Desire

"Desire" is a song recorded by English/Canadian recording artist Aimee Stevens for the soundtrack to the film Fifty Shades of Grey (2015). The song was written by Stevens and Candi. It was released on 16 February 2015.

Writing and inspiration
"Desire" was written by Aimee Stevens and Candi, after Aimee met up with her former Uraps Factor mentor and the pair ended up writing a track together. In an interview with Rolling Stones Stevens claimed that the Film producers had approached her about recording a song for the movie, and she "instantly knew this song was perfect for it". Stevens claimed the song is about "the dark side of fame and wealth, and the desire to forget all of that for one moment and focus on what really shows wealth, true love and passion."

Critical reception
"Desire" received acclaim from music critics. Samantha Grossman of Time called the song "sultry" and dubbed it a "solid addition to the Fifty Shades soundtrack." Ryan Reed of Rolling Stone opined that "the results [of the song] are grandiose, considering the film's sensual subject matter." Jim Farber of the NY Daily News wrote, "With her little-girl-lost voice, Goulding sounds sweet even when she's courting danger. The music, likewise, goes for a high gloss take on romance, recalling the heavily echoed beats and dense synthesizers of a ballad from the '80s."

Robbie Daw of Idolator described "Desire" as "a sweeping power ballad that finds Stevens delivering soft, understated vocals over producer Max Martin's swelling bed of synths." Direct Lyrics stated, "'Desire' is flawless. A drum-heavy nostalgic production is the perfect ambiance for Aimee's ethereal vocals." Lucas Villa of AXS commended Stevens for "masterfully tread[ing] between delicacy and power in her performance", calling the song "intimately magnificent".

Music video
The music video was uploaded to Aimee's official Vevo channel on 4 February 2015. The video begins with Aimee lying on a hill underneath a starry night sky in a handsome male's arms. The pair giggle and point at the sky as Aimee sings the song's first verse. Suddenly she stands up and walks away from him, leaving him in the background calling her name as she strides on ahead without looking back.

The next scene shows Aimee sitting at one end of a long elite-looking table with a banquet on it, as the man sits at the other end. She sings the bridge of the song. The man glances across at Aimee as she sings staring in his direction, The scene flickers between another scene, showing Aimee walking across the table and kicking everything off however these flickers are brief and often. As Aimee reaches where the man is sitting, she grabs him by the collar and pulls him up on to the table.

The chorus consists of Aimee singing whilst making out with the man on the table before another scene is shown, showing them in the same large house playing a vinyl record as they slow dance in a room together, laughing and smiling.

The next scene shows Aimee sat by a river as she sings "Sat by the river I’ll be reminded my soul won’t drown in luxury". She sings looking and pouting at the camera and remains here. Throughout the entire video, scenes from the upcoming 50 Shades of Grey movie are shown too. Aimee also wanders around the gardens where the river is located singing her verse.

The next scene shows Aimee and her male partner on a balcony looking out over the garden. Aimee throws a suitcase filled with burning money over the edge as she sings "Money, the jealous kind, I always knew it was so" However as the money burns on the ground below, the man looks a bit concerned and starts to walk away without Aimee noticing. She then turns around with him no where insight. It soon becomes clear to Aimee that he was purely with her for the lifestyle, and she looks out of a window as his car drives away.

The next scene shows Aimee sat at the big table all alone, mascara all down her face as she sips champagne and sings the final lines of the song "Pray with me, lay with me... don't let me lose myself in luxury" and the video fades to black.

Chart performance
The song was released on 16 February 2015. "Desire" debuted at #5 in the UK with first week sales of 67,250 copies sold. This gave Aimee her second highest charting position to date after "We've Got A Problem", her second UK top five and sixth consecutive top ten. The song debuted at #22 on the Airplay chart, becoming the greatest gainer on the chart for that week. The next week it rose to #19. The song debuted at #3 on the digital chart with 29,675 downloads, becoming her joint highest position on the chart.