Today, fans were blessed with the highly anticipated release of “Hold Me Closer,” a collaboration between Britney Spears and Elton John. In a new interview with The Guardian, John opened up about how the song came together, and it turns out that getting the “Toxic” singer on wasn’t initially his idea.
“I want to do one every year for a fun, happy summer record,” John said about duets that revisit his classics. He and Watt made a “Tiny Dancer” remix and weren’t sure who should be the guest vocalist. Then, David Furnish, his husband, came up with an idea.
“He said it would be wonderful for Britney Spears to do it,” John continued. “I said, ‘That’s a pretty amazing idea.’ She hadn’t done anything for so long. I’d been following what’s been happening to her for a long time.”
In that same interview, the producer Andrew Watt discussed being blown away by Spears’ vocal abilities. “She’s unbelievable at layering her voice and doubling, which is one of the hardest things to do,” he said. “She really pushed herself vocally. Sometimes when you produce, the greatest thing in the world you can do is say nothing, so I just let her do her thing.”