POPSUGAR UK

7 Need-to-Know Facts About Singer Khalid

30/01/2018 - 11:52 PM

On Sunday, the biggest names in music celebrated the 60th Annual Grammy Awards [1] at Madison Square Garden, and there were a lot of amazing moments throughout the night. While we were in awe of numerous performances and looks on the red carpet [2], it was newcomer Khalid who stood out to us and left us wanting to know more about the singer.

While some of you might already know a lot about Khalid, we've discovered that there is more to the 19-year-old singer [3] than you may think. In addition to being a megastar before turning 20 years old, Khalid has led a very interesting life thus far when it comes to music and in his personal life.

  1. He's an army brat. Growing up, Khalid (whose full name is Khalid Donnel Robinson) was the son of a military mom [4]. His mom only recently retired as a sergeant first class in the US Army. At a young age, he recalled feeling unsettled because as "a military child, where you're constantly moving, and you don't really have any form of stability."
  2. He lived overseas. As an army brat, Khalid has lived somewhat of a nomadic lifestyle. In addition to living in Georgia, Kentucky, New York, and El Paso, TX, over the years, the "Location" singer spent a decent amount of time in Germany.
  3. Music runs in the family. Following in his mom's footsteps — she performed with the US Army band and chorus — Khalid grew up being musical. In fact he performed in musicals [5] at school such as Hello, Dolly, where he played Cornelius, and Hairspray, where he played Seaweed.
  1. Kylie Jenner is a fan. When Khalid was new to the music scene, having only released one single, "Location," the reality star had a clip of the track on one of her Snapchat videos [6], and it helped the artist get exposure. "I don't know her [personally], but if I did I'd thank her," Khalid previously told Vice.
  2. He's Grammy-nominated. The 2018 Grammy Award show was a breakout moment for Khalid, who took the stage with Logic and Alessia Cara to perform the song "1-800-273-8255," [7] on which he is featured. His first Grammys experience was a big one, and even though he didn't win, he was nominated for five Grammys [8].
  3. Fleetwood Mac is his jam. Khalid might be classified as an R&B singer, but when it comes to his inspirations, he loves a variety of genres and has always been a fan of Fleetwood Mac [9]. "Stevie Nicks is the best. I love Stevie Nicks. And I love alternative rock. I love so many, I love alternative music. I love so many different types of music," the singer told GQ when talking about his musical background. "There's been a time where I was like, I wanna be a folk singer, no, I wanna sing soul, I want to sing classical music, I want to sing R&B, I want to be on Broadway. I just wanna sing."
  4. He's just getting started. After releasing his debut record American Teen in March 2017, the album became certified platinum in just a few months and landed at the No. 4 spot [10] on the Billboard 200 list. When it came to the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums from Billboard, it hit the No. 3 spot, and this was only his debut record!

Source URL
https://www.popsugar.co.uk/celebrity/Who-Khalid-44542030