UK singer-songwriter Olivia Dean has donated equipment to Brazilian surf school Vivendo Um Sonho Surf (VUSS) in Rio de Janeiro, in partnership with courier and logistics company DHL. Dean performed a sold-out show in the city during a North American tour earlier this year. During her visit, which included time at VUSS, she told NME about the songs that influenced her new album, Messy, which was nominated for the Mercury Prize.
Dean was raised in Walthamstow in London, and studied at the BRIT School. She described a personal connection to Lauryn Hill, whose The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill album was a massive influence on her own work. “My middle name is Lauryn after Lauryn Hill, because my mum just loved her and listened to her when I was in her tummy,” she explained. “So I think something Lauryn Hill flavoured runs through me.”
The songs that have inspired Dean include Aretha Franklin’s “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”, which she described as “a beautiful piece of music.” Paul Simon’s “Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes” was a hit in her music lessons at school. She described the music video, a celebration of South African culture, as a way to “bring joy to people”.
Other inspirations included Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive”, which she claimed was “my karaoke song forever and always”, as well as Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now”. She described how the latter, which Mitchell performed at the Grammys in 2024, previously caused her to “ugly sob” at home: “It’s just heartbreaking and magical. She’s a legend and we’re so lucky that she wrote that song and that song exists in the world.”
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