Which 1979 Prince single became his first #1 on the R&B charts?

The 1979 Prince single that became his first No. 1 on the U.S. R&B chart is “I Wanna Be Your Lover.” Its success marked Prince's first major breakthrough in the United States and helped establish the sound of his early career.

Prince wrote, produced, arranged, and performed the recording himself. Released on August 24, 1979, it served as the lead single from his self-titled second album, Prince. The track combines funk, disco, soul, pop, and post-disco elements, with Prince handling vocals, guitars, bass, drums, keyboards, and synthesizers.

The compact 7-inch edit lasts 2:57, while the album version expands into a longer keyboard-and-synthesizer jam. “I Wanna Be Your Lover” topped the Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart for two weeks and reached No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 1980. It is sometimes confused with later Prince hits, but neither “1999” nor “When Doves Cry” was his first R&B chart-topper.