"Easy Lover" is a song by English singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding featuring American rapper Big Sean. It was released on 15 July 2022, through Polydor Records as the lead single from her fifth studio album, Higher Than Heaven (2023). It was written by Goulding, Sean, Greg Kurstin and Julia Michaels, and produced by Kurstin.
Background and release In January 2022, Goulding hinted at releasing new music in an Instagram post and expressed concerns about having to manage her mental wellbeing. In July, she sent an email to her fans "that the song was a long time coming and that it had had many lives". In an interview with Billboard, she detailed the process behind working with Kurstin and Michaels for the song, saying: "I think one of us was dealing with a known f–kboy at the time, but we ended up with a song about going back to the same person who’s hurt you and you think you can change them. We always say we can change someone, and we can't".
Regarding the collaboration process with Big Sean on the record, she added: "We’ve stayed in touch for years because he sampled me a couple of times, I always feel like there’s something pretty special in someone who appreciates me that early on as an artist, so I’ve stayed in touch with everyone from that era, in particular him because I think’s he’s consistently been a brilliant artist. At some point we were going to do a collab, and it just happened to be this song". "Easy Lover" was released on 25 July via Polydor Records, while a solo version of the song was later released on 26 August.
Music video The music video, directed by Sophia Ray, was shot in a school in Bulgaria. Goulding plays several characters, including a teacher and an androgynous rocker, to take on an otherworldly creature. Sean makes an appearance in a scene as Goulding plays a teacher who is taking class photos.
In an interview with Rolling Stone UK, Goulding stated: "I was really nervous that the video would just end up being a representation of the song. But I wanted it to be something else. I wanted it to be a bit trippy, like we’re living in some kind of parallel universe, or we’re all in some kind of simulation, like a video game". She added that she wanted to allude to characters that might return later in the campaign.
Reception "Easy Lover" has received generally positive reviews from critics. Alex Gonzalez from Uproxx praised Sean's verse, describing it as "clever wordplay", and Mike DeWald from RIFF Magazine enthused about an "anthemic feeling" in the song.
Track listing Digital download / streaming "Easy Lover" (featuring Big Sean) – 3:35
Digital download / streaming – Four Tet Remix "Easy Lover" (Four Tet Remix) – 4:11
Digital download / streaming – Solo Version "Easy Lover" (Solo Version) – 3:25
Digital download / streaming – Jax Jones Remix "Easy Lover" (Jax Jones Remix) – 2:00
Digital download / streaming – The Remixes "Easy Lover" (featuring Big Sean; Navos Remix) – 2:44 "Easy Lover" (Russ Chimes Remix) – 3:35 "Easy Lover" (featuring Big Sean; Colbath Remix) – 3:35
Personnel Credits were adapted from Tidal.
Ellie Goulding – lead vocals, songwriter, composer, lyricist Big Sean – lead vocals, songwriter, composer, lyricist Greg Kurstin – producer, songwriter, composer, lyricist, bass, drums, electric guitar, keyboards, percussion, synthesizer Julia Michaels – composer, songwriter, lyricist Bryce Bordone – assistant mixing engineer Joe Kearns – vocal engineer Randy Merrill – mastering engineer Tom Kahre – engineer Matt Tuggle – engineer Alex Pasco – engineer Julian Burg – engineer Serban Ghenea – mixing
Charts + Chart performance for "Easy Lover" Chart (2022) Peakposition Croatia International Airplay (Top lista) 26 Japan Hot Overseas (Billboard Japan) 20 New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ) 27 Suriname (Nationale Top 40) 26
Release history + Release history and formats for "Easy Lover" Region Date Format Version Label Various 15 July 2022 Original Polydor 19 August 2022 Four Tet Remix 26 August 2022 Solo Version 2 September 2022 Jax Jones Remix 23 September 2022 The Remixes
References