NEW YORK: Britney Spears has become just the second artist in the 52-year history of Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart to debut multiple songs at No. 1, as “Hold It Against Me” took the top spot in its first week. Spears previously came in at No. 1 with “3” in 2009. The only other act with multiple No. 1 starts is Mariah Carey with “Fantasy” and “One Sweet Day” in 1995 and “Honey” in 1997. “Hold It Against Me” is Spears' fourth No. 1 on the Hot 100. Prior to “3,” she reigned with her debut single “...Baby One More Time” (1999) and “Womanizer” (2008). The new track sold 411,000 downloads, according to Nielsen SoundScan. It marks the highest first-week tally for a lead female artist, besting the 325,000 downloads sold by Taylor Swift's “Today Was a Fairytale” in February 2010.
