"Anything Could Happen"
Single by Ellie Goulding
from the album Halcyon
Released	17 August 2012 (2012-08-17)
Format	Digital download, 7" single
Recorded	2012
Genre	Indie pop, synthpop, dream pop
Length	4:46
Label	Polydor
Writer(s)	Ellie Goulding, Jim Eliot
Producer	Ellie Goulding, Jim Eliot
Ellie Goulding singles chronology
"Lights" (2011) "Anything Could Happen" (2012) "Figure 8" (2012)
Music video "Anything Could Happen" on YouTube

"Anything Could Happen" is a song by English recording artist Ellie Goulding, released as the lead single from her second studio album, Halcyon (2012). Written and produced by Goulding and Jim Eliot of English electropop duo Kish Mauve, the song received positive reviews from music critics. "Anything Could Happen" was a moderate commercial performance, peaking at number five on the UK Singles Chart, while charting inside the top five in Poland and the top twenty in Australia, Czech Republic, Ireland and New Zealand. In the United States, the track peaked at number forty-seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Hot Dance Club Songs chart.

The accompanying music video was directed by Floria Sigismondi and filmed in Malibu, California. The video depicts Goulding and her on-screen boyfriend getting into a car accident. "Anything Could Happen" was used in the Beats by Dre's #ShowYourColor campaign commercial and in the trailer for the second season of the HBO series Girls. The song has been covered by the bands The Script and fun., as well as on the television shows The X Factor USA and Glee.

Background and composition [edit]

Goulding appeared on Fearne Cotton's BBC Radio 1 show on 9 August 2012 for the premiere of the song.^[1] She told Cotton, "I've been with this song a long time and I've had to listen to it a lot to get it just how I wanted it."^[2]

During a behind-the-scenes featurette for the "Anything Could Happen" music video, Goulding told MTV News, "I suppose it's one of those songs where I sort of talk about bits of my childhood, but also about my friendship with this person, and, um, I suppose it's a song of realization [...] And it's called 'Anything Could Happen,' [so] I'm hoping it will make people go out and propose to their girlfriends or go on that holiday they never ended up doing. I hope it will provoke positivity, as opposed to make people really sad."^[3]

According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Sony/ATV Music Publishing, "Anything Could Happen" is written in the key of C major and has a moderate tempo of 103 beats per minute. Goulding's vocals span from G₃ to E₅ in the song.^[4]

Critical reception [edit]

Lewis Corner of Digital Spy gave "Anything Could Happen" four out of five stars, stating, "'After the war we said we'd fight together/ I guess we thought that's what humans do,' the electro-folk starlet serenades over a booming bass synth and choppy piano, before bursting into a sky-soaring chorus that manages to keep up with her haunting, high-pitched "ooohs". The result is a gothic love anthem that, truth be told, we'd happily see replace 'Puppy Love' at wedding receptions for years to come."^[5] Erin Thompson of the Seattle Weekly called the song "lovely" and "impactful", while commending Goulding for "writing songs that unfold like stories".^[6] "Anything Could Happen" was ranked number eighty-four by the Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop critics' poll.^[7]

Commercial performance [edit]

"Anything Could Happen" debuted at number five on the UK Singles Chart, selling 49,680 copies in its first week.^[8] The single stayed at number five the following week, selling 37,895 copies.^[9] In the United States, "Anything Could Happen" debuted at number seventeen on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles on the issue dated 8 September 2012,^[10] before rising to number three on 20 October upon its release to radio.^[11] The song entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number seventy-five for the week of 27 October 2012, peaking at number forty-seven in its tenth week on the chart.^[12] It also topped the Hot Dance Club Songs chart during the final week of 2012.^[13] On 17 January 2013, the single was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).^[14] "Anything Could Happen" performed moderately elsewhere, reaching number two in Poland,^[15] number sixteen in the Czech Republic, Ireland and New Zealand,^[16][17][18] number twenty in Australia,^[19] number thirty-seven in Canada^[20] and number sixty-six in Germany.^[21]

Music video [edit]

The official music video was directed by Floria Sigismondi.^[22] In an interview with Carson Daly on his 97.1 AMP Radio show on 6 August 2012, Goulding stated that the official music video for "Anything Could Happen" would be filmed the following day in Malibu, California.^[23] The video revolves around a couple's car crash near a Malibu beach. "I find myself on a rock, with no idea how I've been there", she told Fuse. "I've been in a car crash. I end up being a mermaid-type thing." She added, "I wanted to do a big video with big effects by the ocean [...] I wanted to do something really epic."^[24] In late August 2012, it was reported that Goulding declined offers of a stuntwoman to help her shoot the video, and would instead perform her own stunts, such as being dropped onto a roof.^[25]

On 5 September, the official video for "Anything Could Happen" debuted via Goulding's YouTube channel. The video shows Goulding in a car with her on-screen boyfriend as they observe waves crashing on a beach. Goulding is then seen waking up on the beach, singing to the song, and walking around the beach finding silver floating spheres and triangled shaped mirrors. Goulding is also seen close up crying while singing and then bleeding out of her nose. The video continues to show Goulding and the on-screen boyfriend in a car crash, meeting up again in their "after life" on the beach. Later, Goulding is shown looking on to the car crash from above, while observing her blood-covered boyfriend, with a big fluffly pink ball holding her up by ropes. The video ends as Goulding floats away from the crash scene.

Lyric video [edit]

In late July 2012, Goulding invited fans via Facebook to contribute to a lyric video for "Anything Could Happen" by submitting photos related to the song's lyrics using Instagram.^[26] The lyric video premiered on Goulding's YouTube channel on 9 August 2012.^[27]

Ben & Ellie Edit [edit]

A second music video, titled the Ben & Ellie Edit, was released on Goulding's YouTube channel on 9 October 2012.^[28] This version all shot close up and cross fading into different scenes. The video begins with the text "Ellie Goulding", and flashes of a car driving and Goulding in multiple shots of her body. Once the song begins, Goulding starts singing, mutiple shots of her being shown, close-up, side view, and bright lights, singing along.

Use in media and cover versions [edit]

Goulding is featured performing "Anything Could Happen" in the Beats by Dre commercial as part of their #ShowYourColor campaign, which debuted in September 2012, alongside the likes of Miami Heat player LeBron James and fellow Universal Music artists Lil Wayne and MGK.^[29] The track was also used in the trailer for the second season of the HBO comedy-drama series Girls and in the Fox comedy series New Girl.^[30]

The song was covered in BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge by both Irish alternative rock band The Script and American indie pop band fun. on 27 November 2012 and 26 February 2013, respectively.^[31][32] In December 2012, the girl group Fifth Harmony performed "Anything Could Happen" in the semi-finals and finals of the second season of the US edition of The X Factor.^[33][34] Melissa Benoist, Jacob Artist and Kevin McHale covered the song in the fourteenth episode of the fourth season of the Fox television series Glee, "I Do", aired 14 February 2013.^[35]

Track listings [edit]

Personnel [edit]

Credits adapted from Halcyon liner notes.^[41]

• Ellie Goulding – vocals, producer
• Graham Archer – choir engineer
• Ben Baptie – additional engineer, mixing assistant
• Jim Eliot – drums, drum programming, percussion, piano, producer, sound effects, synthesiser
• Tom Elmhirst – mixing
• London Community Gospel Choir – choir
• Sally Herbert – choir arrangement and conducting
• Joel M. Peters – assistant choir engineer

Charts [edit]

Certifications [edit]

Release history [edit]

See also [edit]

• List of number-one dance singles of 2012 (U.S.)

References [edit]

External links [edit]

• Full lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics