How Christina Aguilera's 'Stripped' Album Is Influencing the Pop Scene 15 Years Later
"So here it is: no hype, no glass, no pretense. Just me. Stripped," Christina Aguilera opens her sophomore album. Fifteen years after its release, pop history has proven that Aguilera wasn't alone in exploring a process of self-identification and declaration that made Stripped a landmark LP still influencing today's mainstream scene. Released on Oct. 29, 2002, Stripped 's actual release marked a somewhat odd time for Aguilera, who was displaying her edgy "Xtina" person via her infamous "Dirrty" video and its accompanying promotions. At time of release, much of the media focused on her outfits and without the ease of YouTube and streaming services, Christina was only able to show a small breadth of the material on Stripped during release week with the second single "Beautiful" going to radio the following month. Yet as the world has now woken up to Aguilera's multifaceted sides thanks to the Stripped singles -- like...
