I'm A Slave 4 U - Critical Response

Critical Response

The song was mostly well received by the critics. A review from NME magazine stated that "the song is funk the way God intended —hypnotic, insistent, mysterious, suggestive— and if Prince was a nineteen-year-old former Disney Club host and virgin, he'd be proud to create such a record". Other reviews from Rolling Stone magazine and Allmusic agreed that "Slave" was a step towards a more mature sound. The song and video was the beginning of a different Britney and was the first of her seductive videos. Even though the single made it to #27 in the US, it is often regarded as one of Britney's best singles by fans. However, there were some bad reviews such as the one by Stephanie McGrath from All Pop, who despite considering "Slave" as a "huge step away from the bouncy pop that made her a superstar" and was an "attempt to leave behind her pigtails and chirpy image", stated that the track "did not suit her style, the vocals were forced and the Janet Jackson slinkiness was unnatural". Bill Lamb from About.com listed at number nine, on her Top 10 Songs, saying: "By the time of this single off her third album, it was obvious Britney Spears was becoming an adult. This song is a radical shift from the "not quite innocent" 16 year old schoolgirl of Britney's first album. Slinky and sexy have crept into the Britney Spears style".