I resented to be more than a singer: Ellie Goulding

Her songs usually are earworms for many, and is known for her folktronica music besides emotive delivery. With hits such as Love Me Like You Do, Lights, Starry Eyed and Anything Could Happen, and more to her credit, Ellie Goulding has surely established herself as one of the best in the global music scene. The 33-year-old singer, who recently released her fourth album, Brightest Blue, says that lockdown has been “challenging” but some parts have been good too. “It has been challenging, but some parts have been blissful, calm, lots of walks on the countryside, connecting with nature and baking cakes,” she says with a laugh, adding that she enjoyed being forced to “enjoy nature and solitude”. 

The Grammy-nominated singer, in a recent interview, said that she felt like a ‘robot’. Ask her how she tackled it, and she says, “After the third album (Delirium) I definitely didn’t feel like it was me and completely authentic to me. I did start feeling like I was touring like a robot and just playing these songs every night and not believing in them as much as I should. Brightest Blue has bought out the human side of me and so has the lockdown. It has made all of us confront our fears.” 

Goulding has always been vocal of how she has felt mentally. The singer, who admits that she even considered to quit, says that she pushed herself by reminding the simplicity of what she actually does — “singing, writing and performing.” “I love that and somewhere down the lane it had become blurry. It had become much more than becoming a singer and I resented that. It was about becoming a celebrity or a role model. It started to become something ugly,” she shares.  

Goulding is married to art dealer Caspar Jopling, and she says that he is very supportive of what she does. “He has been very supportive. But generally, we keep it separate. He studies and he has his own thing and we have very different times in our lives now. He has been incredibly supportive and he is a big fan. He has is there if I need him,” she signs off. .