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Charlie Puth<\/strong><\/a> vividly remembers the first time he heard Britney Spears<\/strong><\/a>‘ 2003 hit “Toxic.”<\/p>\n “I was in sixth grade, and I was just like, ‘This is such a fascinating production with the strings layered with the fast-paced drums,'” Puth, 33, exclusively tells Us Weekly in a new interview promoting his “INKubator” songwriting contest with BIC<\/a>. “I didn’t really even understand music production back then, but I knew it sounded urgent.”<\/p>\n In fact, Puth cites the Grammy-winning track as the inspiration for his own career in pop music.<\/p>\n “It was probably the catalyst,” he muses.<\/p>\n Britney Spears\u2019 Debut Single \u2018\u2026Baby One More Time\u2019 Turns 20: How It Created a Pop Icon<\/a><\/p>\n Puth has never been shy about giving Spears, 43, her flowers over the years.<\/p>\n “I remember trading Pok\u00e9mon cards in 1999 and hearing ‘\u2026 Baby One More Time,’ but I didn’t really know how to process it in my little boy brain,” he recalled on “Elvis Duran and the Morning Show”<\/a> in 2018. “And when I heard ‘Oops! \u2026 I Did It Again,’ I was like, ‘This is a sexy woman singing a really good song.’ \u2026 It was just incredible at the time \u2014 and it still is incredible.”<\/p>\n Although Spears has vowed to “never return<\/a> to the music industry” following the 2021 termination of her 13-year conservatorship<\/a>, Puth says he would jump at the opportunity to produce a song for the Princess of Pop should she ever change her mind.<\/p>\n “I think I would do a good job,” he tells Us.<\/p>\n Charlie Puth and Brooke Sansone\u2019s Relationship Timeline: From Childhood Friends to Lovers<\/a><\/p>\n For now, though, Puth is focused on creating the follow-up to his 2022 album, Charlie.<\/p>\n “Life is inspiring me,” he shares. “There’s been a lot of changes in my life, and I’ve always wanted to be in a situation where I can apply music notes to those real-life situations, and I feel like I’m doing that a lot lately. \u2026 Things are in more color. Things are brighter in my life.”<\/p>\n Puth further teases, “What I have coming is probably my most important body of work, and I’m very excited about it.”<\/p>\n As a singer, Puth is best known for hits<\/a> including “See You Again,” “One Call Away” and “Attention,” but he has also written tracks for artists such as Katy Perry<\/strong><\/a>, John Legend<\/strong><\/a> and Justin Bieber<\/strong><\/a> \u2014 all while using his trusty BIC 4-Color Ballpoint Pen.<\/p>\n