"I Kissed a Girl" reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the 1000th number-one single of the rock era.
On the chart dated July 5, 2008, Katy Perry's single "I Kissed a Girl" reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The achievement carried added historical weight: it was recognized as the 1000th number-one single of the rock era on the Hot 100, a chart tracking dating back to 1958.
The song's success was remarkable given its controversial subject matter—a woman's flirtation with another woman—which sparked debate among conservative commentators and LGBTQ+ advocates alike regarding authenticity and representation. Regardless of the controversy, the song's commercial dominance signaled Perry's arrival as a major pop force.
This chart-topping moment launched Perry into the upper echelon of pop stardom and set the stage for a string of subsequent hits. It also demonstrated the cultural shift occurring in mainstream music, where provocative and boundary-pushing content could achieve massive commercial success.
The milestone remains a frequently cited data point in discussions of Billboard Hot 100 history, marking a symbolic marker of the chart's evolution over five decades and Perry's early defining moment as a hitmaker.