The importance of music in the British singer's childhood is evident in her full name: she was born Olivia Lauryn Dean on March 14, 1999. Her parents were huge fans of American artist Lauryn Hill, hence her name. It was a love of music that rubbed off on young Olivia Dean from an early age. She sang in musicals at school, attended drama school, and joined a gospel choir.

At 16, she wrote her first songs. A year later, she became a backing vocalist for the drum and bass band Rudimental and appeared on their album "Toast To Our Differences." However, Olivia Dean set her sights on a career under her own name. In 2019, she released her first EP, which almost immediately led to a deal with a major record label. In 2023, she released her debut album, Messy, an album full of beautifully performed and sung soul and pop. It included hits like "Danger," "UFO," "Dive," and "Carmen." The singer was widely hailed as a unique new talent. In her own country, Messy reached the top 10 of the album charts.

In 2024, she performed at the prestigious Glastonbury festival in England, where she made a huge impression. That same year, she released a single with her cover of "You Can't Hurry Love." The original is by The Supremes, one of her major influences, alongside Adele, Amy Winehouse, and, of course, Lauryn Hill. Just how compelling Olivia Dean's live performance has become is further demonstrated by the concert recording "Live At Eventim Apollo," which was released at the end of 2024, featuring recordings made in May of that year during three sold-out concerts in the British capital.