Britney Will Get Wet ‘n’ Wild at Billboard 2001

Pop princess Britney Spears might’ve made a big splash recently with the rain-drenched grand finale of her HBO concert, but things will be getting even wetter and wilder tonight at the 2001 Billboard Music Awards when the

singer performs live from a stage set up in the 8.5-acre lake of Las Vegas’ Bellagio hotel.

The lake’s 1,000-plus fountain jets are typically lit and choreographed to music from Pavarotti, Bocelli and Sinatra, but tonight they’ll plume and flow to the 20-year-old diva’s latest hit, “I’m a Slave 4 U.”

“Think Britney Spears-slash-water,” said BMA executive producer Bob Bain. “The fountains have been reprogrammed for the specific song she’s performing,” Bain said. “It’ll look great, I assure you!”

This year a soaking Spears isn’t the only attraction. Bain, who has been involved with such star-powered broadcasts as the Emmys, the Clios, the Teen Choice Awards, the TV Guide Awards and the Billboard Music Awards (which he brought to television a dozen years ago), promises “‘N Sync airborne and a bunch of other really fun stuff.”

Other performers committed to the Fox broadcast include No Doubt, Pink, Alicia Keys, Incubus, Tim McGraw and Shaggy, and attendees include Jennifer Lopez, Mandy Moore, Sting, Sean “P.Diddy” Combs, Mark McGrath, Destiny’s Child, Janet Jackson, DMX, Lil’ Romeo, Godsmack and John Mellencamp, who will receive the Century Award.

In fact, the producer hinted that Pink’s high-energy hit “Get The Party Started” may help the Billboard Music Awards get its groove going. “I have my eye on Pink as the next big star,” he said. “She just strikes me as having that kind of star quality. She’s got such great attitude and a very Madonna-like essence.”

Bain was also high on the selection of show host, having tapped Bernie Mac, who–with his new hit sitcom on Fox and a role in the much-anticipated Ocean’s Eleven–could be on the cusp of major stardom. “I had actually been circling around Bernie Mac for awhile. I started talking about him in May, but we waited to see how his show performed.”

Bain praised Mac’s penchant for “spontaneity and unpredictability…which is really the only thing that distinguishes [award shows] from one another.”

The Billboard Music Awards, which honors the year’s top artists according to record sales and airplay, are returning to Las Vegas for the sixth year in a row (previously they’ve been held at the Bellagio’s sister property, the MGM Grand).

“Obviously, Las Vegas is an incredibly visual location,” said Bain. “We’ve has Aerosmith in the pool of the Hard Rock [Hotel and Casino] surrounded by synchronized swimmers, we’ve had Creed at the top of the Rio and Blink 182 running naked down the Strip…It’s such a visually stimulating skyline.”

He adds that bringing the show to Vegas helps distinguish it from other televised celeb galas usually packed with Los Angelenos who are all too used to rubbing elbows with the stars. “The audience is much less jaded in Las Vegas,” he said. “We get an audience who is not used to shows of this magnitude.”

Bain says the Billboard Music Awards won’t ignore the current socio-political climate, but won’t have the somber tone of the oft-delayed Emmys. “When you see the show you’ll appreciate how we’ve attached a sense of patriotism to it, in a subtle way. We can’t ignore what’s going on, and many musicians have done a lot for the cause, but we are entertainers and this show isn’t a funeral.”

Most of all, he warns, “Don’t miss the beginning of our show or you’re going to be disappointed. You only have so much firepower and we’re using up a lot of ours in the beginning.”

The Billboard Music Awards air on Fox at 8 p.m. Dec. 4.