Olivia Dean Shares Why She Prefers Not Using Dating Apps: A Look at Meaningful Connections

Olivia Dean at the CFDA Awards in New York City in November 2025.
Credit :

Jamie McCarthy/WireImage

NEED TO KNOW

• British soul-pop artist Olivia Dean has announced she is stepping away from dating apps.
• In a recent interview with NYLON, Dean described her songwriting process as possessing a “documentary” quality, reflecting her personal experiences, including romantic highs and lows.
• It remains unclear if Dean is currently single or in a relationship, though fans have speculated about possible connections with fellow musicians.

Olivia Dean is taking a break from dating apps. The 26-year-old singer, known for her hit song “Man I Need,” shared her decision during her recent cover story interview with NYLON, published on December 2.

“God forbid! I don’t love that it’s like, ‘You could have whoever you want.’ Just swipe, swipe, swipe,” Dean remarked. “It all feels a bit too disposable.”

Recognized for her distinctive soul-pop vocals, Dean has gained significant popularity in recent years, leading to a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist in 2026. Her breakout single is part of the 2025 EP The Art of Loving, and she recently opened for Sabrina Carpenter on her Short n’ Sweet tour.

For those interested in Dean, it seems they will have to find her offline as she has also deleted TikTok in a bid for a “digital detox.” She shared, “I just live my life,” when asked how she meets potential partners in person.

Olivia Dean performs onstage during the ARIA Awards in Sydney, Australia in November 2025.

Mark Metcalfe/Getty

While her dating life may seem laid-back, Dean’s songs are emotionally revealing. She describes her lyrics as having a “documentary” quality, reflecting actual events from her life. “I would never write a song if it wasn’t something that actually happened to me,” she explained.

Her upcoming music serves as a time capsule for her experiences. For The Art of Loving, Dean wrote the songs in a loose chronological order, allowing her to revisit those moments later. “I do it so that I can listen back to it in 10 years and be like, ‘Okay, that was about that breakup.’ ‘That was about that time in my life,’” she said. “That’s interesting to me.”

Olivia Dean for December’s Nylon Magazine Cover.

Leeor Wild/NYLON Magazine

Despite being deeply personal, her music resonates widely. Dean has made history as the first female solo artist to land four singles in the U.K. singles chart’s Top 10 simultaneously.

While recording her EP in East London, she converted a home into a live-work studio for eight weeks, driven by recent heartbreak, which provided ample material for her songwriting.

Olivia Dean for December’s Nylon Magazine Cover.

Leeor Wild/NYLON Magazine

Reflecting on her previous year, Dean described it as a “bin fire year,” adding humorously that an alternate title for her album could have been The Art of ‘Damn, I Got My S— Rocked.’

While she did not reveal specifics about the challenges she faced, Dean has been linked to several musicians recently.

Harry Styles at S.S. Daley RTW Spring 2025; Olivia Dean at the Saint Laurent Men Collection Fall/Winter 2024-2025.

Saira MacLeod/WWD/Getty; Marc Piasecki/WireImage

Speculations about romantic connections have emerged, including rumors surrounding fellow U.K. pop star Harry Styles, particularly after a fan captured a video of him kissing a mystery woman at Glastonbury, who some believe was Dean. Styles has since been linked to Zoë Kravitz.

Additionally, Dean was seen holding hands with Eddie Burns, drummer for Clairo, during the Wimbledon Championships, though their current relationship status is unclear.

Olivia Dean and Eddie Burns at Wimbledon in London in July 2025.

Jordan Peck/Getty for AELTC

Regardless of her relationship status, Dean maintains a positive outlook on love. “I know that so many songs are written about love,” she said, “but I think it’s the most important thing in the world, so we must keep digging on the topic.”