celeb news Simon Cowell tried to snatch Britney's ...Baby One More Time from Max Martin

[Hector]

What kind of world would it be if Britney Spears‘ debut single wasn’t “… Baby One More Time?” That impossible-to-image parallel universe would have become a reality if Simon Cowell had had his way. In an interview with the British music mogul/reality singing judge on the latest episode of his America’s Got Talent co-star Howie Mandel’s Howie Mandel Does Stuff podcast, Cowell revealed that he once offered the song’s producer/writer Max Martin a brand-new Mercedes for the track.

 

“I had a boy band at the time called Five, who I’d put together, we were just on the verge of breaking them from America,” Cowell told Mandel of the five-piece London act he signed to BMG/RCA. “Someone phones me from America and says I’ve just been played this song. It was written for TLC. TLC passed and he played me down the phone to me and was like, ‘oh my God, I’ve got to have this song.'”

 

That track, of course, was the one that eventually launched Spears into the pop stratosphere. Spears released her debut single in Sept. 1998 and it went on to become one of the best-selling singles of all time and topped the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for two weeks.

 

But it could have gone another way if Cowell had landed the deal with Martin. “So I phoned up Max and said ‘please, please give me this song,'” Cowell said in his first-ever podcast appearance. “And he went, ‘I’ve promised it to someone else.’ And I said, ‘well, I’ll send you a Mercedes 500 SL if I can have this song.'” To Cowell’s chagrin, Martin insisted that the track was already spoken for and that it was going to a new act the former American Idol baddie had never heard of.

 

“And he went ‘no, I’ve promised it to somebody else,'” Cowell said Martin told him. “And I said ‘who?’ And he went, ‘Britney Spears.’ And I said ‘Max, let me give you some advice, no one is going to have a hit with the name called Britney Spears’. She wasn’t even known.” Even though he didn’t get the song for Five, in the end Cowell told Mandel he thinks it was the right call.

 

“He’s honorable,” Cowell said. “He promised the song and he wasn’t going to break the promise, and look, he made the right decision… We’re still good friends now. Listen, I would have taken the car! And don’t forget, no one had heard of this girl before so he was not going to break his promise. So I missed out on that, but that’s how we met and became friends.”

 

Listen to the episode below (“… Baby One More Time” talk begins around 38:30 mark).

 

https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/simon-cowell-buy-baby-one-more-time-max-martin-britney-spears-five-1235138889/

 

Wow, Simon's always been so full of himself.  

Edited September 14, 2022 by Hector

[okgo]

They still got this absolute classique out of Max tho 

 

 

Edited September 14, 2022 by okgo

[crf13]

“Britney Spears” is a perfect pop star name   It’s a common first name with a unique spelling (spelled exactly the way the name Britney sounds) and Spears is a unique yet identifiable last name. 
 

Good for Max for being honorable. Simon is beyond delusional and has gotten it wrong sooooo many times with artists he tried to push who went nowhere and artists he told would never happen who still have thriving careers today. Kelly is one of the few I can think of where he got it right aside from the massive success of 1D. 

Edited September 14, 2022 by crf13
Typo

[Zeferino]

13 minutes ago, Hector said:

‘Max, let me give you some advice, no one is going to have a hit with the name called Britney Spears’. She wasn’t even known

[Zoe_]

2 minutes ago, crf13 said:

“Britney Spears” is a perfect pop star name   It’s a common first name with a unique spelling (spelled exactly the way the name Britney sounds) and Spears is a unique yet identifiable last name. 
 

Good for Max for being honorable. Simon is beyond delusional and has gotten it wrong sooooo many times with artists he tried to push who went nowhere and artists he told would never happen who still have thriving careers today. Kelly is one of the few I can think of where he got it right aside from the massive success of 1D. 

Spice Girls, Carrie Underwood, Fantasia...

[KatyPrismSpirit]

shouldve come up with an iconic classique like that yourself mr. simon

[Bentley]

11 minutes ago, crf13 said:

“Britney Spears” is a perfect pop star name   It’s a common first name with a unique spelling (spelled exactly the way the name Britney sounds) and Spears is a unique yet identifiable last name. 
 

Good for Max for being honorable. Simon is beyond delusional and has gotten it wrong sooooo many times with artists he tried to push who went nowhere and artists he told would never happen who still have thriving careers today. Kelly is one of the few I can think of where he got it right aside from the massive success of 1D. 

Simon didn’t even like Kelly til towards the end of her American idol run, he called her boring and unmemorable

[sherloid_bai]

29 minutes ago, Hector said:

I said ‘Max, let me give you some advice, no one is going to have a hit with the name called Britney Spears’. She wasn’t even known.”

I hope he was the one that had to write her checks on X Fater !

[crf13]

27 minutes ago, Zoe_ said:

Spice Girls, Carrie Underwood, Fantasia...

Hence why I said one of the few out of many he tried to push 

[Beyonnaise]

29 minutes ago, crf13 said:

“Britney Spears” is a perfect pop star name   It’s a common first name with a unique spelling (spelled exactly the way the name Britney sounds) and Spears is a unique yet identifiable last name. 
 

Good for Max for being honorable. Simon is beyond delusional and has gotten it wrong sooooo many times with artists he tried to push who went nowhere and artists he told would never happen who still have thriving careers today. Kelly is one of the few I can think of where he got it right aside from the massive success of 1D. 

His musical instincts were always overrated. I remember the absolute kii when an American Idol contestant dragged him by saying the only music acts he discovered were Il Divo (random opera band) and Teletubbies  Simon was moreso entertaining as a TV personality. It was actually quite novel to have a mean British guy lashing cheery talentless singers. He got lucky with 1D and Fifth Harmony but X Factor US flopped for a reason, he was never like Clive Davis who actually controlled popular music for a long time.

[Keeandga]

40 minutes ago, Zoe_ said:

Spice Girls, Carrie Underwood, Fantasia...

It was Simon Fuller not Cowell who managed them, Cowell passed on them (SG). 

Edited September 14, 2022 by Keeandga

[Zoe_]

3 minutes ago, Keeandga said:

It was Simon Fuller not Cowell who managed them, Cowell passed on them (SG). 

I always thought it was Cowell. Guess I learn something everyday. 

[dirrtydiana]

Wow I find this tea delicious 

 

 

poor that

but britney was born to be a super star and baby was meant for her

 

[KCFan2014]

42 minutes ago, Bentley said:

Simon didn’t even like Kelly til towards the end of her American idol run, he called her boring and unmemorable

What kind of lies lmao

 

He never said he didn't like her

 

She is his favorite!

 

 

Edited September 14, 2022 by KCFan2014

[Rhythm]

55 minutes ago, Zoe_ said:

Spice Girls, Carrie Underwood, Fantasia...

Simon Cowell had nothing to do with the Spice Girls.

[VOSS]

1 hour ago, Hector said:

the former American Idol baddie

 

[Baby Boy]

18 minutes ago, KCFan2014 said:

What kind of lies lmao

 

He never said he didn't like her

 

She is his favorite!

 

 

He did say she wasn’t memorable. He wasn’t pushing for her until the final 12 or later. 

[Erreur2 La Nature]

Britney Spears is the definition of the ultimate popstar name 

[wren]

32 minutes ago, KCFan2014 said:

What kind of lies lmao

 

He never said he didn't like her

 

She is his favorite!

He like's her now that she's huge for sure - and honestly he liked her post Top 12. But pre - he didn't even remember her. 

(his words should come up when press play)

[Trent W]

BOMT was such a perfect debut single.

 

But I think Britney would’ve still happened if she debuted with Crazy, Oops I did it again or some other song.

 

Maybe her debut wouldn’t have been so explosive but her image was a huge factor for her success that it would’ve happened eventually.

[CandyCoatedClouds]

Britney was meant to sing that song. It was ✨ Destiny ✨

[Bentley]

3 hours ago, KCFan2014 said:

What kind of lies lmao

 

He never said he didn't like her

 

She is his favorite!

 

 

He told her on her season in Hollywood that she was unmemorable. I watched 

[Istan4R]

Wth Britney Spears sounds like the ultimate pop star but I guess back then it was harder to imagine that. So glad For Max for producing so many hits for Britney

[loveofpopculture]

Hopefully Britney and Max can work together again.

Edited September 15, 2022 by loveofpopculture

[Breathe On Moi]

You know, reading this crap now, really puts in perspective Britney being on X Factor and what Simon’s true intentions were with that. He’s always felt like a sick weirdo to me. Karma is always around.