Discovering love through Olivia Dean

Olivia Dean, a British singer-songwriter, won the title for Best New Artist during the 68th Grammys awards on Sunday. I was in my room screaming as she walked onstage to accept her first Grammy.  

I discovered Dean last year and was immediately captivated by her storytelling through songwriting. She has gifted my ears with her second studio album, “The Art of Loving.”  

What an album it is!  

“The Art of Loving” might just be the perfect love album. I’ll be bold and say it is one of the best love albums of this decade. Dean doesn’t focus only on romantic love. She dives into friendships, break-ups, self-love and personal growth.  

Her songs perfectly illustrate the idea of falling in love, being scared, the butterflies, the love turning sour, and maturing all while she sings in perfect vocals.  

In a time where love songs are often extremely vulgar and flashy, Olivia Dean’s smooth voice over her jazzy pop beats brings a sense of freshness in the music industry.  The 12 songs on her album are mostly written by Dean herself. 

I believe Olivia Dean has put out the best love albums of the decade for many reasons. The intro song of the album is only 40 seconds long but shows the energy of the album very well through a line from the intro, “It’s the art of loving. It wasn’t all of nothing, yeah, you taught me something.” How many times have we looked back on failed relationships or talking stages and realized how much growth it gave us? That is the art of loving.  

If you listen to the radio, you have probably heard her standout tracks “Man I Need” or “So Easy (to Fall In Love)”. “Man I Need” captures the giddiness and confusion that comes with having a crush, while “So Easy (to Fall In Love)” captures the feeling every girl has had screaming in their pillow of “It’s so easy to fall in love with me! Why wouldn’t my crush like me back? I’m amazing!” 

My personal favorite songs from her are “Something Inbetween”, “Lady Lady” and “Let Alone The One You Love.” All songs that made my avoidant lover’s heart melt.   

. “Something Inbetween” features the lyrics “I’m too scared to be changed” and “Love needs breathing. I’m not his, I’m not hers, I’m not yours.” Wow, if I had this song during my first situationship, I probably would’ve had the strength to not go back to him. 

“Lady Lady” is a beautiful tale of self-growth and changing even while wanting to stay the same. Growth is not always conscious but something we do unintentionally. Our minds and hearts are always growing and changing. The lyric, “She is always changing me without a word, and I was just getting used to her.” To me, this means that many times in my life I outgrew situations and was afraid of what that meant in my life. I knew I was changing my environment and was so scared of change, but Dean encourages it. Growth without conscious direction, letting your spirit guide you even when afraid.   

“Let Alone The One You Love” is about stepping away from love, friendships or family members where the relationship is no longer good. The lyric, “And if you knew me at all, you wouldn’t try to keep me small. Who would do that to a friend? Let alone the one you love?”  

When I first heard this song, I instantly sat down and hit replay. Almost everyone has been in a position where the person they love or care for is no longer caring for them. People have had a relationship that turned bitter and resentful while still having love for this person but admitting you need to let them go.  

Another lyric, “You react like I’m crossing a line. I’m too much to handle and just dial it back a bit. Well, I’m not having it, babe.” Self-realization and acceptance is sometimes the hardest choice because all you want is that person to love you correctly. 

Every song on this perfect album speaks to the overall feeling of love, admiration, friendship, maturity and acceptance.  

I’m so happy for Olivia Dean and hope more success comes her way. I’m pulling for her to win Song of the Year at the BRIT Awards on Feb. 28, right now you can vote for her song “Man I Need” until Feb. 13.