Christina Aguilera‘s debut single, “Genie in a Bottle,” was released 20 years ago on June 22, 1999. The song solidified the then 18-year-old as a bonafide pop star amid many others like Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC.
She reflected on the song’s impact on her life in an emotional Instagram post that she shared the same day. It included the cover to her self-titled debut album that went on to sell fourteen million copies worldwide.
“Hi lovies! Today marks 20 years since #GenieInABottle was released… got me feeling all types of emotional!” she wrote. “At just 18 years old, I remember coming home from Japan and seeing that it had reached #1 on the Billboard charts and feeling so grateful and happy that you guys loved it as much as I did. Thank you thank you thank you for riding with me all these years. My fighters, I love you!”
“Genie in a Bottle” stayed at the number one spot on The Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks and became one of the biggest songs of the summer.
It was nominated at the 2000 Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance but lost to Sarah McLachlan‘s “I Will Remember You (Live)”. She did, however, score Best New Artist that evening over stiff competition from Britney, Macy Gray, Kid Rock and Susan Tedeschi.Â
Christina also shared rare footage of her being interviewed in the beginning of her career with “Genie” acting as the backdrop.
Her Mickey Mouse Clubhouse costar Britney posted her own emotional story back in October to coincide with her debut single, “…Baby One More Time” being released 20 years ago.