We can’t help but dance to Olivia Dean whenever one of her songs ends up on our social media feeds. Tracks like “Dive” and “Man I Need” have been replayed too often; we won’t be surprised if they’re on everyone’s Spotify Wrapped. Olivia proves she isn’t boxed by genres, going from pop tunes and neo-soul funk to ballads and the emotional ache of tracks like “The Hardest Part.”

Her newly released album, The Art of Loving, is a hit among Filipinos. Many are already calling her the next big Grammy moment, with hopes that this album could finally earn her the international recognition she’s long deserved.

But who exactly is Olivia Dean — the 26-year-old Brit with the Diana Ross curls, warm voice, and effortless cool who’s redefining what modern soul sounds like?

Her full name is Olivia Lauryn Dean

Olivia Lauryn Dean is British. She was born in 1999 in the London Borough of Haringey, England. She is the child of an English father and a Jamaican-Guyanese mother. Her maternal grandmother came to the UK from Guyana as part of the Windrush generation.

Her middle name, Lauryn, is a nod to Lauryn Hill—one of her parents’ favorite artists. That musical influence has stuck with her throughout her style and sound.

She started writing her own songs at 16

At age 15, Olivia got into the BRIT School, a noted performing-arts school in London. She initially studied theatre but later focused on songwriting. When she was 16, she bought a second-hand piano, taught herself how to play, and began writing her own songs in her mid-teens.

While performing at her graduation, she caught the attention of Emily Braham, whom Olivia later hired to be her manager.

She was a backing vocalist for Rudimental

Her first big break came when she was around 17, performing as a backing vocalist with British band Rudimental. Her first show with the band was in Budapest, where they performed in front of 17,000 people. But Olivia claimed that although she loved her job, she didn’t think she excelled at it.

“There were times where I was supposed to be singing the harmony but I’d think actually I’m just gonna sing the tune, I would just zone out and get lost in it. So I definitely wasn’t very good at it,” she said in an interview.

Olivia’s first song was “Ready to Stay”

Not long after her gig with Rudimental, Olivia began releasing her own music. She released her first single, “Ready to Stay”, via YouTube, and followed it with her debut EP, “Ok Love You Bye” in 2019. These early releases established her indie/neo-soul sound and got her noticed.

She already won Artist of the Year

In 2021, Olivia was named Amazon Music’s Breakthrough Artist of the Year. Two years later, BBC Music Introducing selected her as 2023 Artist of the Year. Looks like Olivia is no stranger to awards! Fingers crossed she snags a Grammy soon.

She released her debut album in 2023

Her first studio album, Messy, dropped in 2023. It brought in critical praise and helped solidify her as more than just a “rising talent.”

In an interview, Olivia said that, early in her career as a woman of color, music executives expected stereotypical music from her. To which the then-24-year-old responded, “I don’t believe in boxes.”

“I can tell when people have made something just because they want to get to number one and I can’t do that,” she says during the interview. “I have quite an acute ear for bullsh*t.” And that is why Messy is only filled with tracks that “set her soul on fire.”

She’s topping the charts

Olivia Dean simultaneously scores her first #1 single and first #1 album in the UK with “Man I Need” and ‘The Art of Loving.’ pic.twitter.com/sIePat3olC

— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) October 3, 2025

Lately, Olivia’s been having bigger chart moments. Her song “Man I Need” (2025) gave her global hits: UK Top-10, rising in charts like Billboard Global 200, and her first entry on the US Billboard Hot 100. It’s pushing her into a larger spotlight internationally.

She’s also quite the fashion icon

If you follow Olivia on socials, you’ll know that her thick, curly hair blowing in the wind is iconic, and her outfits never miss. Olivia credits her stylist, Simone Beyene, for all the delicious outfits she gets to wear.

As for her hair, when she was younger, she admitted to straightening it to fit the Brit School crowd. But in a 2023 interview, she said she hasn’t straightened her hair out for four or five years. “I would never again, actually, as an act of rebellion,” she declared.

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