Sealing last year’s number one spot was none other than Miley Cyrus with her smash hit “Flowers”, which spent an incredible 10 weeks at the top of the Official UK Singles chart. “Flowers” was the lead single from Cyrus’ eighth studio-album Endless Summer Vacation, and went on to accumulate 198 million combined audio and video streams in the UK in 2023, making it the most-streamed song of the year. The 31-year-old’s single also went on to be the most-downloaded song of the year, with 91,000 UK downloads.

Joining Miley in a 10-week long reign at the number one spot were British rappers Dave and Central Cee with their single “Sprinter”. The track was a smash hit as it broke UK chart records as it clinched the biggest streaming week for any rap song in Official Chart history, and also claimed the title of the longest-running rap Number 1 in the UK. Since its release, the team duo have racked up 161 million UK audio and video streams, landing them the number two spot on the top songs of 2023.

The track claiming the number three spot in this list was originally the first Official Number One Single of 2023. When RAYE and 070 Shake’s track “Escapism” soared to number one, RAYE told Official Charts: “We are Number 1 in the UK! It’s the first Number 1 of the year, it’s my first Number 1 in my life. I’m an independent artist, this is sickening! This is proof you should back yourself, no matter what. Thank you, this is mad. These are happy tears!” 

Completing 2023’s top five was Taylor Swift’s resilient 2022 hit “Anti-Hero”, and collaboration trance track “Miracle” from Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding. Celebrating the success of the latter, Goulding told Official Charts: “This is just very cool. Thank you very much to everyone for listening to it and supporting it, Oontz, oontz…rave on!” 

The Official top 10 songs of 2023:

1. “Flowers” – Miley Cyrus
2. “Sprinter” – Dave & Central Cee
3. “Escapism” – RAYE feat. 070 Shake
4. “Anti-Hero” – Taylor Swift
5. “Miracle” – Calvin Harris & Ellie Goulding
6. “Calm Down” – Rema
7. “Kill Bill” – SZA
8. “Boy’s A Liar” – PinkPantheress
9. “As It Was” – Harry Styles
10. “People” Libianca

“My new thing is acknowledging the things I’m good at, and I’m good at writing pop songs,” Goulding said in an interview with NME. “I’ve made a classical album, I’ve made electronic music and I regularly give my vocal away to producers like Four Tet. There are so many genres of music that I’ve been lucky to explore but when it comes down to it, I really just love making big pop songs that you hear on the radio.”

Work started on the album when the lockdown restrictions in the UK were lifted. She continued to tell NME that she didn’t “intentionally make an album that people can dance to and forget their worries” but it’s “what we needed to do for ourselves coming out of a really bizarre, surreal time”.

On the day Higher than Heaven was released, an ethereally nocturnal video for the track “Better Man” premiered that sees Goulding singing cast in pulsating red and blue hues. The video follows the two other music videos released for Higher than Heaven. Single “Like a Saviour” received a video in February and the title track “Higher than Heaven” received a video in October of last year.

Watch the video for “Better Man” below:

Originally the album was announced to be released in February but was pushed back as Goulding struggled to find suitable eco-friendly materials for the LP’s physical release. According to the singer’s Instagram post the vinyl is a “100% recycled colour compound which would’ve otherwise been wasted, in a recycled sleeve, and then wrapped in a renewable plant based wrap”.

The Herefordshire-born singer will embark on her tour supporting Higher than Heaven in October later this year. The 12-date tour, will start in Dublin and finish in Berlin in November. In the meantime, Ellie will be performing at sold-out venues across the UK and Europe this spring and summer. For tickets and more information see here.

In March, the singer’s collaboration with Scottish DJ and producer Calvin Harris on the trancey single “Miracles” earned the singer a position at number one on the UK Singles Chart. The song marked the artists’ third time collaborating having worked on 2013’s “I Need Your Love” and 2014’s “Outside” together.

For all of Ellie Goulding’s UK and Europe dates see below:

30/04/23 – The Queen’s Hall – Edinburgh
01/05 – The Wardrobe – Leeds
02/05 – Hangar 34 – Liverpool
04/05 – PRYZM – Kingston
05/05 – Engine Rooms – Southampton
15/06 – Fornebu Music and Arts Festival – Fornebu
16/06 – Pinkpop – Landgraaf
19/07 – Colours of Ostrava – Ostrava
12/08 – AIG Women’s Open – Walton on the Hill
02/09 – Olympiapark M Nchen – M Nchen
16/10 – 3Olympia Theatre – Dublin
18/10 – Barrowland Ballroom – Glasgow
19/10 – O2 City Hall – Newcastle Upon Tyne
20/10 – Manchester Academy – Manchester
23/10 – O2 Institute – Birmingham
24/10 – Roundhouse – London
27/10 – Bataclan – Paris
30/10 – Tivoli Vredenburg – Utrecht
31/10 – Cique Royal – Brussels
02/11 – Fabrique – Milan
06/11 – E-werk – Cologne
07/11 – Huxleys Neue Welt – Berlin

‘EG.0‘ is the title of the latter chunk of the double album that contains five pop-oriented tracks. Three of those are previously released collaborations with mega artists like Swae Lee & Diplo (“Close to Me“), blackbear (“Worry About Me“), and Juice WRLD (“Hate Me“).

Regarding this second side, the “Starry Eyed” hitmaker told NME that it showcases her “confident, brave, and fearless” aspect. “I will always seek to use my voice in ways that no one would ever expect and look to collaborate with the least likely, exciting and eclectic group of other artists,” Goulding said.

“Slow Grenade” has selected to be the latest promotional track, following dark-pop tune “Power” from the ‘Brightest Blue‘ half. American emerging recording artist Lauv appears as the feature on the song. It is by far the least full-on song released from Goulding’s latest era, with the acoustic guitar-driven melody and soothing vocals from both singers, making the track such a pleasing experience. Have a listen below.

https://youtu.be/29gSh3U2klw

Recently, the singer announced a new tour in support of ‘Brightest Blue‘ in 2021. The first run of the announced shows includes seven dates around the UK and Ireland.

Elsewhere, Lauv (aka Ari Staprans Leff) just dropped a quarantine EP entitled ‘Without You.‘ The collection comprises four tracks, including lead single “Dishes“. The surprise drop is a follow up to his 21-track debut album ‘~how i’m feeling~‘ released back in March.

Goulding’s ‘Brightest Blue‘ will arrive in full on July 17. Also, tickets for the tour of the same name will be available this Friday (July 3rd), while the pre-sale for those who already pre-ordered the album is up as of now.

After a lengthy string of stand-alone singles, the “Love Me Like You Do” hitmaker finally revealed a new album entitled ‘Brightest Blue‘. The LP is a follow-up to 2015’s pop monster ‘Delirium‘.

The upcoming LP is made into a two-sided record with ‘Brightest Blue‘—the first side that comprises 13 tracks including recent single “Power“, and ‘EG.0‘—the second side that mostly contains her previous singles that feature guest appearances from blackbear (“Worry About Me“), Juice WRLD (“Hate Me“), and Diplo & Swae Lee (“Close to Me“). Goulding also has a new track with Lauv called “Slow Grenade” which will appear on Side B.

According to Official Charts, the whole record would feature both “classically influenced” music and “modern pop“: “The first side is something written entirely by me which was fun and I wrote most of it in New York when I was living there a few years back.”

The 33-year-old singer added, “I play the guitar and I play the bass and piano and then I’m singing a lot of vocals. It’s very classically influenced because I love classical music. There’s a lot going on, it’s a big soundscape and one big film. The second half is my kind of alter ego songs.”

She also detailed that the ‘Brightest Blue‘ half would showcase her “vulnerability” that “acknowledges a complex world where relationships still dictate our happiness and heartbreak and can still be the most painful thing in the world, no matter how enlightened you are.” Meanwhile, the ‘EG.o‘ entails songs that capture her “thoughts and emotions” that she wrote out as “memorable and catchy” tunes.

Brightest Blue. My 4th album. July 17.
Pre-order now: https://t.co/iIlfdGF2qW pic.twitter.com/6LsnYR1TKK

— Ellie Goulding (@elliegoulding) May 27, 2020

‘Brightest Blue‘ the album is up for pre-order now via Goulding’s official website. The physical version also comes as a cassette, a CD, and a vinyl, all of which is also available as a signed bundle.

Don’t forget to check “Power“, the latest single from the album. The song is a return to the dark pop root in her acclaimed second full-length ‘Halcyon‘, and it is served with a music video filmed in the singer’s quarantine.

‘Brightest Blue‘ tracklist

Side A – ‘Brightest Blue‘
1. “Start” (feat. serpentwithfeet)
2. “Power”
3. “How Deep Is Too Deep”
4. “Cyan”
5. “Love I’m Given”
6. “New Heights”
7. “Ode to Myself”
8. “Woman”
9. “Tides”
10. “Wine Drunk”
11. “Bleach”
12. “Flux”
13. “Brightest Blue”

Side B – ‘EG.0‘
14. “Overture”
15. “Worry About Me” (feat. blackbear)
16. “Slow Grenade” (feat. Lauv)
17. “Close to Me” (with Diplo & Swae Lee)
18. “Hate Me” (with Juice WRLD)

When asked about when she would drop some information about the upcoming album, Goulding simply replied, “Jan”. See the Tweet below:

Jan https://t.co/ZMurfiSixU

— Ellie Goulding (@elliegoulding) December 22, 2019

One fan also asked if there would be collaborations on the album. The 32-year-old singer answered that there would be a few.

Yes, a few https://t.co/bCQlWCcCcL — Ellie Goulding (@elliegoulding) December 22, 2019

It has been over four year since the “Love Me Like You Do” hitmaker dropped a full-length album. Her last record is Delirium, the third LP released back in 2015, which spawned hit singles like “On My Mind“. Prior to the release of the fourth album, Goulding has shared four stand-alone singles—”Close to Me“, “Flux“, “Sixteen“, and “Hate Me“—all of which received moderate success on UK Singles Chart.

Recently, Goulding dropped a cover of Christmas classic “River” originally by Joni Mitchell. The cover can be exclusively streamed on Amazon Music, but the music video of the song is available on Youtube now.

“River” is a song by Joni Mitchell from her 1971 album Blue. While this Christmas folk classic were not picked as a single off the album, the track has become one of the most recognised Christmas songs because many artists have covered it.

However excitingly Ellie has also released her first single from the album:  ‘On My Mind’ which is available for download on Itunes as well as listening on Spotify; here is a snippet of the song on YouTube:

What is particularly interesting about this new single is that it is seemingly a song in response to Ed Sheeran’s ‘Don’t':

‘Don’t’ was infamous for the fact that it was about Ed Sheeran’s relationship with Ellie Goulding, and how she apparently left him for One Direction’s Niall Horan, with lyrics such as this:

“I never intended to be next
But you didn’t need to take him to bed that’s all
And I never saw him as a threat”

It was hardly subtle; and Ellie’s apparent response is not too subtle either.

It is of course unconfirmed that it’s directly about Ed Sheeran; however within the song she does make some references that could be aimed at Ed:

“You wanted my heart, but I just liked your tattoos,”

With the ginger singer-songwriter being well known for his avid collection of tattoos.

But enough about the new single; as previously mentioned Ellie’s follow up album to the 2012 release ‘Halcyon’ will be released in just two short months; here is the track list of the album:

1. ‘Intro (Delirium)’
2. ‘Aftertaste’
3. ‘Something in the Way You Move’
4. ‘Keep on Dancin’
5. ‘On My Mind’
6. ‘Around U’
7. ‘Codes’
8. ‘Holding on for Life’
9. ‘Love Me Like You Do’
10. ‘Don’t Need Nobody’
11. ‘Don’t Panic’
12. ‘We Can’t Move to This’
13. ‘Army’
14. ‘Lost and Found’
15. ‘Devotion’
16. ‘Scream It Out’

With the Deluxe version containing:

1. ‘The Greatest’
2. ‘I Do What I Love’
3. ‘Paradise’
4. ‘Winner’
5. ‘Heal’
6. ‘Outside’

In interviews Ellie has discussed the new album; deeming it an ‘experiment’ of sorts:

“A part of me views this album as an experiment – to make a big pop album,” she says. “I made a conscious decision that I wanted it to be on another level.”

Ellie will no doubt be hoping that this new album will do just as well as her previous releases; since her first album ‘Lights’ in 2010, Ellie has sold over 20 million records.

With world renowned music producer/song writer Max Martin (helped produce the Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, Taylor Swift, Nicki Minaj amongst others) having contributed to songs, there can be little doubt that this album will sell and do well in the music market. What we will have to watch out for though is whether or not Ed Sheeran has a reaction to Ellie’s new song; that’ll definitely be worth keeping an eye out for.