# Close to Me (Ellie Goulding, Diplo and Swae Lee song)

"Close to Me" is a song by English singer Ellie Goulding with American DJ and music producer Diplo and American rapper Swae Lee, released on 24 October 2018 from the former's fourth studio album, Brightest Blue (2020). It was premiered by Annie Mac on BBC Radio 1 as the "Hottest Record in the World".

## Background

   At the time, there was a lot going on in the world that I wanted to forget. Savan gets very overwhelmed with what's happening particularly in America, and I think we all wanted to forget that and just write something a bit silly. It was so nice to just go back to just writing a song about a turbulent, probably doomed relationship – someone to forget the world with.
Goulding told Billboard that the song came about when she and co-writer Savan Kotecha were in a Los Angeles studio where they came up with the guitar melody and Goulding sang what would become the first line of the pre-chorus, "don't let me down", which they decided to keep in the song. Goulding, feeling that the song was "missing something", eventually sent it to Diplo who sent his version back to her within a short amount of time. Diplo suggested adding Swae Lee as a featured guest vocalist.

## Composition

The song is recorded in the key of E major with a tempo of 72 beats per minute in common time. The song follows a chord progression of E–C♯m7–G♯–A, and the vocals span from E$_3$ to C♯$_5$.

## Music video

The music video for "Close to Me", directed by Diane Martel, was filmed in Budapest, Hungary, and premiered on 14 November 2018.

## Promotion

Goulding wiped her social media accounts and began promoting the track on 22 October 2018, first sharing a cartoon image of hers, Diplo and Swae Lee's arms locked in a triangle, displaying their tattoos against a cheetah print background, captioning it "CLOSE TO ME". She then later confirmed this would be the title, and along with posting an audio clip of the track, announced the release date and time.

### Other versions

In April 2019, Goulding released another version of the song featuring Korean girl group Red Velvet to replace Swae Lee's verse in the song.

### Live performances

Goulding performed an acoustic version of the song during On Air with Ryan Seacrest on 16 November 2018. She later performed the song during BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge Month on 28 November. Her first televised performance of the song was on the final of The X Factor on 2 December.

## Certifications

Certifications for "Close to Me" :
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
| Australia (ARIA) | 2× Platinum | 140,000$^‡$ |
| Belgium (BEA) | Gold | 20,000$^‡$ |
| Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil) | 2× Platinum | 80,000$^‡$ |
| Canada (Music Canada) | 2× Platinum | 160,000$^‡$ |
| Denmark (IFPI Danmark) | Gold | 45,000$^‡$ |
| France (SNEP) | Gold | 100,000$^‡$ |
| Italy (FIMI) | Platinum | 50,000$^‡$ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ) | 2× Platinum | 60,000$^‡$ |
| Poland (ZPAV) | Platinum | 20,000$^‡$ |
| United Kingdom (BPI) | Platinum | 600,000$^‡$ |
| United States (RIAA) | 2× Platinum | 2,000,000$^‡$ |
| $^‡$ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |||

## Release history

Release dates and formats for "Close to Me" :
| Region | Date | Format | Version | Label |
| Italy | 26 October 2018 | Radio airplay | Original | Universal |
| United States | 6 November 2018 | Contemporary hit radio | Original | Interscope |
| Various | 1 February 2019 | Digital downloadstreaming | The Remix | Interscope |

## Red Velvet remix

On 5 April 2019, a remix was released which removes Swae Lee's verse and features Korean girl group Red Velvet, singing a verse and their own version of the chorus in Korean. Their chorus was written by Red Velvet's Wendy & Yeri. It has won a "Choice Electronic / Dance Song" award at the 2019 Teen Choice Awards. The remix appears as a bonus track on the Japanese edition of Goulding's fourth studio album Brightest Blue (2020).

### Release history

Release dates and formats for "Close to Me" (Red Velvet Remix) :
| Region | Date | Format | Label | Ref. |
| Various | 5 April 2019 | Digital downloadstreaming | Polydor | |