Songfacts®:

• "Ocean" blends Calvin Harris' signature electronic dance production with Canadian singer-songwriter Jessie Reyez' soulful vocals. Reyez sings about a passionate connection between two people, so deep it feels as vast and consuming as the ocean.
• Reyez first linked with Harris on the album Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 (2017), singing and co-writing "Hard to Love." Since then she's popped up in Harris's orbit like a recurring comet: co-writing "One Kiss" with Dua Lipa, "Promises" with Sam Smith, and "Slow Down" with Normani. Harris also co-produced Reyez's fiery 2022 track "TITO'S," proving their creative chemistry runs both ways.
• English producer and songwriter Burns also gets credited here. Burns contributed to seven tracks on Lady Gaga's 2020 Chromatica album, including "Rain On Me" and "Sour Candy." His partnership with Harris stretches back to the early 2010s when the Scottish DJ signed him to his Fly Eye Records label.
• The song almost had a very different face. In May 2024 Harris teased a version with Miley Cyrus on vocals, which set fans spinning out conspiracy theories and mashups before anyone had heard a proper snippet. That pairing sank, Harris later admitted, because of "crossed wires." He was quick to clarify there was no bad blood, just logistics, and in any case, "it was with Jessie first."
• For Reyez, "Ocean" was a long-awaited full-circle moment. After years of handing her lyrics to the likes of Dua Lipa and Sam Smith, she finally got to keep the vocal credit. "After many years of writing for bigger artists, Calvin has decided to keep my vocals on the record," she said.