Ms. Swift’s latest single, “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” was released last week and shot to the top of radio playlists and iTunes’ song ranking. It sold 623,000 downloads in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, the biggest one-week total for any female artist. (Counting all acts, only Flo Rida’s “Right Round” had more, with 636,000 downloads back in 2009.)

But for Ms. Swift an even more notable accomplishment is that the song has become her first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, the magazine’s standard pop singles chart. Although she has had two No. 1 albums and been on the top of the country chart numerous times, until “We Are Never” she had never reached the pinnacle for pop singles. Her next album, “Red,” is due in October.

Post from NYtimes.com