Singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding released her sixth studio album, I Know Too Much, yesterday via Polydor Records, and with it comes the focus track “For Your Entertainment.” Of the album, Goulding said, “I Know Too Much was written about love and power, trust and instinct. The stories we tell ourselves about other people, and the stranger ones we tell ourselves.”
“For Your Entertainment” is the perfect mesh of those themes. It’s a soft, catchy tune with an impassioned chorus. It seems to detail a relationship dynamic where someone loves the other so much as to the point of sacrifice, illustrated by the lines “I jump from a burning building to save you/Choke on the smoke if I get to chase you down/Until I’m chalk on a pavement/Do it all for your entertainment.” Such a fiery determination can only be driven by an intense trust in the person, even if that trust is one-sided and exploited. The pre-chorus of “Oh, I’m a fool for you/What’s a fool to do?” touches on the power aspect Goulding mentioned, as this person seems to acknowledge that their willingness to sacrifice for this other person might be detrimental to them. However, they still give the other person that authority over them.
Outside of the focus track, Goulding’s new album explores a wide array of avenues, from gospel-inspired songs like “Black Prada Dress” to her first electronic solo single “Ravers.” This project is a key example of the singer-songwriter’s experimentation and versatility.
Leave a Comment