AceShowbiz -

It has only been a year since Zayn Malik left One Direction, but he's already reached a major achievement the band couldn't. Yes, the British singer recently claimed the No. 1 spot on Billboard Hot 100 and broke a handful of records with his first-ever solo single, "Pillowtalk".

The sultry song became the fastest by a debut artist to reach No. 1 on Spotify's global chart. With 267,000 downloads in its first week, it logged the highest one-week sales of 2016 and became just the 25th song ever to enter the Hot 100 at the top spot.

Thanks to the hit too, Zayn becomes the first artist whose first name starts with Z to rule the chart. Additionally, the 23-year-old heartthrob is the first Brit to start atop the Hot 100 with a debut single. When he was still part of One Direction, the closest he has come to No. 1 was with "Best Song Ever" which debuted at No. 2 back in 2013.

"Pillowtalk" is the first offering from Zayn's upcoming solo album. Titled "Mind of Mine", it's scheduled for release on March 25, the same day he left One Direction last year. In a recent interview, the singer said that the release date was purely coincidental and wasn't chosen to make a statement.

"I don't know, is that how it works out? It's March 25, it wasn't planned that way," he told Zach Sang & The Gang. "It works that way. It just seems to coincide with the iTunes launch and everything. Maybe it's a sign."