-selling singles of all time, and almost singlehandedly made tiny braids and the schoolgirl look cool.
Think about this one for a while: The song is now as old as Spears was when she first sang it.
On Sept. 30, the song's official anniversary, Spears remembered the day by sharing a Instagram picture of her first single, wishing the tune a sweet 16, thanking her fans and wondering where the years went.
We don't know many schools that would let students get away with the belly-baring tied-off shirt Spears sported in the famous video, but in 2000, she defended it as a weather-related necessity. "I'm from the South, you're stupid if you don't wear a sports bra (when you) go to dance class, you're going to be sweating your butt off," Spears told MTV.
And if you think you recognize the high school in the video, you're hopelessly devoted to musical trivia. That's California's Venice High (see the V in the center of the basketball court), which stood in for Rydell High in the 1978 hit "Grease."
Even TODAY anchors Natalie, Willie and Tamron joined in on the celebration during TODAY's Take on #Throwback Thursday.
"This was provocative 16 years ago and then we get 'Anaconda' from Nicki Minaj," Tamron said while watching the music video.
"She changed the way we think about schoolgirl outfits forever," Willie said.