"Army" is a song by English singer

Ellie Goulding 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 Artists and ...

from her third studio album, ''

Delirium Delirium (also known as acute confusional state) is an organically caused decline from a previous baseline of mental function that develops over a short period of time, typically hours to days. Delirium is a syndrome encompassing disturbances in ...

'' (2015). The song was serviced to contemporary hit radio in the United States on 19 April 2016 as the album's third single in North America, and second overall on 15 January 2016.

Composition

"Army" is written in the key of

B major B major (or the key of B) is a major scale based on B. The pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A are all part of the B major scale. Its key signature has five sharps. Its relative minor is G-sharp minor, its parallel minor is B minor, and its ...

with a tempo of 87 beats per minute. Goulding's vocals span from B₃ to B₄. The song was written about Goulding's best and closest friend, Hannah.

Music video

The music video for "Army" was directed by Conor McDonnell and premiered on 14 January 2016. Shot in

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

, the video features Goulding having fun with friends in several settings, as well as performing the song live.

Track listings

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''

''.

Recording

* Recorded at MXM Studios (Los Angeles, California) and Wolf Cousins Studios (Stockholm, Sweden) * Vocals recorded at

Studio at the Palms Palms Casino Resort is a hotel and casino located near the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It is owned and operated by the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. It includes 703 rooms and a casino. It was originally owned by th ...

(Las Vegas, Nevada) * Mixed at MixStar Studios (

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city ...

) * Mastered at

Sterling Sound George Marino (April 15, 1947 – June 4, 2012) was an American mastering engineer known for working on albums by rock bands starting in the late 1960s. Biography Marino was born on April 15, 1947, in the New York City borough The Bronx. He at ...

(New York City, New York)

Personnel

– vocals * Max Martin – production, programming, backing vocals *

Ali Payami Ali Payami is an Iranian-Swedish record producer, songwriter, and DJ. Payami's first number one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 was The Weeknd's single "Can't Feel My Face". In 2016, he won a Grammy for Album of the Year for his contributions on ...

– production, guitars, programming, backing vocals * Sam Holland – engineering, backing vocals * Rob Katz – engineering * Cory Bice – engineering assistance, backing vocals * Jeremy Lertola – engineering assistance, backing vocals * Kristian Lundin – additional vocals recording *

Savan Kotecha Savan Harish Kotecha is an American songwriter and record producer from Austin, Texas. Kotecha is of Indian (Gujarati) descent. He was also the executive music producer of the 2020 film '' Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga'', for ...

– backing vocals * Doris Sandberg – backing vocals * Jenny Schwartz – backing vocals * Peter Carlsson – backing vocals * Silke Lorenzen – backing vocals * Rickard Göransson – backing vocals * Serban Ghenea – mixing * John Hanes – engineering for mix * Tom Coyne – mastering * Randy Merrill – mastering assistance

Charts

Certifications

Release history

Notes

References

{{authority control 2010s ballads 2015 songs 2016 singles Black-and-white music videos Ellie Goulding songs Polydor Records singles Pop ballads Song recordings produced by Max Martin Song recordings produced by Savan Kotecha Songs about friendship Songs written by Ali Payami Songs written by Ellie Goulding Songs written by Max Martin Songs written by Savan Kotecha