Khalid w/ DJ 100 Proof
Marymoor Park, Redmond, WA
07.14.17
A year ago, Khalid was as off-the-radar as it gets. And then, less than three months ago, the 19-year-old dropped his debut album, American Teen, announced an extensive US tour and sold out the Seattle stop at Marymoor Park in minutes, leaving resale tickets going for over $100.
The hot night opened early with dj100proof mixing everything from Drake to Kyle to Big Sean, with a happy crowd of young fans dancing along to the familiar tunes, an occasional throwback mixed in for good measure.
When Khalid finally came on stage, pretty much the whole crowd went deaf, lost their voice, or a sad combination of the two because there was so much screaming. While there were excessive levels of shrieking from his swooning fans, Khalid’s show couldn’t necessarily be described as “hype” or a party. It was simply a laid-back R&B set perfectly delivered in an outdoor venue.
Khalid’s softer R&B album worked well on stage. Tracks like “Angels” and “Therapy” had a very echoey, ethereal kind of vibe, putting his raw voice and emotional lyrics on display. Others, like “8TEEN” and “Young Dumb & Broke,” were wonderfully crafted with a little more fun and reckless nature than the others.
Khalid’s highly anticipated show easily lived up to its reputation, pulling out all the stops with a vintage car prop and cheerleaders supporting the music for a balance of visual and auditory entertainment. Turns out Khalid came out of nowhere for the best, delivering Seattle a wonderful performance with perfect summer vibes and even had the show finished by 9:30 so we didn’t suffer the next day.
Review and photos by Lulu Dawson
Khalid
DJ 100 Proof
