The Intentions, Inspiration, And Meanings Behind ‘The Art of Loving’ By Olivia Dean 

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Temple chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

Olivia Dean’s latest album, The Art of Loving, is now out! Olivia Dean is a lively English singer-songwriter whose music features a mixture of neo-soul, R&B, jazz, and pop. Some of her popular hits as of recent are “Nice to Each Other,” “Man I Need,” “Ok Love You Bye,” and “It Isn’t Perfect But It Might Be.” Her album includes two of these singles along with 10 other songs, the lead single being “So Easy (To Fall In Love).” With its rom-com feel and aspects of motivation, heartbreak, songs about falling in love, and loving others, it is an album currently climbing the charts and garnering attention.  

Intentions and Inspiration behind The Art of Loving 

According to her official website, the album showcases an “intentional deep dive into the many dimensions of love – romantic, platonic, self, and everything in between.” In an interview with TODAY, Dean said that she wants people to listen to the tracks and really think about the way they love people—and how they love themselves.  

Now, let’s dive into how the album came to be and where Dean got her inspiration for the it. In another interview with TODAY, Dean said that what inspired the album, along with its name, was an exhibition in LA she attended that was in response to bell hook’s book, All About Love. She talked about how the book focused on love as less of a “fantasy thing” and more of something that can be “practiced,” and a “craft that you can get better at.” She described that through the album, she wanted to explore “being more loving,” loving people better, and loving herself better.  

The uplifting spirit and relatability of The Art of Loving 

I love that Dean is not just exploring one part of love but instead doing a deep dive into the practice and the action of it within her album. Another aspect that I like is that there are songs on it that will make you want to dance, make you feel so emotional that you want to cry, and make you appreciate the simple things in life.  

While speaking with NPR, Dean emphasized the vulnerability in her album, sharing that though some of the topics and lyrics she wrote are from experiences that made her feel “broken,” and that they’re not the “most fun to share,” they make the album relatable to listeners. I appreciate how real the lyrics are throughout the album, but also how many of the songs on it sound like a breath of fresh air. In my opinion, the joy and amount of energy Dean carries throughout her music and live performances is something that really sticks with the listener. Some of my favorite performances where she exudes this enthusiasm and liveliness are when she performed “Man I Need” live in NYC, and when she performed “Ok Love You Bye” live in Melbourne. 

A taste of the lyricism and storytelling of The Art of Loving  

The first song from the album I’d like to highlight is “So Easy (To Fall in Love)”, the album’s lead single. In her interview with Elle, Dean explained that her outlook when writing this song was to encourage others and give them the confidence that anyone would be lucky to have them in their life—since it can definitely be easy to forget at times. So much of the time, we focus on what someone else may think of us, if they like us, and how we can impress them; we worry about how we may look, how we’re acting, and everything else in between. We can all get caught up in this feeling. With this song, Dean hoped it’d be like giving us all a pat on the back when going off on a first date, alleviating the stress of those factors. Besides the meaning of the song, I also love how vibrant the music video is, especially with the styling, set, and choreography at the end, as everyone in the video dances together in a playful, cheerful, jazz number.  

Next, a song from the album that deserves the spotlight is a song called “Baby Steps”. I think this song is about being patient with yourself, focusing on self-love and self-care. I love the pacing in the lyrics, which I feel shows the brief and small steps toward things getting better, the process of healing, and appreciating your journey by noticing every step of the way to get to a goal. My favorite lyrics from it are “There’ll be roses on the shelf ‘cause this house gon’ love itself. Yeah, this house gon’ love itself. I’m taking ba-ba-ba-baby steps, one foot at a time,” and “I won’t fall back. If I fall forwards, at least I have that.” I interpret these lyrics as saying that you need to put effort into taking care of and loving yourself, the same way you’d do for others if you were in a relationship with them. The relationship you have with yourself is so important. I think the lyrics “I won’t fall back. If I fall forwards, at least I have that,” mean that if a setback in your life or your plan happens, that doesn’t mean that you’re going backwards. Instead, since you have been taking steps to actually achieve what you want and are trying, you can only go forward. This is because you’re learning from these experiences, and they’re propelling you closer to where you’re meant to be.  

“Let Alone the One You Love” is another song from the album that moved me. This song explores betrayal and heartbreak in a relationship. Sometimes, being in a relationship, especially with someone who makes you feel small, is not worth it. The lyrics I find the most powerful in the song are, “You’re the hug that had to end, even though I’ve tried to hold on, and if you knew me at all, you wouldn’t try to make me small. Who would do that to a friend, let alone the one you love?” I think these lyrics are empowering and valuable to hear in the song since they show how she was able to stand up for herself and realize that she deserved more.  

While Dean’s performing this song, I feel like you can see the hurt, sadness, and anger that she feels from the situation. Her emotions are so apparent through her vocals, pauses, and demeanor, and that makes the song even more impactful for listeners.

I think many people will be able to relate or learn from the songs on this album. Olivia Dean did a wonderful job of conveying the ups and downs of love in The Art of Loving, covering all aspects of the subject and helping listeners broaden their understanding of it. If you enjoyed discovering some of the ins and outs of this album, I recommend giving it a listen!