Olivia Dean's radiant show warms Manchester up for the Brits

"Dean-o! Dean-o! Dean-o!"

Manchester's Albert Hall echoes to the sound of a football chant - and although the recipient isn't part of England's starting 11, she's definitely a keeper.

We're cheering for Olivia Dean. And she's not sure what to do about it.

"I'm a little embarrassed," she says, as the chants stretch into a third minute, and she tries to calm the crowd down.

"Guys, we'll be here all night."

Maybe that wouldn't be a bad thing.

Dean is one of the biggest musical breakouts of the last 12 months, thanks to her breezily assured second album, The Art Of Loving, whose mix of soul vocals and modern pop draws from a lineage that includes Sade, Amy Winehouse and Lauryn Hill.

She's playing Manchester two days before the Brit Awards, where she's nominated five times in all the major categories, including artist and album of the year.

For the fans who've endured long, snaking queues to gain entry, she's already assured the win.

Most of them have never heard these songs live before: Dean has been criss-crossing the US with Sabrina Carpenter ever since The Art Of Loving was released last September, and this is the Londoner's first show back on home turf.

You can hear all those road miles in the laid-back assuredness of her band. There's an ease and warmth to the music that matches the singer's radiant charisma.

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Because this is a low-key charity gig, the staging and lighting are minimal; but the star makes the room shrink, shimmying around in a jade green ballgown with irrepressible energy.

"She's just so likeable," I thought to myself, and instantly wondered why more pop stars don't try it. It's pretty effective, I reckon.

As they alway do, Dean's band play completely live - no samples, no backing tracks, no programmed beats - perfectly complementing the dusky glow of her voice.

Not that you can hear her sing, half the time.

Dean's secret weapon is the incisiveness of her lyrics, which paint instantly-recognisable vignettes of love.

She seasons her songs with peppery observations like, "I'm the perfect mix of Saturday night and the rest of your life" (So Easy), and astute self-analysis such as, "I'm a tidal wave of question marks" (Dive).

The audience seem to know every word - with the whole room reverberating to the declarative, "I don't need a boyfriend", that crops up in the second verse of Nice To Each Other.

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Even the songs from her commercially less successful debut are welcomed like old friends - notably an acoustic version of UFO that strips away the original's other-worldly vocal processing, exposing the loneliness at its core.

Between songs, she chats away about situations that inspired her; and takes a moment to reflect on the crazy ascent she's had over the last 12 months.

"We actually played this venue in 2024 as part of the tour for my first album," says the singer, who's got a six night residency at London's O2 coming up later this year.

"It's amazing to be back and think about everything that's happened since I was last here. So I'm just full of gratitude tonight."

Dean's show is one of a series of gigs in the run-up to this year's Brit Awards that support the charity Warchild - which helps millions of children affected by conflict around the world.

The singer says ticket sales alone raised £175,000 for the cause, with merchandise sales and one-off donations expected to increase the total.

Robbie Williams will also play on Friday night at Manchester's Aviva Warehouse, trading his stadium shows for a relatively intimate crowd of 5,000 people.

Other artists who've played shows include Fatboy Slim, Spiritualized, Myles Smith, Kwn and Jack Savaoretti.

The Brit Awards take place on Saturday night, moving to Manchester for the first time in its 49-year history.

Organisers have also staged the first ever Brits Fringe event, featuring masterclasses from industry experts and live sets from emerging stars in the city.

Olivia Dean, Harry Styles, Raye, Sombr and Wolf Alice are all due to perform at the main ceremony, which will be hosted for the sixth and final time by Jack Whitehall.