Khalid (singer)

Khalid Donnel Robinson (born February 11, 1998) is an American singer and songwriter. He is signed to Right Hand Music Group and RCA Records. His debut single, "Location", was released in July 2016 and peaked at number 16 on the US Billboard Hot 100chart and was later certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). His debut studio album, American Teen, was released on March 3, 2017. In 2018, "Love Lies", his duet with singer Normani, recorded for the Love, Simon film soundtrack, reached the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100.

Early life
Khalid Robinson was born on February 11, 1998, in Fort Stewart, Georgia.[1] He spent his childhood in various locations including Fort Campbell in Kentucky, Fort Drum in Watertown, New York, and six years in Heidelberg, Germany[2]because of his mother Linda Wolfe's career in the military. Wolfe worked as a supply technician and became a member of the Army chorus. In high school Khalid studied singing and musical theater. During his junior year of high school, the family moved to El Paso, Texas.[3]

Career
Khalid began writing and creating music in high school; he posted his early works to SoundCloud. In July 2016, he reached number 2 on the Billboard Twitter Emerging Artists chart. His single "Location" began charting, while Khalid was featured in many publications, including Billboard,[4] Yahoo,[5]Buzzfeed,[6] and Rolling Stone.[7] With production from Syk Sense, Tunji Ige, and Smash David, "Location" finished the year 2016 at No. 20 on the Billboard 's Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart[4] and reached the Top 10 on the Billboard Hot R&B Songs chart on January 21, 2017.[8] The music video for "Location" premiered on The Fader 's website.[9]

In January 2016, Alina Baraz's single "Electric", featuring Khalid, was released.[10] His collaboration with Brasstracks, called "Whirlwind," was part of the Yours Truly & Adidas Originals Songs from Scratch series, and received over 700,000 SoundCloud plays.[11] Khalid contributed uncredited vocals to Kendrick Lamar's song The Heart Part 4, released on March 24, 2017.[12][13] On April 28, 2017, Logic released the single "1-800-273-8255", which featured Khalid and Alessia Cara; the single peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, making it Khalid's highest charting single.[14]

Khalid sold out every venue on his 21-city January–February 2017 "Location Tour", including the 1,500-capacity Tricky Falls in El Paso.[15] Following the completion of the tour, his debut studio album American Teen was released on March 3, 2017.[16] The album received critical acclaim and Grammy Award nominations for Best Urban Contemporary Album and Best R&B Song (for "Location"), at the 2018 ceremony.[17] On October 24, 2017, the album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for selling over 1,000,000 in combined pure sales and album-equivalent units.[18]

In 2017, Khalid won a VMA Award for Best New Artist.[19] Khalid made his television debut performing "Location" on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon March 15, 2017, backed by The Roots.[20] His song "Angels" was featured on the ABC drama series Grey's Anatomy in the episode entitled "Don't Stop Me Now", which aired April 27, 2017. [21] September 2018, El Paso Mayor Dee Margo Friday presented R&B singer Khalid with the key to the City of El Paso. [22]

Khalid's song "The Ways" with rapper Swae Lee was featured in the Marvel film Black Panther. As of February 23, 2018, the song peaked at number 63 on the Billboard Hot 100.[23] In 2018, he collaborated with Lorde, SZA, and Post Malone on Lorde's "Homemade Dynamite" remix. He released a duet with singer Normani, called "Love Lies", recorded for the Love, Simon film soundtrack, which reached the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 in 2018.[24]

In July 2018, he was featured alongside Halsey on Benny Blanco's debut single "Eastside".[25] He released a song called "Better" on September 14, the first day of two hometown shows.[26]

In October 2018, Khalid released an EP, Suncity, on October 19, 2018 through RCA Records.[27][28] The EP debuted at number eight on the Billboard 200.[29]

Musical style and influences
Khalid's music is primarily R&B and pop. He sings in both the baritone and tenor ranges, effectively rendering him a baritenor. Khalid possesses a two octave vocal range, ranging from the low F2 to the middle B♭4.[30] Khalid cites his mother as his leading musical inspiration,[3] and has also cited Kendrick Lamar, A$AP Rocky, Father John Misty, Frank Ocean, Grizzly Bear, Chance the Rapper, Lorde, India.Arie, and James Blake as other influences.[31][32]

Discography
Main article: Khalid discography
 * American Teen (2017)
 * Suncity (2018)

Tours
Headlining Supporting
 * The Location Tour (2017)
 * American Teen Tour (2017–2018)
 * Roxy Tour (2018)
 * Lorde – Melodrama World Tour (2017)