Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) more commonly known as Britney Spears is a Grammy Award-winning American entertainer. Raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears first appeared on national television in 1992 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The New Mickey Mouse Club from 1993 to 1994. In 1997, Spears signed a recording contract with Jive, releasing her debut album ...Baby One More Time in 1999. The album established her as a pop icon and "bona fide pop phenomenon", credited for influencing the revival of teen pop in the late 1990s.[1] Spears released her sixth studio album Circus on her 27th birthday in December 2008. Spears is ranked as the eighth best-selling female recording artist in the United States with 32 million sold albums certified by the Recording Industry Association of America and one of the world's best-selling music artists having sold an estimated 85 million records worldwide.