Stronger (Britney Spears song)

{{listen

| filename = Britney_Spears_-_Stronger.ogg

| title = "Stronger"

| description = A 20 second sample of the song's chorus, which features Spears singing self-empowerment lyrics over an innovative dance beat and dance-pop background.

| pos = left

| format = Ogg

}}

In 1999, Britney Spears began work on her second studio album Oops!...I Did It Again (2000), in Sweden and Switzerland.{{cite web | last=Basham |first=David| title=Britney Spears Works On Next LP In Switzerland, Sweden | date=November 19, 1999 | url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1434400/britney-spears-works-on-next-lp-in-switzerland-sweden/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150108113008/http://www.mtv.com/news/1434400/britney-spears-works-on-next-lp-in-switzerland-sweden/ | url-status=dead | archive-date=January 8, 2015 |website=MTV| access-date=April 13, 2022}}{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iggEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA95 |title=Backstage At Awards |first=Melinda |last=Newman |date=December 18, 1999|magazine=Billboard|publisher=Prometheus Global Media|access-date=January 19, 2011}} After meeting with Max Martin and Rami Yacoub in Sweden, Spears recorded several songs for the album, including "Stronger", which was co-written and co-produced by Martin and Rami.{{cite AV media notes|title=Oops!... I Did It Again|others=Britney Spears|year=2000|publisher=JIVE Records|type=Liner notes}} Upon returning to the United States, the singer revealed in an interview with MTV News that: "I just got back from Sweden, and did half [of] the material [for Oops!] over there. I was really, really happy with the material, but we had [such] limited time to get so much done. So I've just really been in the studio nonstop, which is cool, though." Spears recorded her vocals for the song in November 1999 at Cheiron Studios in Stockholm, Sweden. In Austria, "Stronger" was released on November 13, 2000, as the third single from the album.{{cite web | url=http://austriancharts.at/showitem.asp?interpret=Britney+Spears&titel=Stronger&cat=s | title=Britney Spears – Stronger Austriancharts.at | publisher=Ö3 Austria Top 40. Hung Medien | date=April 8, 2004 | access-date=July 19, 2009}}

"Stronger" is a teen pop and dance-pop song that features a heavy dance beat,{{harvnb|Mitchell|Reid-Walsh|2000}} and lasts 3 minutes and 23 seconds.{{Cite web|url=http://allmusic.com/album/stronger-r511493|title=Stronger - Britney Spears|website=Allmusic|access-date=August 19, 2011}} According to the digital music sheet published at Musicnotes.com, the song is composed in the key of G-sharp minor and is set in time signature of common time with a tempo of 108 beats per minute, while Spears vocal range spans from C{{music|sharp}}3 to C{{music|sharp}}5.{{cite web|url=http://www.musicnotes.com/sheetmusic/mtdVPE.asp?ppn=MN0037262#ProductDetails|title=Britney Spears Stronger – Digital Sheet Music|work=Music Notes|date=August 21, 2000 |publisher=Universal Music Publishing Group|access-date=February 6, 2010}} Music critics noticed the song as Spears' declaration of independence, which is perceived in self-empowerment lines such as "I'm not your property" and "I don't need nobody". Its lyrics also quote Spears' iconic debut hit "...Baby One More Time", which was also co-written and produced for Spears by Martin and Yacoub and released two years earlier; the latter's famous chorus, "My loneliness is killing me", is answered in "Stronger" with the lyric, "My loneliness ain't killin' me no more". Despite not being written by the singer, it was speculated that the song is directed to the singer's record label Jive Records and her management. In a review for the album, David Browne of Entertainment Weekly noted that "Stronger" together with "Don't Go Knockin' on My Door" is reminiscent of the Rolling Stones' "The Last Time" (1965).{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/2000/04/21/oopsi-did-it-again/|title=Oops!... I Did It Again|last=Browne|first=David|date=May 19, 2000|access-date=April 13, 2022|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|archive-date=December 27, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101227095721/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,64697,00.html}}

"Stronger" received acclaim from music critics. Stephanie McGrath of Jam! considered the song "the best dance track" of Oops!, deeming the song "every bit as good as *Nsync's 'Bye, Bye, Bye' or The Backstreet Boys' 'The One'."{{cite web|url=http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/S/Spears_Britney/AlbumReviews/2000/05/12/771910.html|title=Album Review: Oops!...I Did It Again|first=Stephanie|last=McGrath|year=2000|work=Jam!|publisher=Canadian Online Explorer|access-date=December 19, 2010|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120629065804/http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/S/Spears_Britney/AlbumReviews/2000/05/12/771910.html|archive-date=June 29, 2012}} Tracy E. Hopkins of Barnes & Noble, while reviewing the album, said, "Spears shines on the tongue-in-cheek lead single, the triumphant 'Stronger'..."{{cite web|url=http://music.barnesandnoble.com/Oops-I-Did-It-Again/Britney-Spears/e/12414170422|last=Hopkins|first=Tracy|title=Oops!...I Did It Again, Britney Spears, Music CD|publisher=Barnes & Noble|access-date=February 12, 2011}} David Veitch of the Calgary Sun considered "Stronger" to be as "another boom-bastic upbeat track", while saying the song is "notable for its foghorn synth, fabulous rhythm track and heavy effects applied to Britney's voice. Why she's panting at the end of the bridge is anybody's guess."{{cite web|url=http://travel.canoe.ca/AllPop-SpearsBritney/cd_ooops1.html|title=Britney hits us one more time|first=David|last=Veitch|date=May 13, 2000|work=Calgary Sun|publisher=Mike Power|access-date=December 19, 2010|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120719102417/http://travel.canoe.ca/AllPop-SpearsBritney/cd_ooops1.html|archive-date=July 19, 2012}} A review by the NME staff compared "Stronger" to songs recorded by ABBA, saying, "there's the deranged helium synth pop of 'Stronger' with the huge ABBA chord change in the chorus that sounds scarier and more robotic than the Backstreet Boys."{{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-nme-2330-336350|title=Oops!...I Did It Again|work=NME|date=May 29, 2000|access-date=April 13, 2022}} Andy Battaglia from Salon said "Stronger" "could crush the entire self-help industry with its melody alone."{{cite web | last=Battaglia | first=Andy | title=Sharps & Flats | date=June 19, 2000 | url=https://www.salon.com/2000/06/19/britney_7/ | work=Salon| access-date=April 13, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090426043204/http://archive.salon.com/ent/music/review/2000/06/19/britney/index.html | archive-date=April 26, 2009 }} Digital Spy's Alim Kheraj pointed out the "deeper element of defiance embedded both within the lyrics and the epic chord progressions".{{cite web |last1=Kheraj |first1=Alim |title=Britney Spears's 15 biggest hits, ranked: which is our No.1? |url=https://www.digitalspy.com/music/a792317/britney-spears-15-biggest-hits-ranked-which-is-our-no1/ |publisher=Digital Spy |access-date=April 11, 2020 |date=April 30, 2016}}

Writing for Pink News, Mayer Nissim deemed it "a perfect pop masterpiece".{{cite web |last1=Nissim |first1=Mayer |title=Britney Spears '…Baby One More Time' at 20: All 42 Britney songs ranked |url=https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2018/10/18/britney-spears-singles-ranked/ |work=Pink News |access-date=April 10, 2020 |date=October 18, 2018}} For Alex Macpherson from The Guardian, it's one of the best examples of Spears' "distressing vulnerability" as well as her second best song; "for the first but by no means last time, Britney embraces the inhuman qualities of her strange, hiccupping voice with vocals distorted and ground up against the beat".{{cite web |last1=Macpherson |first1=Alex |title=Britney Spears – 10 of the best |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2016/aug/24/britney-spears-10-of-the-best |work=The Guardian |access-date=April 10, 2020 |date=August 24, 2016}} Shannon Barbour from Cosmopolitan opined that it was "proof that Empowered Britney is the best Britney".{{cite web |last1=Barbour |first1=Shannon |title=A Definitive Ranking of Britney Spears' Best Tracks for the Britney Stan in Your Life |url=https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/music/a24109976/britney-spears-top-30-songs-ranked/ |work=Cosmopolitan |access-date=April 10, 2020 |date=October 26, 2018}} Similarly, Gay Times{{'}} Daniel Megarry called it "an empowering gay club favourite".{{cite web |last1=Megarry |first1=Daniel |title=We ranked every single Britney Spears album from worst to best |url=https://www.gaytimes.co.uk/culture/118767/we-ranked-every-single-britney-spears-album-from-worst-to-best/ |work=Gay Times |access-date=April 10, 2020 |date=February 28, 2019}} Entertainment Weekly ranked it at number 14 on their ranking of Spears' songs; "['Stronger'] foretold the future, both lyrically (she vowed to do things 'my way') and sonically (the stormy electronic touches hinted at a shift in her Scandi-pop sound). Today, it's the theme song for her resilience".{{cite magazine |title=Every Britney Spears song, ranked |url=https://ew.com/article/2016/09/01/every-britney-spears-song-ranked/ |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=April 10, 2020 |date=September 1, 2016}} Rolling Stone hailed it "a dance pop anthem of self-empowerment that is both obviously autobiographical and highly relatable to anyone eager to define themselves as a young adult".{{cite magazine |title=Readers' Poll: The Best Britney Spears Songs of All Time |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/readers-poll-the-best-britney-spears-songs-of-all-time-10323/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=April 10, 2020 |date=December 7, 2011}} Caryn Ganz from Spin said that "Britney's first self-empowerment anthem is still her best: a strutting finger-wagger that's somehow also a fist-pumper".{{cite web |last1=Ganz |first1=Caryn |title=The 30 best Britney Spears songs |url=https://www.spin.com/2018/12/britney-spears-songs-best-hits-list/ |work=Spin |access-date=April 11, 2020 |date=December 2, 2018}}

In the United States, "Stronger" entered the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 at number 29 on December 30, 2000.{{cite book|author=Michael Paoletta |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ehEEAAAAMBAJ |title=2000: The Year In Music |date = December 30, 2000|publisher= Billboard |access-date=August 25, 2014}} It later peaked at number 11. It also peaked at number 17 on the Billboard Top 40 Mainstream chart.{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/britney-spears-p320976/charts-awards/billboard-singles|title=Britney Spears USA Chart History|publisher=Allmusic. Rovi Corporation|access-date=January 30, 2011}} It was also certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).{{cite web | publisher=Recording Industry Association of America | title=Stronger - RIAA Gold Certification Results | url=https://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?resultpage=1&table=SEARCH_RESULTS&action=&title=&artist=Britney%20Spears&format=SINGLE&debutLP=&category=&sex=&releaseDate=&requestNo=&type=&level=&label=&company=&certificationDate=&awardDescription=&catalogNo= | access-date=June 25, 2009 | archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/65ZLuxW5y?url=http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?resultpage=1&table=SEARCH_RESULTS&action=&title=&artist=Britney%20Spears&format=SINGLE&debutLP=&category=&sex=&releaseDate=&requestNo=&type=&level=&label=&company=&certificationDate=&awardDescription=&catalogNo= | archive-date=February 19, 2012 }} "Stronger" also peaked at number two on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales component chart, and number 37 on Rhythmic Top 40. As of June 2012, "Stronger" has sold 415,000 physical units, with 270,000 paid digital downloads in the United States.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/ask-billboard-what-are-britney-spears-best-selling-singles-484406/|title= Ask Billboard: What Are Britney Spears' Best-Selling Singles? |date=June 5, 2012|access-date=April 13, 2022|last=Trust|first=Gary|magazine=Billboard}} It is Spears' third best-selling physical single in the country.

"Stronger" also achieved commercial success worldwide, reaching number one in Mexico and was the number-one best-selling single in 2001, and reaching number four in Austria and Sweden,{{cite web | url=http://www.swisscharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Britney+Spears&titel=Don%27t+Let+Me+Be+the+Last+to+Know&cat=s | title=Britney Spears – Stronger - Peaks Around the World | publisher=Hung Medien | date=December 16, 2000 | access-date=July 19, 2009}} six in Ireland and Switzerland, and eight in Finland, while reaching the top 20 in several European countries. On the week of December 16, 2000, "Stronger" debuted at number seven in The Official Charts Company from the United Kingdom, falling to number 11 in the following week.{{cite web | url=http://www.theofficialcharts.com/artist/_/BRITNEY%20SPEARS/ | title=Britney Spears - Archive Chart |work=UK Singles Chart|publisher=The Official Charts Company | date=December 16, 2000 | access-date=July 19, 2009}} In Australia, the song peaked at number 13, and was later certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), for shipments of more than 70,000 units of the single. In France, "Stronger" reached number 20, making it the lowest chart position for the song worldwide. However, it was certified gold by the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP), for selling over 250,000 units of the single. In Germany, the song reached number four on the Media Control Charts, being certified gold by the Bundesverband Musikindustrie (BVMI) for shipping over 250,000 units of the single.

File:Britney Spears - Stronger MV.png's "The Pleasure Principle" and "Miss You Much" music videos.]]

The music video for "Stronger" was shot on October 5–7, 2000 at Syncro Aviation Hangar at Van Nuys Airport, Los Angeles, and directed by Joseph Kahn.{{cite web |title=MTV Making The Video: Britney Spears, "Stronger" |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlRiA-O5qHs |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211213/QlRiA-O5qHs |archive-date=2021-12-13 |url-status=live|website=YouTube | date=September 19, 2011 |access-date=May 16, 2020}}{{cbignore}} Kahn revealed that the concept for the music video was created by Spears herself, by saying "I would like to dance in a chair and drive in a car and break up with [my] boyfriend. [...] Those are your three elements."{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1626492/how-britney-spears-stronger-video-made-her-a-diva/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141215065832/http://www.mtv.com/news/1626492/how-britney-spears-stronger-video-made-her-a-diva/|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 15, 2014|title=How Britney Spears' 'Stronger' Video Made Her A Diva|date=October 18, 2009|website=MTV|first=Jocelyn|last=Vena|access-date=April 13, 2022}} Kahn ended up creating, according to Jocelyn Vena of MTV, "a semi-futuristic world in which Spears walks into a club, breaks up with her cheating boyfriend and triumphantly walks in the rain, knowing her life is better off without him." Kahn also considered the music video as very sophisticated, saying that it is "definitely a departure from the sort of candy-colored videos she was doing before, so I always thought this was the transition between Britney the teenage pop star and Britney the sort of diva she became." Kahn revealed that Spears' referenced Janet Jackson's "The Pleasure Principle" and "Miss You Much" music videos for the video's chair routine, saying her idea was inspired by "Janet Jackson's 'Pleasure Principle' — the iconic chair sequence in that". A review of the video also commented "Ms. Spears gives us her best Janet Jackson impression ("Miss You Much") with a dizzying chair-dance routine."{{cite web|url=http://www.theroundtableonline.com/videos/flashback-friday-britney-spears-stronger-music-video/|title=Flashback Friday: Britney Spears "Stronger" Music Video|publisher=The Round Table Online|date=February 18, 2011|access-date=July 13, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140226160509/http://www.theroundtableonline.com/videos/flashback-friday-britney-spears-stronger-music-video/|archive-date=February 26, 2014}} Spears also referenced and draws inspiration from Jackson in several other music videos, including "Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know".{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/britney-spears-10-best-music-videos-readers-poll-results-473010/|title=Britney Spears' 10 Best Music Videos: Readers' Poll Results|magazine=Billboard|date=February 19, 2011| access-date=April 13, 2022}}

The video premiered on MTV's Making the Video on November 3, 2000, at 4:30PM ET.{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/2000/11/02/britney-spears-new-video-debuts-after-two-week-delay/|title=Britney Spears' new video debuts after a two week delay|first=Lori|last=Reese|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|date=November 2, 2000|access-date=February 10, 2021}} An alternate footage can be found on the DVD of Spears' first compilation album, Greatest Hits: My Prerogative (2004).{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1493176/britney-dvd-has-alternate-takes-of-her-videos-plus-more-skin/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020122703/http://www.mtv.com/news/1493176/britney-dvd-has-alternate-takes-of-her-videos-plus-more-skin/|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 20, 2014|title=Britney DVD Has Alternate Takes Of Her Videos, Plus More Skin|first=Jennifer|last=Vineyard|date=October 27, 2004|website=MTV|access-date=April 13, 2022}} It begins with a closed caption that reads "Britney Spears – Stronger", amidst the sound of a storm. It then cuts to a close up of Spears looking at her boyfriend, who is smiling with another woman (played by Angela Sarafyan) holding him. She realizes she is better without him and walks away, after saying, "Whatever", to the audience. There is a shot of the tower hotel they are in, in an apparent semi-futuristic world, having a party in the restaurant in the hotel tower at the top, and then the hotel tower explodes and blows up. At the beginning of the first verse, Spears starts dancing with an Emeco 1006-style chair in front of a black background.

The second half of the video finds Spears driving away from the party in a classic Ford Mustang car during a thunderstorm; however, before long, her car goes into a spin out after she swerves to avoid a chair tossed in front of her from the storm, then stops on the very edge of the bridge. After recovering from the shock of it, she is forced to continue walking on in the rain. Cuts of her dancing with a cane, transformed from the chair, are also included. The video ends with Spears walking across a bridge. Two versions of the video exist, one in which Spears stands in mid-air above the spinning chair during the bridge alongside additional brief choreography shots during the first chorus, and the other replacing the footage with a close-up of her singing. Nuzhat Naoreen of MTV praised the music video, saying, "few performers can work an entire routine on and around a chair as well as Britney did in 'Stronger'".{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/2580442/britney-spears-hold-it-against-me-video-dance/|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120702225644/http://newsroom.mtv.com/2011/01/26/britney-spears-hold-it-against-me-video-dance/|archive-date=July 2, 2012|title=To Prepare For 'Hold It Against Me,' Check Out Britney Spears' Best Video Dance Moves|date=January 26, 2011|access-date=August 20, 2011|last=Naoreen|first=Nuzhat|website=MTV}} The music video received a nomination on the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards for Best Pop Video.{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1446661/britney-spears-to-debut-new-single-at-video-music-awards/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170923002629/http://www.mtv.com/news/1446661/britney-spears-to-debut-new-single-at-video-music-awards/|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 23, 2017|title=Britney Spears To Debut New Single At Video Music Awards|date=August 15, 2001|last=D'Angelo|first=Joe|access-date=April 13, 2022|website=MTV}}

File:Kevin McHale by Gage Skidmore.jpg (pictured) covered the song for an episode of Glee]]

Spears performed "Stronger" for the first time during her Oops!... I Did It Again Tour in Columbia, U.S., on June 20, 2000. The show began with the video introduction "The Britney Spears Experience", in which three images of Spears welcomed spectators to the show.{{cite news |url=https://www.thepitchkc.com/britney-spearsmikaila/ |title=Britney Spears/Mikaila |date=July 20, 2000 |access-date=April 13, 2022 |last=Miller |first=Andrew |work=The Pitch |publisher=Village Voice Media |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220412160603/https://www.thepitchkc.com/britney-spearsmikaila/ |archive-date=April 12, 2022 |url-status=live }} Then, a giant metal orb was lowered onstage and lifted again to reveal Spears standing behind it. Wearing a glittery jeans and an orange halter top,{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/06/29/arts/pop-review-the-oops-girl-with-the-big-smile-and-the-little-voice.html?pagewanted=1|title=POP REVIEW; The Oops Girl With the Big Smile and the Little Voice|date=June 29, 2000|access-date=January 20, 2010|last=Pareles|first=Jon|work=The New York Times}} she opened the show with a dance-oriented performance of the song.{{cite news|url=http://articles.nydailynews.com/2000-06-29/entertainment/18133016_1_britney-spears-real-workout-jones-beach |title=SEXY BRITNEY STILL A MYSTERY |date=June 29, 2000 |access-date=January 20, 2010 |last=Farber |first=Jim |work=Daily News |publisher=Mortimer Zuckerman |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714223345/http://articles.nydailynews.com/2000-06-29/entertainment/18133016_1_britney-spears-real-workout-jones-beach |archive-date=July 14, 2011 }} "Stronger" was performed on 2002's Dream Within a Dream Tour. After a dance-oriented performance of "Boys", Spears performed the song, in which she wore a paint-covered robe and in some shows a bowler hat.{{cite news|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1450487/britney-goes-bald-plays-tiny-dancer-gets-caught-in-the-rain-at-tour-kickoff/ |title=Britney Goes Bald, Plays Tiny Dancer, Gets Caught In The Rain At Tour Kickoff |last1=Reid |first1=Shaheem |last2=Moss |first2=Corey |date=November 2, 2001 |website=MTV|access-date=April 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080418101925/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1450487/20011102/spears_britney.jhtml |archive-date=April 18, 2008 }} Spears also performed the song on several television appearances, including on the American Music Awards of 2001,{{Cite AV media|type=TV production |title=The 28th Annual American Music Awards |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0278887/ |access-date=August 20, 2011 |publisher=ABC Entertainment |date=January 8, 2001 }} and on a MTV special titled Total Britney Live.{{Cite AV media |type=TV production |title= Total Britney Live |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0301941/ |access-date=August 20, 2011 |author=Steve Paley |date=2001 }} A Fox special titled Britney Spears in Hawaii, aired on June 8, 2000, included an exclusive performance of the song.{{cite web | last=Rosen | first=Craig | title=Britney Spears In Hawaii To Tape Tv Special | date=April 29, 2000 | publisher=Yahoo! Music | url=http://ca.music.yahoo.com/read/news/12054616 | access-date=January 10, 2009 | archive-date=July 17, 2011 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717003510/http://ca.music.yahoo.com/read/news/12054616 }} A performance of "Stronger" live from Germany was broadcast on Radio Music Awards of 2000, since Spears was on tour by the time of the awards.{{Cite AV media |type=TV production|title=The 2000 Radio Music Awards |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0905311/ |access-date=August 20, 2011 |author=Ron de Moraes |author2=Margo Romero |publisher=ABC Entertainment |location=Las Vegas, Nevada |date=November 4, 2000 }} "Stronger" was later included on the set list of Spears' Las Vegas residency show Britney: Piece of Me.{{cite news|url=http://metro.co.uk/2013/12/22/britney-spears-releases-setlist-for-las-vegas-residency-piece-of-me-4240529 |title=Britney Spears releases setlist for Las Vegas residency Piece of Me|newspaper=Metro|date=December 22, 2013|access-date=December 24, 2013}}

"Stronger" was covered by Kevin McHale on TV series Glee, on a 2010 second season episode titled "Britney/Brittany", that was dedicated to the singer. In the episode, McHale's character Artie Abrams has a hallucination of himself singing "Stronger" during a dental visit.{{cite magazine |last1=Stack |first1=Tim |title=Glee recap: Britney, Baby, One More Time |url=https://ew.com/recap/glee-season-2-episode-2-britney/ |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=April 13, 2022 |date=September 29, 2010}} The cover was released on the soundtrack album Glee: The Music, Volume 4 and received positive reviews from contemporary music critics. Raymund Flandez of The Wall Street Journal enjoyed the cover version, appreciating the twist of having males sing a feminist empowerment song,{{cite web|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-SEB-49003|title='Glee,' Season 2, Episode 2, 'Britney/Brittany': TV Recap|first=Raymund|last=Flandez|work=The Wall Street Journal|date=September 28, 2010|access-date=April 13, 2022}} while Tim Stack of Entertainment Weekly deemed "Stronger" his favorite performance of the episode, as well as the best incorporation of Spears' music, as the song served Artie's storyline.

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• European CD single

1. "Stronger" (Album Version) – 3:23
2. "Walk On By" – 3:34

• European, Australian and Japanese CD maxi single

1. "Stronger" (Album Version) – 3:23
2. "Stronger" (Instrumental) – 3:23
3. "Walk On By" – 3:34
4. "Stronger" (Miguel Migs Vocal Edit) – 3:41

• French CD maxi single

1. "Stronger" (Album Version) – 3:23
2. "Walk On By" – 3:34
3. "Stronger" (Miguel Migs Vocal Edit) – 3:41

• UK CD maxi single

1. "Stronger" (Album Version) – 3:23
2. "Walk On By" – 3:34
3. "Stronger" (WIP Remix) – 5:50

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• US CD single

1. "Stronger" (Album Version) – 3:23
2. "Stronger" (Pablo La Rosa's Tranceformation Edit) – 3:28

• UK cassette single

1. "Stronger" (Album Version) – 3:23
2. "Walk On By" – 3:34
3. "Stronger" (Instrumental) – 3:23

• US 12-inch vinyl

1. "Stronger" (Pablo La Rosa's Tranceformation) – 7:21
2. "Stronger" (Pimp Juice's Extra Strength Dub) – 7:05
3. "Stronger" (Miguel 'Migs' Vocal Mix) – 6:31
4. "Stronger" (Miguel 'Migs' Dub) – 6:54

• US maxi single – The Remixes

1. "Stronger" (Album Version) – 3:23
2. "Stronger" (Mac Quayle Club Mix) – 7:50
3. "Stronger" (Pablo La Rosa's Tranceformation) – 7:21
4. "Stronger" (Miguel 'Migs' Vocal Mix) – 6:31
5. "Stronger" (Jack D. Elliot Club Mix) – 6:38
6. "Stronger" (Pimp Juice's "Ain't No Shame in This Vocal Mix Game" Mix) – 5:50

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• Britney Spears – lead vocals, background vocals
• Max Martin – production, songwriting, audio mixing, keyboards, programming, background vocals
• Rami Yacoub – production, songwriting, keyboards
• Nana Hedin – background vocals
• John Amatiello – Pro Tools engineering
• Tom Coyne – audio mastering

Source:

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{{certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for "Stronger"}}

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{{certification Table Entry|type=single|region=France|artist=Britney Spears|title=Stronger|award=Gold|certyear=2000|relyear=2001|access-date=October 7, 2020|refname="fracert"}}

{{certification Table Entry|type=single|region=Germany|artist=Britney Spears|title=Stronger|award=Gold|certyear=2000|relyear=2000|refname="gercert"}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Sweden|type=single|award=Gold|certyear=2000|relyear=2000|access-date=August 20, 2013}}

{{certification Table Entry|type=single|region=United Kingdom|artist=Britney Spears|title=Stronger|award=Gold|certyear=2023|relyear=2000|id=6343-1064-1}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=single|award=Platinum|artist=Britney Spears|title=Stronger|relyear=2000|certyear=2023|access-date=October 24, 2023}}

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{{Notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=arQy0v_PBx4C&q=britney+spears+-+stronger&pg=PA547|title=Girl Culture: Studying girl culture: a readers' guide|last2=Reid-Walsh|first2=Jacqueline|last1=Mitchell|first1=Claudia|year=2000|publisher=Abc-Clio |access-date=August 18, 2011|isbn=9780313339097}}

{{Britney Spears singles}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Stronger}}

Category:1999 songs

Category:2000 songs

Category:2000 singles

Category:Britney Spears songs

Category:Dance-pop songs

Category:Jive Records singles

Category:Music videos directed by Joseph Kahn

Category:Song recordings produced by Max Martin

Category:Song recordings produced by Rami Yacoub

Category:Songs with feminist themes

Category:Songs written by Max Martin

Category:Songs written by Rami Yacoub

Category:Breakup songs