BRITNEY SPEARS IN MANILA: 'Did she lip sync?' and other questions answered

On Thursday night, the Mall of Asia Arena erupted in joy as Britney Spears performed live for the first time for her Filipino fans.

Mild rain slowed the trip to the venue, but seats in the General Admission were filled quickly by eager worshipers of the legendary pop star. There were a few dressed in costume, who were mostly inspired by her iconic school girl outfit from the 1998 hit "...Baby One More Time", but not everyone had the luxury to prepare.

One fan, laptop bag in tow, was looking over receipts and probably trying to sneak in some work before the lights dimmed. As naysayers in the comments have noted, Britney's days of youth are over and the same is true for the fans.

From the GA seats, some looked at the still empty seats worryingly. Some of us are paying for mortgage now and can't afford to blow money on VIP tickets. But for Her Royal Highness Britney Spears of Our Hearts to perform for unoccupied space would be a travesty!

Were there really less people than expected?

The official tally is unavailable, but it's hard to believe that the concert wasn't sold out. The cheers were thunderous and after three songs, the crowd seemed to have thickened. Maybe some people got stuck in traffic? Had trouble finding parking? Had dinner first and went in just as the show was about to start?

Those who already believe that the concert tanked would find a way to say that the house wasn't full, but as it was happening, the Mall of Asia Arena seemed to be filled wall-to-wall with fans and their love for Britney.

Can you hear everyone going "Crazy"? It definitely feels so right! pic.twitter.com/g7KdZY5iAb

— Aya Tantiangco (@ayaruim) June 15, 2017

Keep on dancin' until after this encore! Britney closes out the show strong. Yass, kween! pic.twitter.com/GXTYenfFlY

— Aya Tantiangco (@ayaruim) June 15, 2017

People were singing along and were still singing after the concert! The entire arena was filled with their voices. Speaking of which...

Did she lip sync?

Maybe? Probably? The more important question to ask was: Did concert goers even care whether or not she was singing every note live? The woman performed 20 songs with amazing choreography (yes to all the power poses!), with hits from 1998 to 2016. That's nearly two decades.

Even if she wasn't singing, the people were! Fans shrieked out the lyrics of every song and had particular fun singing "Piece of Me."

She delivered a great show and we got what we paid for, which is to bask in the glory of Britney as she danced like we were all still teenagers. She did not disappoint.

Why wasn't she here when she was more famous?

Speaking from personal experience, I could barely afford the GA ticket I purchased. If she came here peak career, I would have been having a karaoke party at home the night of her concert. If laos means I can watch her from a distance, maybe she needs to lose some more fame? Would really like to afford to see her up close!

Also, liking something just because it's famous is so high school. We're all grown ups now. We can just like things now, even if other people don't. Even if they think it's laos.

Isn't she old?

She's 35 and if you think that's old, sure. She probably doesn't need people to think she's young if she's doing her thing, being fit AF.

 

Great workout this morning! Woke up in Japan feeling free and grateful. Better work bitches!

A post shared by Britney Spears (@britneyspears) on

Jun 1, 2017 at 8:58pm PDT

The woman had a ton of squats incorporated in her dance routine and she clearly does more in her spare time, because parts of her just bounce. Her arms are so toned, her legs are sculpted, and she generally looks like she's in phenomenal shape.

Clearly, she takes her "Work B**ch" mantra with utter seriousness.

Was it a phone-in performance?

She danced the hell out of 20 songs, in heels. Good thing there were personnel from the Bureau of Fire Protection, because Brit was lit.

Most of the people who were there knew all the words to all the songs and were having a great time seeing someone they've admired since 1998 still being the dream that she was then.

Britney brought joy to people. Let's follow her lead and not be so needlessly nega about stuff. There's lots of other things that would benefit from a little criticism. —LA/KG, GMA News