Rising British singer-songwriter Olivia Dean is having a moment. Her sophomore album, The Art of Loving, dropped last month, and one track in particular has catapulted her into global recognition. The single “Man I Need” went viral and has since topped charts in countries like Ireland, Belgium, and New Zealand, while also reaching No. 25 on Billboard’s Hot 100 in the United States. For an artist who only released her debut album Messy in 2023, it marks a huge leap forward.
At just 26, Dean is taking the whirlwind of attention in stride. Appearing on Today, she described how the surge of new fans has made her feel. “I’m feeling all the feelings, I’m feeling very loved and just received and understood. I’m very grateful,” she said Friday, smiling as she took in her new reality.
Her latest record is more than just catchy songs. Dean explained that the inspiration came after seeing a Los Angeles art exhibit tied to Bell Hooks’s influential 1999 book All About Love. The book reframed the idea of love as something to practice and improve on, rather than simply a fantasy. “It was kind of the only text I’ve read talking about love as less of like a fantasy thing, and more of something that you can practice, like a skill you could get really good at, a craft you could just get better at,” Dean explained.
That idea became the foundation of The Art of Loving. “And I thought, ‘I’d like to do that. I’d like to be more loving and love people better and myself better, and I think this album was just me exploring that,’” she said.
She and her team worked out of a studio in London, but the process felt more like living inside the record than simply recording it. “We sort of rented this house for eight weeks and called it ‘The House of Loving,’” she said. “And I lived there, and I was like, whatever I made in that time that was the album and that was what I found out about love.”
Listeners and critics alike have connected with what came out of those sessions. Alongside “Man I Need,” tracks like “Nice to Each Other” and “Lady Lady” are resonating widely. Many are noting how Dean’s sultry, jazz-tinged voice recalls the late Amy Winehouse, while at the same time bringing her own bright perspective to the modern pop landscape.
That perspective is winning praise for its optimism. In a glowing review, Helen Brown of The Independent wrote about the single “Man I Love” from the new record, noting how it stood apart in today’s music scene. “At a time when the pop charts are a little saturated with women (quite understandably) calling out toxic masculinity, there’s a lovely optimism in Dean’s sunny olive branch of a track,” Brown wrote.
“I loved the way this record de-complicates and de-escalates romance, particularly at a time when the climate feels so combative,” Brown added. “Dean doesn’t downplay the challenges or the risks of heartbreak. But she offers sussed-up hope with a playful generosity of spirit. Deep’n’breezy does it.”
For Dean, this chapter is about more than breaking into the charts. It is about showing that music rooted in vulnerability, hope, and joy can cut through the noise. As her voice carries around the world, Olivia Dean’s art of loving is clearly striking a chord.
