Olivia Dean brings the warmth of modern soul to Brussels
Olivia Dean performs at Forest National in Brussels on Friday, 08.05.2026 at 20:00, as part of "The Art of Loving Live" tour. For an audience that has followed her journey in recent years from intimate British soul-pop to major international stages, this concert comes at the right moment: Dean is no longer just a new name with several strong singles, but an artist who has built a recognizable live identity around her voice, band and songs.
Her music blends soul, pop, R&B and a jazz sensibility, but without cold studio distance. In songs such as "Dive", "The Hardest Part", "Man I Need", "Nice to Each Other" and "So Easy (To Fall in Love)", you can hear a songwriting style that loves melody, warm backing vocals, a rhythm that gently carries the song and lyrics that sound like a conversation after a long day. That is why her concerts attract both audiences who love the classic soul tradition and those who listen to Dean as a fresh, contemporary pop voice.
Tickets for this event are in demand.
Why "The Art of Loving Live" is an important tour
The concert in Brussels is connected to the album "The Art of Loving", a release that strengthened her status after the debut album "Messy". "Messy" in 2023 brought songs such as "Dive" and "The Hardest Part" and opened the door to a wider audience for her, while the new chapter with "The Art of Loving" expands that story toward larger halls, a richer band sound and a repertoire that more easily moves from an intimate ballad into a more danceable groove.
On the album "The Art of Loving", Dean deals with love in several forms - romantic, friendly, familial and the kind directed toward herself. It is not a concept that remains only on paper: her songs often begin from a small, personal sentence, then grow through bass, brass, piano or a guitar rhythm, so in concert they can sound both close and expansive at the same time. That is exactly a good reason to see her performance live, and not only listen through studio versions.
Among the songs that have marked this phase of her career, "Man I Need", "Nice to Each Other", "Lady Lady" and "So Easy (To Fall in Love)" stand out in particular. They show the range Dean currently has: from a confident, rhythmic pop-soul song to softer moments in which she relies on voice and lyrics. For the audience at Forest National, this means a concert that does not have to depend on one big chorus, but on a series of songs that naturally follow one another.
What the audience can expect from the performance
At previous performances on this tour, the emphasis was on a full band, warm vocals and transitions between more danceable songs and slower, more emotional parts. There is no need to guess the exact repertoire for Brussels, but the framework is clear: "The Art of Loving Live" presents the current album, while the audience can also hope for songs from earlier releases that brought her recognition.
Dean is not an artist who builds a concert only on loudness and big production gestures. Her strength lies in detail: the way she delivers a line, how the band leaves room for the vocal, how a soul-pop song from a diary-like sketch turns into collective singing. In a large hall such as Forest National, that contrast can be very effective - enough space for a big sound, but also enough focus so that the songs do not lose intimacy.
For those coming because of the hits, "Man I Need" and "Dive" will be natural points of the evening. For long-time fans, the broader arc of her career is appealing: the path from "Messy" toward "The Art of Loving", from early soul-pop sketches to songs that carry major stages with increasing confidence. For the wider audience, especially for listeners who love Amy Winehouse, Lauryn Hill, Adele or modern British soul-pop, this is a concert that can work even without detailed knowledge of the discography.
Places are disappearing quickly.
Alice Phoebe Lou as the support act
For the Brussels concert, Alice Phoebe Lou has been announced as the support act. That is a logical choice for an evening in which an audience ready to listen to nuances, not only choruses, is expected. Alice Phoebe Lou is known for a more intimate, songwriterly approach, with music that moves between indie-pop, folk and dreamier guitar textures. Such an introduction can prepare the space well for Dean, because it does not try to overpower the main performance, but opens the evening in a related mood.
For visitors, this means it is worth arriving earlier, especially if they experience the concert as an entire evening, and not only as the performance of the main artist. Support acts in this kind of context often set the tone for the audience: they calm the hall, introduce concentration and create a transition from a rushed arrival into concert focus.
Forest National - a hall with a circular character
Forest National, or Vorst Nationaal, is one of the best-known concert halls in Brussels. It is located in the municipality of Forest and is known for the circular shape of its interior, which is important for the sense of space: the audience is not arranged only linearly in front of the stage, but the hall has a rounded, arena-like character. European Arenas states that the space is modular, with a capacity from 2,500 to 8,000 visitors, depending on the event configuration.
For Olivia Dean's concert, this is an interesting framework. Her music asks for closeness, but also space for the band. Forest National can accommodate a large number of people while still retaining the feeling of a concert hall, not a stadium. When a song begins more quietly, the audience can remain focused on the vocal; when the rhythm becomes more mobile, the hall has enough volume for collective singing and applause to gain weight.
Practically, Forest National is used to major music evenings, so visitors can expect standard concert organization: entrance checks, audience flows toward sectors, food and drink offerings and clear directions toward exits after the end. Details about the exact door opening time are worth checking immediately before arrival, because such information can differ from event to event.
- Venue: Forest National, Brussels, Belgium
- Date and time of the concert: 08.05.2026 at 20:00
- Tour: "The Art of Loving Live"
- Support act: Alice Phoebe Lou
- Hall capacity: modular from 2,500 to 8,000 visitors, according to European Arenas data
How to get to Forest National
In its arrival information, Forest National directs visitors to combine public transport, Park & Ride options, trams, buses, trains and bicycles. For a hall of this type, that is reasonable: on evenings of large concerts, traffic in the surrounding area can be slower, and looking for a parking space immediately next to the hall often takes longer than a visitor plans.
For those arriving by car, the event page lists the availability of Car park Audi. Still, for visitors who do not know Brussels, a more practical approach is often to leave the car at a more peripheral parking area and complete the last part of the journey by public transport. Brussels has a dense network of trams, buses and metro lines, so it is good to plan the return in advance, especially if after the concert you are returning outside the city center.
If you are coming from another Belgian city or from abroad, the simplest way is to plan the journey through the main Brussels railway hubs, then continue by urban transport toward Forest. The city is used to international visitors, but concert evenings require a little discipline: check the last departures, leave time for crowds around the hall and do not count on leaving the arena being instantaneous.
Brussels as a concert city
For this kind of concert, Brussels is more than a passing point on the tour map. The city has a large international audience, a strong club and concert scene and a good location for visitors from Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and western Germany. Because of this, performances in Brussels often have a mix of languages, habits and audiences that do not come only from one local circle.
For travelers staying longer, Forest is a quieter part of the wider urban area, while the center of Brussels, museums, bars, restaurants and neighborhoods around the main stations are easily accessible by public transport. This can turn the concert into a shorter city stay: an afternoon walk, dinner before the performance, then a trip to the hall without rushing.
It is worth securing tickets in time.
Who this concert is a particularly good choice for
Olivia Dean's concert at Forest National will appeal most to an audience that likes it when pop has soul, and soul has contemporary lightness. Her songs are not closed into one genre: they contain retro warmth, British pop clarity, jazz details and R&B softness. Because of this, the evening can be attractive both to those who follow the current charts and to those who prefer to look for artists with a strong vocal and a songwriting identity.
Long-time fans will get the opportunity to hear how material from the "Messy" period sounds alongside newer songs. New audiences will get an overview of an artist on the rise, but not in an early phase in which the concert is still finding itself; Dean now has enough songs, recognition and stage experience to carry a performance in a large hall as a rounded story. Couples, groups of friends and solo visitors who love focused concert evenings can find the same reason for coming here: a voice that is not overly embellished, songs that do not rush and a band that knows how to breathe with the vocal.
Those who love concerts with changing dynamics will especially enjoy it. It is not hard to imagine an evening in which the audience at one moment sways to the rhythm, and a few minutes later listens to a ballad almost without conversation in the hall. Such transitions require an artist who has control over the space, and Olivia Dean has built a good part of her reputation precisely on that.
Useful notes before arrival
Planning arrival for Forest National is best done earlier the same day. Check the route to the hall, avoid arriving at the last moment and count on crowds around the entrance. If you are coming by public transport, save the return route before the concert begins. If you are coming by car, check the available parking options and do not rely only on parking immediately next to the hall.
For entry, the usual rules of large indoor concerts apply: ticket control, security checks and restrictions on bringing in items can slow down the lines. The smartest thing is to bring only what you really need. Information about bags, cloakroom, accessibility for people with reduced mobility and the offer inside the hall should be checked on the Forest National website before departure, because details can be updated according to the organization of each individual event.
Ticket sales for this event are ongoing.
A musical evening for those who love voice, band and story
Olivia Dean comes to Brussels with songs that have enough radio appeal, but also enough character not to sound flat live. "The Art of Loving Live" tour gives her a broader framework: the current album, recognizable singles, an audience that has grown together with her and halls in which intimacy must be carried to a larger number of people. Forest National is a suitable space for this because it combines an arena format with the city's concert tradition.
This is not an evening that needs to be described with exaggerated promises. Concrete reasons are enough: Olivia Dean has one of the warmer voices of contemporary British pop, a current album that has opened larger stages for her, the confirmed support act Alice Phoebe Lou and a hall that knows how to carry soul, pop and a band-driven groove. For an audience that wants a concert with emotion, rhythm and a feeling of closeness, Brussels on 08.05.2026 has very clear appeal.
Sources:
- Forest National - event page for confirmation of the date, venue, tour, support act Alice Phoebe Lou and information about Car park Audi
- Forest National - mobility page for information about public transport, Park & Ride options, train, tram, bus, bicycle and arrival at the hall
- European Arenas - description of Forest National, the circular shape of the hall and modular capacity from 2,500 to 8,000 visitors
- Olivia Dean - artist page for the context of the album "The Art of Loving" and the current phase of her career
- Associated Press - music review of the album "The Art of Loving" and description of the soul-pop, jazz and R&B direction of the current release
- Official Charts - information about the album "The Art of Loving" and highlighted singles "Nice to Each Other", "Man I Need" and "Lady Lady"
- Britannica - context of Olivia Dean's career, the album "Messy", the song "Dive" and the Mercury Prize nomination