Ellie Goulding.Photo: Madison Phipps
Ellie Gouldinghas made headlines for referring to the brand-newHigher Than Heavenas her"least personal album"yet — but that doesn’t mean she lacks connection with its songs.
“I’m really particularly looking forward to touring because I just know I’m going to enjoy it. Sometimes it’s tough performing the emotional songs over and over and over again,” the British singer-songwriter tells PEOPLE of her upcoming concerts.
Released earlier this month,Higher Than Heavenis made up of almost entirely high-energy dance tracks made to be blasted in nightclubs. Goulding, 36, made the record while pregnant with her son Arthur (shared with husband Caspar Jopling) amid lockdown shortly after releasing 2020’sBrightest Bluealbum, which she describes as “heart and soul.”
Polydor Records
“Brightest Bluewas entirely my personal experience,” she says, noting thatHigher Then Heavenis more so meant to be “enjoyed” than “analyzed” as a vulnerable body of work. “This is much more of a pop venture than a personal venture of deeper feelings and poetry.”
A longtime passionate climate change activist, she’s been getting increasingly upset about the state of the world and certain world leaders' lack of urgency to reduce pollution and its effects. While she’s never written about such topics before, it could happen for a future project.
Ellie Goulding.Madison Phipps
“People used to sometimes say to me, ‘Will you ever write about the environment?’ I used to cringe at that,” explains Goulding. “Now, I’m not so sure anymore. It’s starting to make me so angry to the point where I think it’s going to end up in a few songs at some point on an album.”
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In the meantime, she’s taking her climate passion on the road for her upcoming world tour. While most concerts result in a significant amount of light and noise pollution as well as physical waste, the “Anything Could Happen” performer successfully conducted a carbon-neutral tour in 2021 — and she’s looking to do it again.
“It’s kind of frustrating in this day and age. We just want more venues to be accessible with that stuff, and they’re not still,” says Goulding, noting that it’s hard to combat poor merchandise materials and plastic waste, but she’s trying her best. “They’re small steps, but if I can inspire every single tour of every musician to go in that direction, I feel like I would’ve achieved something.”
source: people.com
