Britney Spears: In the Zone is the sixth video album and first extended play (EP) by American recording artist Britney Spears. It was released on April 6, 2004 through Jive Records, accompanying her fourth studio album In the Zone (2003). The video contains her ABC concert special Britney Spears: In the Zone, as well as footage from live performances to promote the album. It also includes the music videos for "Me Against the Music" and "Toxic" and their respective episodes of Making the Video, as well as unreleased material, such as several new tracks.
Britney Spears: In the Zone received positive reviews from critics, with one describing it as "recommended for fans". The video was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of 200,000 copies across the United States. It was also certified platinum in Argentina and France, and gold in Australia and Brazil.
In November 2003, it was announced through Billboard that Spears planned to release a video in mid-March 2004, with previously unreleased footage.[1] On February 26, 2004, it was reported by MTV that the release would concentrate on the live performances to promote In the Zone, such as her performances of "Me Against the Music" and "(I Got That) Boom Boom" from TRL and the half-hour surprise appearance at Rain Nightclub at the Palms Casino Resort.[2][3] The DVD also includes Britney Spears: In the Zone, her concert special in ABC that aired on November 17, 2003. Shot in New York's Gotham Hall in October, the show featured stage settings evoking Cabaret. The release also contains the music videos of "Me Against the Music" and "Toxic" with their respective episodes of Making the Video. The North American edition includes two bonus tracks, "Don't Hang Up" and "The Answer", whereas other editions contain the songs "I've Just Begun (Having My Fun)" and "Girls and Boys".[3][4][5]
Also included are a photo gallery and an additional interview. The total running time is eighty-eight minutes. The presentation is offered in the aspect ratio of 1.33:1, aside from the "Me Against the Music" music video, which is letterboxed.[2]Britney Spears: In the Zone was set to be released on March 23, 2004, but was later pushed back to April 6, 2004.[3][6]
"Sippin' On", under its original title "Tell Me What You're Sippin' On", was initially to be included on select editions of the Britney Spears: In the Zone but was omitted. Spears later considered including a new version of the song featuring vocals from rapper AC on her fifth studio album Blackout (2007), with a review of the song from DJ Booth saying: "On a possible inclusion to her yet-to-be-titled comeback album (dropping this November), Spears has hooked up with producer Tricky Stewart for the song "Sippin' On". The mid-tempo track has the same familiar drum pattern as Nas' "I Can"; except here lyricism has been replaced by sexiness. After all, come the end of the song Britney does a 'soul clap'." Other reviews noted an influence from Janet Jackson.[7][8] This version leaked from a Blackout demo CD, while the original intended for In the Zonesurfaced in September 2011. The song, a mid-tempo R&B track, was produced by Tricky Stewart and co-written by Spears.[9]
Aaron Beierle of DVD Talk highlighted the concert special, but said that the interviews and behind-the-scenes footage "are geared clearly towards promoting the album and, while they achieve that goal, they break up the momentum of the concert terribly." He summarized his review by saying that, "In the Zone does disappoint somewhat with the audio, but the video quality is good. Recommended for fans."[2]AllMusic gave the compilation three stars out of five.[10]
