Taylor Swift goes back to November all the time. No, we're not confused about her lyrical content. ("Back to December," of course, is Swift's 12th single to sell more than a million downloads in the U.S.) It's just that, when she's asked to pin down the most meaningful honor that's come her way over the past year, Swift returns to a moment in early November when her third album, "Speak Now," sold a million copies its first week.

 

"It's one of the proudest feelings I've ever had," she says on the phone from Los Angeles, where she has recently been house-hunting. Swift's pride in the sales stat is justified, considering that no one had pulled off this feat since Lil Wayne in 2008. "It's something I kind of place into the Things That Have Happened to Me category," says Swift. "You make a record, but the fans are the ones who decide how many it's going to sell. So it's not me selling a million albums in one week -- that's the fans going out and buying a million albums in one week."

Swift is maintaining humility, a healthy instinct on her part, given the honors that seem to come her way almost every week. Just a few other recent items from the Things That Have Happened to Taylor department: At 21, she was the youngest person ever named Entertainer of the Year at the Academy of Country Music Awards. "Speak Now" passed the 3.5 million mark after six months, which gives it a shot at catching up with her 5 million-plus selling self-titled debut. Her sophomore effort, "Fearless," is the biggest-selling album released in the past five years, selling 6.3 million. In April, it was announced that Swift has sold more digital songs than anyone in history, her tally of 22.5 million slipping her just ahead of Lady Gaga. (Wait, did we say she "sold" 22.5 million singles? Correction: Fans bought 22.5 million Swift songs.)