Flashback to 2011: Rihanna and Calvin Harris hit Number 1

Collaborations are a big deal in pop. They bring together artists who might never usually share the same stage, they bring new artists to our attention and, sometimes, they become global smashes that change a star's career for ever.

Five years ago, Rihanna was an international superstar and Calvin Harris was doing pretty well by himself too, with a pair of Number 1s under his belt. But We Found Love was the big one that made Calvin a household name across the world.

MORE: Calvin Harris's Official Top 20 biggest songs revealed

Calvin himself hinted in interviews that he's written a pretty big song that was being considered by a big female artist. Calvin had previously worked with Kylie, Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Roisin Murph, and speculation was rife. When it turned out that not only was the star Rihanna, but Calvin had bagged himself a feature credit too, it was clear that everything was expecting big things for this brilliantly simple, yet catchy, slice of dance music.

Helped along by an energetic video, which saw Rihanna party her way around Northern Ireland, including raving in a field while Calvin DJed, misbehaving in an off-licence and going wild in a chip shop, We Found Love went straight in at Number 1 with sales of over 87,000. The video was criticised for "glamourising" drug use – although most of it didn't look that much fun, tbh – bur Rihanna shrugged off the controversy and watched the sales roll in.

It spent three weeks at Number 2 before being knocked off by Professor Green and Emeli Sandé's Read All About It, but RiRi and Calv wouldn't be beaten. They returned to the spot two weeks later and held onto it for a further three triumphant weeks.

We Found Love hit a million sales fairly quickly, within five months, and is one of four seven-digit songs in Rihanna's arsenal. The track has scored 1.4 million sales and has been streamed ovver 18.5 million times since they started counting toward the chart in 2014.

MORE: All the UK's million-selling singles

Calvin's profile was raised massively following the track's stint at Number 1, especially in the Us, and he became the DJ every clubber wanted to be bopping to, and in-demand when it came to songwriting and production duties.

Here's how the Top 10 looked that week. Click on the image to see the full Top 100.

At 2, Moves Like Jagger is also a million-seller, one of the biggest selling songs never to hit Number 1. It was kept off the top,and at Number 2, by no fewer than SIX different songs.

At 5, Goo Goo Dolls' Iris might seem an odd inclusion, given it was originally released in the 90s, but never underestimate the power of The X Factor. The song was covered by auditionees on the hit talent show and introduced the track to a new audience.

At 7, a third and final Top 10 for LMFAO, who also have a million-seller under their belt with Party Rock Anthem. Sexy and I Know It, which the band would briefly perform with Madonna at her Superbowl Halftime Show, would peak at 5.

But today belongs to We Found Love. Take it away, guys. (The speaking voice at the start of the video isn't Rihanna doing a Britney and putting on a British accent; it's model Agyness Deyn.)

Take a look at all Rihanna's single and album artwork in our gallery: