Britney’s back at the VMAs!

The pop queen is returning to the MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday after nine years away and is set to perform her new single Make Me with collaborator G-Eazy.

Britney Spears
Britney Spears at the 2001 MTV VMAs performing Slave 4 U (Beth A Keiser/AP/PA)

It marks a huge comeback for Britney after a controversial history with the awards. For years, she was top of their billing but her 2007 performance was memorable for all the wrong reasons with lacklustre dancing and poor miming.

She is expected to reign again when she returns to the stage, 17 years after her first performance.

Here are her most unforgettable moments:

1999 – The Schoolgirl

The original Queen B totally upstaged NSYNC when she opened for them at her first VMAs. Showing off some cracking late 90s dance moves and her incredible abs, she ditched the schoolgirl look for an upbeat take on Baby One More Time. It was also the start of Britney and Justin Timberlake <3.

2000 – The Striptease

She began her sultry set clad in a dark tuxedo warbling Rolling Stones (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction. But it wasn’t long before Britney stripped to a sparkly nude bra and trousers, flung her hat into the audience, and shook her booty to Oops … I Did It Again!

2001 – The Snake

Britney wasn’t just joined by backing dancers that looked like they’d come straight out of The Lion King on Broadway, she brought the real jungle to New York. The controversial performance of I’m A Slave 4 U  included live exotic big cats and, most memorably, a large albino Burmese python draped around Britney’s neck.

2003 – The Smooch

Voted the VMAs’ greatest moment of all time, Britney swapped saliva with both Madonna and Christina Aguilera in 2003. The trio performed Madge’s hit Like A Virgin to celebrate the show’s 20th anniversary with a guest appearance from Missy Elliott. And of course, Britney was dressed as a sexy bride.

2007 – The Shocker

This is a tough one to watch. It comes after the mum-of-two’s head shaving incident and during the dark days of her divorce from Kevin Federline. It was meant to be Britney’s comeback but her performance of Gimme More was an uncomfortable moment in her otherwise fantastic history with the awards.

The 2016 MTV VMAs take place on Sunday.