REVIEW: Khalid kills his performance at UC Davis

By Stephanie Chang,
BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

Singer and songwriter Khalid Donnel Robinson, known as Khalid, hit the stages of UC Davis’ ARC Pavilion on May 7 for his Roxy Tour. Tickets were sold for around $65 for both floor and upper level general admission.

To avoid traffic and paying for parking, I carpooled with my friends to the Forever 21 plaza, where we took a short walk to the ARC Pavilion. This walk was followed by a long 3 hour wait in line, until they started letting people in at 6:40 p.m.

After heading in, the merchandise table could be seen next to the door. Various items were sold, ranging from $40 t-shirts to $70 hoodies to $30 fanny packs. Although expensive, the merchandise showed to be a big hit, with its variety of intricate designs.

Claiming spot on the floor about three rows from the front, I waited for more than an hour for the opening act, boyband Pretty Much, to perform. Through the opening act, the spirit and excitement of the crowd could be felt, with fans screaming and singing along. The boyband performed for about half an hour, and the rest of the hour was spent waiting in anticipation for Khalid to appear.

Finally, a video of Khalid starts playing and following that, lights dim. Blue strobe lights start flashing and the screaming of the crowd grows in volume. The Roxy Tour promotion photo slowly slides up the screen and Khalid himself rises up to the stage.

Khalid starts out with one of his hit songs, “18,” with bright colorful visuals projected behind him. His soulful, rich voice carries through the entire building, bringing pleasure to everyone’s ear.

It was not until he came out onto the center stage did I realize how close I was to him. It was amazing how $65 could bring me so close to one of my favorite artists.

Khalid continued to belt out his songs, including songs like “Young, Dumb and Broke,” “Cold Blooded” and “Love Lies.” As he sang, the stuffy crowd and hot air all disappeared. The crowd, me included, was focused on one thing, and that one thing was Khalid’s performance.

It was not only Khalid himself, his backup dancers were there to enhance his performance. Each and every one of them hit the dance moves perfectly, all adding a little flair of their own personality. Khalid’s interaction and chemistry with his dancers made a phenomenal performance, tying the bow on top of the whole package.

Going to this concert made me love Khalid even more, proving that he is not only remarkable as a singer songwriter, but a live performer.

Despite the long wait, hot weather and sweaty crowds, I would do it all again just to see Khalid perform.