Olivia Dean dumps social media, prefers to live in ‘sweet ignorance’

If you have a hot take on Olivia Dean, she doesn’t want to hear it — even if it’s positive.

Speaking to ELLE, the singer says after she won the Grammy for best new artist, she deleted all the social media apps from her phone. “I’ve been thinking about doing it for a while,” she says. “Even though the love has been overwhelming, even that is not healthy sometimes.”

“I don’t think you’re supposed to know everyone’s opinion about you,” she notes. “And I’ve decided I want to live in sweet ignorance.”

But one app she won’t delete is The New York Times’ Games: Wordle & Crossword. Olivia loves the mini crossword puzzle on the app, and tells ELLE she was thrilled when she was a clue: a word that describes the music both she and Daniel Caesar make. Unfortunately, she got the answer wrong. She laughs, “I bet it was ‘R&B.’ I wouldn’t really say that, guys, but okay, sure.”

Olivia will bring her sold-out tour to the U.S. in July and August, and hints to ELLE that she’ll have a custom look for every city. She took a stand against ticket resellers who were overcharging fans on the secondary market, and forced Ticketmaster to refund fans who overpaid on the platform.

“There is no way that I’m going to get up on that stage and sing my heart out while somebody sits at home and makes $500 or $600 off of me and you,” she tells ELLE. “I want people to be able to afford to come to the show. I don’t think you need to be someone who’s got loads of money to enjoy your favorite album. Full stop.”