Ellie Goulding's new album is a mixture of electronic and hip-hop influences.
Ellie Goulding
The 'Close To Me' singer has opened up the styles of music that have shaped her long-awaited first album since 2015's 'Delirium', and how it's very much "her own voice" and less "collaborative".
She explained: "This album is definitely a return of some sorts, because it's very much written by me.
"It's much less collaborative than the last album.
"It has much more clarity and space.
"This album is the album of my voice, and my songwriting, and that's kind of what I've always wanted to do.
"There will be electronic influences and hip-hop influences, and the music that I grew up listening to and that I'll never be able to shake off.
"I've always had my own interpretation of what's happening in pop music."
Ellie has done numerous electronic collaborations, including latest single 'Close To Me' with Diplo and Swae Lee, 'Outside' with Calvin Harris and 'First Time' with Kygo, and she says the genre will always have an influence on her output.
The 32-year-old star - who is engaged to art dealer Caspar Jopling - also revealed that she is hoping to bag a collaboration with experimental musician Four Tet.
Revealing her influences growing up, she told Billboard: "I was brought up on it, so it's in my blood. I was brought up to The Prodigy and The Future Sound of London and Massive Attack.
"I remember listening to dance music with my family in the car.
"I think it was just a form of escapism for me and my family.
"Only when I was a teenager did I discover songwriting, and learned the guitar, and I listened to Imogen Heap and Björk and Joni Mitchell and Ani DiFranco.
"I think I'll always collaborate with electronic producers. I'm working on getting in with Four Tet at the moment."
The 'Starry Eyed' singer also gushed about her idol Björk and her ability to fuse classical music with electronic.
She added: "I also listened to so much classical music, because I feel like it really soothes me, and the more I listen to classical music, the more I get obsessed with its intricacy.
"That's why I love Björk. Björk remains my favorite artist of all time, because she fused classical and electronic music so beautifully and effortlessly, and she composed it herself. She remains my hero."
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