"Man I Need" is a song by English singer-songwriter Olivia Dean, released on 15 August 2025 as the third single from her second studio album, The Art of Loving. Acclaimed by music critics, who appreciated its pop, R&B and gospel influenced sound and lyrics, the song was a commercial success, becoming Dean's first top 10 on the US charts and her first number one single on the UK charts. "Man I Need" was voted number one in Triple J's Hottest 100 for 2025 with millions of votes cast and nominated at the Brit Awards for Song of the Year.
The song also peaked at number one in Australia, Belgium (Flanders), Canada, Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands and New Zealand, while it became her first chart entry in the United States, peaking at number two on the Billboard Hot 100. Furthermore, it peaked at number two on the Billboard Global 200.
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Background and release
Universal Music announced the single on 15 August 2025, positioning it as the third preview from Dean's album The Art of Loving and confirming an accompanying music video. Independent music media also reported the release and its placement within the album campaign. Upon release, Dean said: "'Man I Need' is a song about knowing how you deserve to be loved and not being afraid to ask for it. It's forward, sexy, fun. It's made for dancing". A vinyl release was issued on 12 December 2025.
Lyrics and composition
In interviews and label materials, Dean described "Man I Need" as a song about "knowing how you deserve to be loved and not being afraid to ask for it," adding that it was made for dancing. Critics noted that the track's assertive lyrical appeal is carried by an upbeat, dance-oriented arrangement that blends elements of pop, R&B and gospel, and compared it to works by Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, and Luther Vandross. The song is in the key of C-sharp major and follows a 128 time signature with a tempo of 119 beats per minute.
Music video
The music video for "Man I Need" was released alongside the single and was directed by Jake Erland. Coverage described a studio-lot setting in which set pieces rotate around Dean as different potential partners pass by, reinforcing the song's lyrical request for clarity and connection.
Critical reception
Exclaim! ranked it as the 5th best song of 2025, praising its "nostalgic yet modern soul-pop sound". Helen Brown of The Independent called the song the centrepiece of the album, with a "splashy-fun keyboard riff and upward inflected chorus". NME's Hannah Mylrea described it as "a flirty, gospel-laced sugar rush that's the sonic equivalent of romantic butterflies". Writing for The Skinny, Rhea Hagiwara praised it as a "a standout within the bigger picture of the album as a vibrant, forward, danceable track with an assertive lyrical voice". Larisha Paul of Rolling Stone called it an "undeniable hit" with "impenetrable confidence". Marquis Munson of WNXP praised the song's "jazzy pop and soulful grooves paired with Dean's calm and collected vocals". The New York Times praised Dean's vocals as "full of heart, soul and elegance" and its lyrics as "something refreshing about a song that yearns so sincerely for connection".
Commercial performance
In the United Kingdom, the song debuted at number eight on the UK singles chart, the artist's third single to appear in the top ten after "Nice to Each Other" and "Rein Me In". In the week ending 2 October 2025, "Man I Need" reached number one on the chart; In the same week, the album from which it was taken, The Art of Loving, reached number one on the UK Albums Chart, making Dean the first British female artist to achieve it since 2021, when Adele occupied the top positions with the song "Easy on Me" and the album 30. "Man I Need" was streamed 119 million times in the UK in 2025 and was ranked the ninth most-successful song of the year by the Official Charts Company, marking the highest-ranking song on the year-end chart by a British artist. The song has been certified quadruple triple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for sales of 2,400,000 equivalent units.
In the United States, "Man I Need" became Dean's first song to debut on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 82 in September 2025. The song subsequently climbed the charts, peaking at number two, earning the singer her first top-10 song on the Hot 100. The song was certified platinum by RIAA for selling over one million copies.
In Australia, "Man I Need" became Dean's first number one song on the chart. The song spent twenty-one non-consecutive weeks at number one, becoming the second-longest number one single on the chart history, behind "Dance Monkey" by Tones and I which spent twenty-five weeks, and the longest running number one single by a solo British female artist, overtaking Sandi Thom's "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" (2006), which spent ten weeks. In New Zealand the song peaked at number one for a record-breaking thirty-one weeks. Dean spent twenty-two simultaneous weeks at one with the album The Art of Loving, holding the record for the most weeks at one for an album and a related single, surpassing ABBA's 50-year-old record gained by The Best of ABBA and the song "Fernando".
In France, the song peaked at number 46, becoming her first to reach the top fifty on the French Singles Chart.
Track listing
Digital single
"Man I Need" – 3:04
7" single (0602478163456)
"Man I Need" – 3:04
"Man I Need" (live at Brooklyn Paramount)