New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Fast rising Londoner
Olivia Dean today shares a video for her cover of Nat King Cole's 1961 festive classic "
The Christmas Song" for Amazon Music.
Olivia has reinvented the beloved song into a modernised, sweeping slow burner complete with a live string section, whilst still preserving the heartwarming spirit of the original recording. It arrives alongside a video directed by Rosie Matheson (Sinead Harnett, Finn Askew), which gives a behind the scenes glimpse into the recording of the track on super 8 film.
"
The Christmas Song" rounds off a landmark year for Olivia, with the song on track to be her first single to chart in the Top 100 Singles chart this week, already racking up over an impressive 2.4 million streams. Dean released her stunning third EP Growth in July to critical acclaim and played packed shows and festivals across the UK, including two sensational sold-out shows at London's Jazz Cafe. This year has also seen Olivia's total global streams hit over 100 million, with over one million monthly Spotify listeners.
Of covering "
The Christmas Song",
Olivia says "Nat King Cole's and Ella's Fitzgerald's versions of The Christmas Song have been such comforting go-to's for me at this time of year, so getting the chance to cover it for Amazon Originals was super exciting. It has always been a dream of mine to be able to sing with a string ensemble so getting to record this cover with the 12 Ensemble was very special. Big thanks to the very talented
George Moore on the arrangement too. I hope you love it!"
Born and raised in Walthamstow,
Olivia Dean caught the eye of London label AMF (Loyle Carner, Marika Hackman) with her first ever song "Reason to Stay", which she uploaded to Spotify and Soundcloud where it quickly gained hundreds of thousands of streams. At the end of last year,
Olivia shared her second EP What Am I Gonna Do On Sundays?, produced by Felix Joseph (Jorja Smith, AJ Tracey, Mahalia) and featuring the singles "Echo" and "
The Hardest Part", it displays her flawless vocals and endearing diaristic storytelling.
Olivia Dean's 2021 EP Growth comes as a culmination of her most confident and self-assured work to date. Named as Amazon Music's Breakthrough artist for 2021,
Olivia also has fans across BBC
Radio 1, Beats 1, The Guardian, Sunday Times Style, Dazed, The FADER, PORTER, gal-dem, Notion, ELLE, Grazia, NME,
Clash and more; her ascent as one of the UK's brightest pop talents is undeniable.
"With a talent and musicality that sound both natural and effortless, she's got to be a hot tip for 2021"- Sunday Times Culture
"The self-love ballad is tricky, but the Londoner balances defiance with genuine romance, the psychedelic soul evoking tweeting birds and dappled sun rays." - The Guardian
"Her diaristic songwriting, as evidenced on her just-released Growth EP, is delivered by her silken vocals draped over tender, soul-filled production in a way that could both break and mend hearts." - Dazed
"destined for musical success... Our kinda gal." - Sunday Times Style
"With harmonies floating like a soft feather in the morning breeze, this soothing track proves this Londoner is one to watch" - gal-dem
"Olivia Dean has a talent for writing songs about the triumphs and tribulations of a relationship" - Hypebae
"The London-born artist is now gearing up to release 'Growth', a gorgeous collection of soul-laced songs... that are anchored by Dean's remarkable voice." - NME