The Shirelles became the first girl group to top the US Billboard Hot 100 with “Will You Love Me Tomorrow” in 1961.
Written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin, the song was released by the Shirelles in November 1960. Its success made the group a major early force in the girl-group era and helped establish the Hot 100 as a key measure of popular-music success.
The Shirelles formed in Passaic, New Jersey, in 1957. Their original lineup included Shirley Owens, Doris Coley, Addie Harris and Beverly Lee. They are sometimes confused with later groups such as the Ronettes and the Crystals, but those groups did not achieve the first girl-group Hot 100 number one. “Will You Love Me Tomorrow” was also notable for its unusually mature subject for a teenage pop hit of its period.