 " 3 " was confirmed as the only single from the album , released on September 29 , 2009 along with the announcement of The Singles Collection . It was released to radio stations on September 29 , 2009 . The song received positive reviews from critics , and debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 , breaking many chart records . It made Spears the first artist in over three years to debut at the top position and the only non @-@ American Idol artist in eleven years to do so . It was the sixteenth song in the chart history to debut at the top position and also the shortest title for a song reaching the top of the chart . " 3 " also debuted at number one in Canada and reached top ten positions in Australia and the European nations of Belgium ( Wallonia ) , Czech Republic , Finland , France , Ireland , Norway , Sweden and the United Kingdom . 
