Being surrounded by women has made life a lot easier

Despite her success, Ellie Goulding still struggles to make her voice heard in a male-dominated industry. But things are changing.

- Elizabeth Aubrey

WHEN Ellie Goulding returned to the recording studio after lockdown, she knew what her new album wouldn’t be. “Nobody was in any kind of ballad mood after two years indoors,” she laughs.

Her fifth album, Higher Than Heaven, came out of those sessions, and there’s not a ballad in earshot. It’s bright, cutting electro-pop that’s dancefloor ready and feels reminiscent of Swedish pop sensation Robyn. “I think it was an almost direct reaction to the pandemic and not being able to do the thing that I love, which is performing, and the fact none of us could dance with friends,” she says.

It is Goulding’s most assured album to date and feels like the sister to its critically acclaimed predecessor, Brightest Blue, which earned Goulding her third number one. There is a feeling of positivity and celebration running throughout it.

Yet though she’s sold more than 18 million albums and has over 23 billion streams to her name (not to mention 50 million followers on social media), Goulding still experiences imposter syndrome, plus a fear of expressing her ambition in a music industry that’s still largely male-dominated.

“I feel I have to stop myself when it feels like I’m being too ambitious,” Goulding says, reflecting on her success after 15 years in the industry. “I often take a step back, especially when I’m in the presence of men, [thinking] that maybe my opinion isn’t the right opinion… I then have to be counter-intuitive and like, ‘No, I’m going to stick with what I believe’ and not apologising for wanting to be successful. Some days I feel more confident than others but lately I’ve been trying to feel like I’m meant to be here.”