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About

Genius Annotation

On “Joy” (stylised in capitals on Spotify & Soundcloud), Ellie Goulding learns that her lover no longer brings her happiness.

Featuring a whirlwind pickup towards the end, Ellie turns sadness into a moment of pure clarity with her ethereal vocals swelling over a string section and live backing drums.

The heavily orchestrated track features production from Goudling and frequent collaborator Jim Elliot who produced 6 other tracks from parent album Halcyon with her. “Joy” is also featured on the extended repackage released a year later entitled Halcyon Days.

Ellie Goulding once said in an interview that a lot of her second album, Halcyon was about heartbreak. She said: “Sometimes I’d look at the lyrics I was coming up with and realise that I had all this sadness inside me.”

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did Ellie Goulding say about "JOY"?
Genius Answer

Ellie goulding has said that Joy

is like a revelation, it’s like having a really beautiful revelation. I think it’s universal […] I wanted that song to help people through something. I wanted to give people hope. […] to be honest, I’m never going to write a song going like ‘this is going to be like this, it just kinda of happens, but joy does sound like joy, like when you reach the end you just want to cry 'cause it’s so powerful to me.

Credits
Sound Effects
Concertmaster
Choir Conductor
Strings Conductor
Choir Arranger
Strings Arranger
Recording Engineer
Assistant Recording Engineer
Percussion
Mixing Engineer
Assistant Mixing Engineer
Mastering Engineer
Synthesizer
Drum Programmer
Recorded At
Studio Splendido (Wales) & SARM Studios (London, England)
Release Date
October 5, 2012
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