Let’s Talk About Olivia Dean: The Woman We All Need

British pop artist Olivia Dean has taken the music industry by storm. This summer her singles “Nice to Each Other” and “Man I Need” piqued the interest of millions of listeners on platforms like Instagram and TikTok. And on September 26th, Dean released her second studio album The Art of Loving. And guess what? Every. Track. Hits. Full of raw emotion and relatable sentiment, each song delivers a slew of emotions I didn’t know it was possible to feel all at once. 

When I first stumbled upon Olivia Dean after the release of Messy — her debut album — all I could think about was how her music made me feel like I was in a Rom-Com. And as a 16-year-old, there’s truly nothing better. Seeing this enormous success she’s having has been nothing short of exciting for me. Now I get to hear her music on the radio!

Who’s the woman behind the music?

So you’ve probably heard her music on the radio and seen people lipsyncing passionately to at least one of her songs on TikTok, but who exactly is Olivia Dean?

Born and raised in London, Dean always knew she wanted to be a singer. At 15 she started attending The BRIT School, a performing arts school. When she graduated, Dean performed in the school’s graduation concert; that’s where she was discovered by her manager Emily Braham. Soon after this she released her EP Okay Love You Bye, which led to a record deal with EMI Records. A few short years later she was named Amazon’s Breakthrough Artist of 2021 and released her EP Growth. 

Despite a successful early career, Dean’s popularity really began when she released her first album, Messy. Hits like “Dive” and “The Hardest Part” really struck a chord with the hopeless romantics of the world, myself included. And as beautiful as that first album was, its success pales in comparison to the immediate popularity of The Art of Loving. And I know that sounds dramatic, but the album gave Dean her first entrance into the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, which is a huge deal. What’s an even bigger deal is that she currently has not one, not two, but three(!) songs in the Billboard Hot 100. The biggest hit from the album, “Man I Need”, entered the chart at 82, and has since moved up a whopping 70 spots to number 12. “Nice To Each Other” and “So Easy (To Fall In Love)” made the Hot 100 as well. To put all that shortly and sweetly: she is killing it! She’s helping all of the girls get over a breakup, romanticize their walk to class, AND she’s making the charts. I call that multitalented. 

Looking Into the new album

In my opinion, nobody does it like Olivia Dean. Among the release of all her latest music, her second single off of her new album really struck me. “Lady Lady” is an exquisite, serenely uplifting song about transformation. The first verse really beautifully lays out the feeling of growing out of things that you once relied on and from there the song takes the listener through her experience of accepting whatever force guides her through life. It’s really about learning to love the journey and who it allows you to become. Her emphasis on that message is the thing I most appreciate about her; she’s focused on personal growth, not dwelling on the hard things that force her to make those strides. 

Olivia Dean is truly phenomenal at making emotional, empowering, and oh-so-catchy music; perfect for breaking up, healing, or a transformation. I have a feeling we’ve only seen the beginning of everything she has to offer. 

Can’t get enough of HC UMass Amherst? Be sure to follow us on Instagram, listen to us on Spotify, like us on Facebook, and read our latest Tweets!

• album
• artist
• music
• Olivia Dean
• radio