Elena Jane Goulding (born 30 December 1986) is an English singer and songwriter. Her career began when she met record producers Starsmith and Frankmusik, and she was later spotted by Jamie Lillywhite, who became her manager and A&R. After signing to Polydor Records in July 2009, Goulding released her debut extended play, An Introduction to Ellie Goulding, later that year.

Goulding released her debut studio album, Lights, in 2010; it debuted at No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart and has sold over 850,000 copies in the UK. In November 2010, the album was reissued as Bright Lights, spawning two singles: a cover of Elton John’s “Your Song”, which reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart; and “Lights”, which peaked at No. 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming her highest-charting single to date. Goulding’s second studio album, Halcyon, was released in 2012 and preceded by its lead single “Anything Could Happen”. The album debuted at No. 2 on the UK Albums Chart, and topped the chart after 65 weeks. Halcyon Days, a repackaged edition of Halcyon, was released in 2013 and produced the single “Burn”, which became her first No. 1 single in the UK. She released her third studio album, Delirium, in 2015, with “On My Mind” as the album’s lead single. That year, she received her first Grammy Award nomination for Best Pop Solo Performance for her single “Love Me like You Do”.

In 2017, at the end of her Delirium World Tour, Goulding announced that she was going on indefinite hiatus. It was later revelead that she was dealing with an anxiety disorder, as well struggles with media scrutinity faced during that time over false claims on her personal life. During her five-year hiatus, Goulding released several stand-alone singles, including her cover of Joni Mitchell’s “River”, which would became her third UK No. 1 and was crowned as the last number one of the decade (10s) in the United Kingdom. After the hiatus, she released her fourth studio album, Brightest Blue (2020), which became her third album to top the UK Albums Chart, and her fourth consecutive RIAA–certified album. It spawned several singles, including the hits “Close To Me” (with Diplo & Swae Lee), “Sixteen” and “Hate Me” (with Juice Wrld), the latter became Goulding’s 14th entry on the Hot 100, making her the British Female artist with most entries on the US Chart (record currently hold by Dua Lipa).

In 2022, Goulding released the song “Easy Lover” featuring rapper Big Sean as the lead single of her fifth studio album. On March 2023, Goulding released her third collaboration with DJ Calvin Harris, titled “Miracle”, the song debuted at number No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart, with the song entry Goulding made history as the British Female Solo Act with most entries in the UK, surpassing Dame Shirley Bassey, with a total of 35 chart entries. Her fifth studio album, Higher Than Heaven, was released on 7 April 2023.

Elena Jane Goulding was born on 30 December 1986 in Hereford, Herefordshire, England to Arthur and Tracey Goulding, and was brought up in the small village of Lyonshall, in Herefordshire. She has a brother, Alex, and two sisters, Isabel and Jordan. When she was five years old, her parents separated. Afterwards, she had little contact with her father, a funeral director. Goulding and her siblings were raised by their mother on a council estate, with Goulding describing the family as “super poor”. She stated that she has a “difficult” relationship with her mother.

Goulding began playing the clarinet at age nine and learning guitar at age 14. She attended Lady Hawkins’ High School in Kington, Herefordshire and, by the age of 15, started writing songs. She took A levels in English, politics, drama and music, and passed the first 3 with “A” grades but failed music. After enrolling on a degree in Drama and Theatre Studies at the University of Kent and remaining until her final year, she met Jamie Lillywhite. He became her manager and introduced her to the producer Starsmith, who would become her chief collaborator and the primary producer of Lights.

Although Ellie Goulding signed to Polydor Records in July 2009, her debut single, “Under the Sheets”, was released through the independent label Neon Gold Records, appearing digitally in the United Kingdom on 15 November 2009. The single peaked at No. 53 on the UK Singles Chart following a successful appearance on Later… with Jools Holland (performing “Under the Sheets” and “Guns and Horses”) and a UK tour supporting Little Boots. “Wish I Stayed” was available as a free download as Single of the Week on iTunes Store UK from 22 to 28 December 2009.

Before the release of her debut album, Goulding won the BBC Sound of 2010 poll, which showcases the music industry’s top choices for rising stars. She also won the Critics’ Choice Award at the 2010 Brit Awards, making her the second artist to win both in the same year. Goulding co-wrote “Love Me ‘Cause You Want To” for Gabriella Cilmi’s second album, Ten, and three songs (“Remake Me + You”, “Notice”, “Jumping into Rivers”) for Diana Vickers’s debut album, Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree. Her song “Not Following” was used by German singer Lena on her debut album My Cassette Player. Goulding was featured on rapper Tinie Tempah’s single “Wonderman” from his debut studio album Disc-Overy (2010).