The Art of Loving
Olivia Dean’s follow-up to 2023’s *Messy* suggests she’s anything but. From the radio-friendly uplifter “Nice to Each Other” to the sweeping, late ’60s Dionne Warwick-esque soul of “So Easy (To Fall in Love),” *The Art of Loving* finds Dean self-assured as she slinks freely through R&B and pop. “You can make whatever you want, there’s no rules and that’s such a freeing feeling,” she tells Apple Music’s Rebecca Judd. Dean describes her songwriting on *The Art of Loving* as “real, fresh, and honest” and she makes it sound so easy. It’s no surprise that the overarching theme—love in its different forms—came naturally. “I had the title quite quickly,” she says. “I’ve also been fascinated by love. It’s the one thing that everybody is looking for in their life in some capacity, whether it be friendship, family, romantic, but it’s something that we’re not taught. There’s not a love module in school. It’s this magic thing we’re supposed to know how to do. So I wanted to take a closer look at it and what it means to me and the art of it, the craft of loving someone properly.” The album opens with the instant hit “Nice to Each Other,” the obvious choice for Dean. “As soon as I wrote it, I knew it was going to be the first song. It’s got a Fleetwood Mac guitary feel and it’s cheeky, it’s flirty,” she says. There might be heartbreaks and wistful moments along the way, but Dean leaves listeners in no doubt she’s in a happy place. “How could I not be?” she says. “I’ve been thinking a lot about touring and what I want to sing live and I want it to be joyful. So I’ve been moving towards joy.”
The years since Olivia Dean’s debut ‘Messy’ have been marked by countless career highlights, and the soaring ‘The Art of Loving’ adds to it.
The Art of Loving's more refined moments represent the larger shift in Olivia Dean's discography from neo-soul to contemporary twists on R&B, now presented with the slight sheen of pop.
U.K. singer-songwriter Olivia Dean elevates her music to a new level on her second album
Dean’s appealing message about dropping the games and relaxing into kindness runs through every song on this record, from beginning to end
On second album The Art of Loving, Olivia Dean transforms balances playful charm with raw emotion.
Olivia Dean has dominated our feeds this summer. With just three singles out ahead of release, her 12-track second album, 'The Art of Loving', has
Already dominating the charts and seemingly inspired by 70s LA, this exceptionally well-made record is full of diaristic detail and sweetly understated vocals