Entertainment

Britney Vs. Christina: Who Was The Better Dancer?

by James Tison

Ever since they graduated from the Mickey Mouse Club back in 1995 and skyrocketed to the topmost echelons of pop stardom in the late 90's, the media has loved to pit Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears against each other. Particularly when they first began, reports of an apparent feud between the two artists were common in everything from supermarket tabloids to school playgounds. Even I had many an elementary school argument about which diva reigned supreme! However, in reality, the two artists have such a completely different set of skills that it's unrealistic to compare them, talent-wise. However, that doesn't mean that you can't pit them against one another when it comes to their dance routines — I mean, a little competition is healthy, right?

Different though they may be, both pop stars made dancing a huge part of their early career brands (watch any of their music videos in the first five years and you'll see what I'm talking about). Their voices are different, their styles are different, their music is different — but the dancing is very, very similar. So, who did it better?

To answer this question, I thought it best to examine the first five years of their videography, comparing the videos for each artist's most dance-heavy videos year by year. Rest assured, you may think you already know the answer, but the competition is much closer than you think.

So let's once again ask ourselves that age old question — Christina or Britney?

1999

Britney Spears, "Crazy"

While a lot of the video focuses on Melissa Joan Hart trying to bartend while Adrien Grenier works it as a DJ, Britney gets some pretty sick moves in on the club floor — particularly the octopus walk seen above.

Christina Aguilera, "Genie In A Bottle"

Honestly, Xtina does more rolling around in the sand than she does dancing in this video, and the dance moves she does are pretty basic. Gotta love those incredibly literal genie prayer hands at the end, though.

Britney: Plus 10 pointsChristina: Plus 1 point for the genie hands

2000

Britney Spears, "Oops!... I Did It Again"

Does Britney Spears have the better outfit and hair here? Obviously — but this isn't an outfit and hair competition, it's a DANCE competition! I see a whole lot of arms and not much else.

Christina Aguilera, "Come On Over Baby (All I Want Is You)"

As you can see, Christina Aguilera's really stepped up her game here. The backup dancers are doing a lot of the work for her... but at the very least she's not literally pumping her hands over her chest every time she says the word "heart."

Britney: Plus 3 points for outfit; minus 2 points for heart handsChristina: Plus 10 points

2001

Britney Spears, "I'm A Slave 4 U"

No more red jumpsuits; in fact, from the looks of it, no more clothes, period! Britney's sexing it up big time, and using her body in all kinds of ways. Obvious winner!

Christina Aguilera, "Lady Marmalade" (With Lil' Kim, Mya, & Pink)

Despite the fact that all five women involved in this reboot of the Patti LaBelle classic are trained dancers, the video went more for sass and sex than actual dancing. Literally, Christina walking towards the camera and throwing a fit in front of her dressing room mirror are her best dance moves in this video.

Britney: Plus 10 pointsChristina: No points added

2002

Britney Spears, "Boys"

I love a hair flip and a chest shake as much as the next guy, but she sure does an awful lot of both in this video...

Christina Aguilera, "Dirrty"

Fierce! Beneath the hair extensions, mud wrestling, and crotchless chaps in this video is a fierce and sensual dancer bursting to come forth. Point to Christina!

Britney: No points addedChristina: Plus 10 points

2003

Britney Spears, "Me Against The Music" (Feat. Madonna)

There's a lot of impressive choreography in this video, but the scene where Madonna and Britney dance around an empty bed is particularly enthralling.

Christina Aguilera, "Can't Hold Us Down"

What's funny is that there's actually a lot of amazing dancing in this video, but none of it comes from Christina. Mostly she just stands around and points at other dancers to be like, "Damn, that's some good dancing!" (In case you weren't sure, that's Christina with the black hair and booty shorts on the right).

Britney: Plus 10 points, 31 points totalChristina: Plus 4 points for curating good dancers, 25 points totalMadonna: Plus 90 points for being Madonna

Total

Britney: 31 points totalChristina: 25 points total

So there you have it! Britney Spears, the queen of pop, is also the queen of epic dancing. (As per usual, however, Madonna really wins the war through no other virtue than being Madonna.)

Images: Giphy (10)