• Duration: June 28, 1999 – September 15, 1999
• Shows: 56
• Photos: Click here

The …Baby One More Time Tour was Britney’ debut headlining concert tour, and promoted her similarly titled first album. Spears designed the stage and worked on the fashion with Gia Ventola. During the 1999 concerts, Spears sang a number of cover versions by well-known artists such as Madonna, Janet Jackson and Journey. The tour received mostly positive reviews from critics, who called Spears’s performance “assured and energetic”.

Set List

1. “(You Drive Me) Crazy”
2. “Soda Pop”
3. “Born to Make You Happy”
4. “From the Bottom of My Broken Heart”
5. “Vogue” (Dance Interlude)
6. 80’s Medley:
   1. “Material Girl” (Madonna cover)
   2. “Black Cat” (Janet Jackson cover)
   3. “Nasty” (Janet Jackson cover)
7. “The Beat Goes On”
8. “I Will Be There”
9. “Open Arms”
10. “Sometimes”
11. …Baby One More Time”

Background and development

On March 5, 1999, it was reported that Spears was planning her first headlining tour to support her first studio album, …Baby One More Time (1999). Shortly after, she announced that the tour would start in July. On May 12, 1999, Tommy Hilfiger was announced as the main tour sponsor. During the time of the announcement, Spears was being featured in the “AllStars” campaign launched by the company. Hilfiger spoke about the sponsorship saying,

“My passion for music has always inspired my designs. This year we have really put music in the forefront of everything we do. Britney represents the spirit of Tommy Jeans and of youth today. I cannot think of a better way to continue this exciting year by sponsoring one of today’s hottest, young recording artists”.

The secondary sponsor was supposed to be Nestlé, but they pulled out soon after provocative photographs of Spears shot by David LaChapelle were published in Rolling Stone. Tour dates were released through Pollstar on April 9, 1999, with the tour kicking off on June 28, 1999, in Pompano Beach, Florida. Several dates were added and rescheduled, and the complete schedule was released two months later.

Spears talked to CNN about her involvement during the development of the tour, stating that she had designed the entire tour herself, including costumes and concept. Spears worked with fashion designer Gia Ventola to create the costumes for her and the dancers. The proscenium stage was simple and had only one main prop, a staircase in the middle. The band was in both sides of the staircase and consisted of five musicians. There were also six dancers, that took the stage during interludes. The setlist consisted of eight songs from her debut album and several covers by well-known artists.

Concert synopsis

The show began with a dance introduction by Spears’ dancers among smoke effects. She appeared shortly after at the top of the staircase wearing a hot pink vinyl tube top and white vinyl pants with pink knee patches, to perform “(You Drive Me) Crazy”. In “Soda Pop” she danced and interacted with the audience, before leaving the stage while her dancers continued. She appeared sitting on the staircase to sing “Born to Make You Happy” and “From the Bottom of My Broken Heart”. The show continued with a dance interlude set to Madonna’s “Vogue” in which she named Madonna and Janet Jackson as her biggest inspirations. She then took the stage to perform a cover of Madonna’s “Material Girl”. After this, she performed two covers of Janet Jackson songs, “Black Cat” and “Nasty”. She ended the section with a performance of Sonny & Cher’s “The Beat Goes On”, accompanied by psychedelic lights. After a dance interlude, she performed the album track “I Will Be There” and a cover of “Open Arms” by Journey, ending with a smile at the top of the staircase. After “Sometimes”, she waved and left the stage. The encore consisted of a performance of “…Baby One More Time”, in which Spears wore a black bra under pink halter, a pink sequined plaid mini-skirt, and black thigh-high stockings.

Critical reception

The tour garnered generally positive reviews from critics. Jeffrey Haney of the Deseret News described the show as “funky and flashy”. A reporter from USA Today called Spears’ performance “assured and energetic”. Jim Farber of the New York Daily News pointed out that Spears seemed to have two personas during the show, one when singing songs from her album and a more edgy look when singing the covers. He also added that “Spears’ nods to edginess no doubt reflects her desire to grow into a more mature career”. Jane Ganahl of the San Francisco Chronicle said that “she may be somewhat entertaining, but she’s also just another prefab act – longer on packaging than actual talent”.

Broadcasts and recordings

In August 1999, the concert in Orlando, Florida was filmed for the Disney Channel in Concert series which Spears was also joined by New Kids On The Block member Joey McIntyre (who was embarking on his solo career). The concert entitled Britney Spears & Joey McIntyre in Concert aired on October 16, 1999. In the special, Spears performed 7 songs in front of the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith attraction at the Disney MGM Studios. It also featured Spears visiting her former routes working at the park during her year’s of the Mickey Mouse Club and shopping at Downtown Disney with her dancers.

Opening acts

• C-Note (North America)
• Steps (North America)
• Boyz N Girlz United (North America)
• Joey McIntyre (North America) (Orlando show only)
• P.Y.T. (North America)
• Michael Fredo (North America)
• 3rd Storee (North America)
• Divine (North America)
• Sky (Canada)

Shows

Date	City	Country	Venue
North America
June 28, 1999	Pompano Beach	United States	Pompano Beach Amphitheatre
June 29, 1999	Tampa		USF Sun Dome
July 1, 1999	Atlanta		Atlanta Civic Center
July 2, 1999	Myrtle Beach		House of Blues
July 3, 1999	Doswell		Paramount Theatre
July 5, 1999	Bethel		Max Yasgur’s Farm
July 6, 1999	Washington, D.C.		DAR Constitution Hall
July 7, 1999	New York City		Hammerstein Ballroom
July 8, 1999	Hershey		Star Pavilion at Hersheypark Stadium
July 9, 1999	Scranton		Montage Mountain Amphitheater
July 10, 1999	Darien Center		Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
July 11, 1999	Schenectady		Proctor’s Theatre
July 13, 1999	Hamilton	Canada	Copps Coliseum
July 14, 1999	Toronto		Molson Canadian Amphitheatre
July 16, 1999	Ottawa		WordPerfect Theatre
July 17, 1999	Montreal		Molson Centre
July 20, 1999	Winnipeg		Centennial Concert Hall
July 21, 1999	Saskatoon		Saskatchewan Place
July 22, 1999	Edmonton		Skyreach Centre
July 23, 1999	Calgary		Canadian Airlines Saddledome
July 25, 1999	Vancouver		General Motors Place
July 26, 1999	Seattle	United States	Seattle Center Arena
July 27, 1999	Hillsboro		DeMar Batchelor Amphitheater
July 29, 1999	Oakland		Paramount Theatre
July 30, 1999	Paso Robles		CMS Grandstand Arena
July 31, 1999	Los Angeles		Universal Amphitheatre
August 3, 1999	Brighton		Bromley Companies Stage
August 4, 1999	Denver		Paramount Theatre
August 6, 1999	Arlington		AT&T Music Mill Amphitheater
August 7, 1999	Houston		Aerial Theater
August 8, 1999	New Orleans		Lakefront Arena
August 10, 1999	Memphis		Mud Island Amphitheater
August 11, 1999	Nashville		Grand Ole Opry House
August 13, 1999	Eureka		Old Glory Amphitheater
August 14, 1999	Omaha		Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum
August 15, 1999	Sioux Falls[F]		W.H. Lyon Fairgrounds Grandstand
August 17, 1999	Rosemont		Rosemont Theatre
August 18, 1999	Columbus		Veterans Memorial Auditorium
August 19, 1999	Fairlea		State Fair Event Center
August 20, 1999	Adrian		Lenawee County Event Grounds Bandshell
August 21, 1999	Orlando		Hard Rock Live
August 25, 1999	Indianapolis		Egyptian Room
August 26, 1999	Cleveland		Nautica Stage
August 27, 1999	Mason		Timberwolf Amphitheatre
August 29, 1999	Upper Darby		Tower Theater
August 30, 1999	Essex		Coca-Cola Grandstand
September 1, 1999	Boston		FleetBoston Pavilion
September 2, 1999	Geddes		New York State Fair Grandstand
September 3, 1999	Wallingford		SNET Oakdale Theatre
September 4, 1999	Baltimore		Pier Six Pavilion
September 5, 1999	Allentown		Allentown Fairgrounds Grandstand
September 10, 1999	Salt Lake City		Utah State Fair Grandstand
September 11, 1999	Hutchinson		KSF Grandstand
September 12, 1999	Detroit		State Theatre
September 14, 1999	Allegan		ACC Grandstand
September 15, 1999	York		Grandstand at the York Fair