Singer-songwriter Olivia Barton has always been a master of intimacy, but with her new single “Kissing in Public” she’s crafted one of her most luminous love songs yet. It’s a track that feels both tender and triumphant—an unabashed celebration of queer love and longevity. “It’s an old-fashioned love song. Except that it’s very gay,” Barton explains. Out now alongside a warm vignette-style video starring her partner, Corinne (aka corook), the song glows like sunlight spilling into a quiet room.
Barton says she wrote the track right after finishing Heartstopper, reflecting on her own love story. “I imagined us in a few decades, looking back at our life right now. I feel unbelievably lucky to grow old with someone I met when I was only 20.” That sense of gratitude runs through every note—simultaneously present and prophetic.
The Album: For Myself and For You (Out Oct 10, 2025)
Due October 10 via Barton’s independent release, For Myself and For You is co-produced by Sam Skinner (Pinegrove). It follows her 2022 breakout This Is a Good Sign and marks Barton’s third full-length. If the lead singles—“Matter to You” (co-written with Madi Diaz) and now “Kissing in Public”—are any indication, this record won’t just invite listeners into her world, it will hold them there with stark emotional honesty.
Barton describes the album as “about no longer bullshitting yourself about your life, your struggles, or your love.” Across its 12 tracks, she tackles queer identity, family, anxiety, body image, heartbreak, and aging with a fearless clarity. Sometimes unflinching, sometimes tender, her lyrics cut to the quick of everyday humanity. Or as she jokes: “Really the album title should be I Deal With My Shit: For Myself and For You, but I dropped the first part.”
The Sound & Spirit
Working with Skinner, Barton aimed to capture the rawness of her live sets. The result is a stripped-down production that frames her voice and guitar without unnecessary frills. It’s not about showing off—it’s about getting out of the way of the song so the truth has space to resonate. And that truth is crushing, cathartic, and deeply relatable.
Tour 2025/26
To support the album, Barton will head out on tour starting this fall, beginning with a showcase at AMERICANAFEST in Nashville (Sept 9), before hitting the West Coast in November. She’ll then return for a full run of U.S. dates in early 2026, including a stop at Brooklyn’s Baby’s All Right (Jan 25) and a Valentine’s Day show at Los Angeles’ Bell Choir Studios (Feb 14).
Quick Links
🎶 Listen to Kissing in Public: Spotify | Apple Music 📀 Pre-order For Myself and For You (Out Oct 10, 2025) 📹 Watch Kissing in Public Video: YouTube 🌐 Olivia Barton Official Website 📸 Instagram: @oliviabartonhaha