Khalid
In 2016, Khalid Robinson was voted Most Likely to Go Platinum by his high school class. About a year later, he proved them right. A military kid, Robinson split his childhood between Georgia, Kentucky, upstate New York and Heidelberg, Germany, eventually settling in El Paso, Texas—a pattern of dislocation that often made him feel like an outsider. Self-described as “an awkward teen,” he picked up songwriting primarily to stave off loneliness, sharing music through SoundCloud and quickly catching the ears of both his peers and the industry. (His breakout single, 2016’s “Location”, was recorded during spring break of his senior year; a few weeks after it came out, he won Prom King; within a couple of years, the song had sold more than five million copies in the U.S. alone.) In 2017, he released American Teen, a celebratory but bittersweet mix of synth-pop and neon-lit R&B that garnered five Grammy nominations—proof that you’re rarely an outsider alone. In between, Robinson featured on high-profile collaborations with Logic (“1-800-273-8255”), Calvin Harris (“Rollin”) and Normani (“Love Lies”), among others. An EP, Suncity, arrived in late 2018, opening with audio of Khalid being given keys to the city of El Paso—not bad for a kid who’d moved there only a few years before. Reflecting on his evolution from spectator to artist for Apple Music’s Up Next series, Robinson said, “I would sit in this apartment, I would look at the mountain behind me, I would watch all the lightning and I would listen to music. I was like, ‘You know what? I need something to help me a little bit more.’” So he took it on himself and started to write.
Known For
17 titles
Saturday Night Live
The Jennifer Hudson Show
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
NPR Tiny Desk Concerts
The Voice
MTV Video Music Awards
The Masked Singer
Austin City Limits
American Music Awards
Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest
2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
Teen Choice Awards
The Grammys
Dare to Live
Mariah's Christmas: The Magic Continues
Shawn Mendes: Artist Spotlight Stories
Khalid: Free Spirit