Tiger King’s Doc Antle has discussed working with pop icon Britney Spears at the 2001 MTV VMAs in New York City.
Brit performed her iconic (and underrated) single I’m a Slave 4 U at the ceremony that year.
She was of course joined by exotic animals like snakes and tigers for the performance, which caused controversy with animal rights activists at the time.
(And we’re pretty sure still would today…)
But who knew Doc Antle – just one of a number of exotic animal superfans to shoot to fame since Netflix dropped documentary series Tiger King: Murder Mayhem and Madness last month – was also on stage that night, minding one of the ligers?
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight about the performance, he called Britney ‘such a darling.’
We don’t doubt it.
‘She was totally just a fantastic person wanting a perfect performance,’ he added.
‘We were there for several days rehearsing so that the tigers would be relaxed and happy to be out there and that everything could be smooth and taken care of as best as possible,’ he added.
‘She was there rehearsing and working – just the hardest working, sweetest young girl, out there making all the pieces click together.’
Despite the high profile performance, I’m a Slave 4 U was Britney’s lowest charting single in the US at the time.
But it still sounds fresh almost 20 years later!
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