Ten years ago, it was nearly impossible for the teenager to miss the ubiquitous croon of Khalid. His songs were the blueprint for American adolescence in the 2010s: late night drives, young love, house parties, wanting to belong — you name it.
His 2026 tour, It’s Always Summer Somewhere, marks his highly-awaited return to the stage. At The Anthem on May 31, Khalid was joined by opener Lauv, who delivered a phenomenal and emotionally vulnerable opening performance on what would be his final stop on the IASS tour.
As he emerged on top of a shipping container set, Khalid was greeted by the raucous cheers of several thousand fans that filled The Anthem. Finally, he was back. The dreaminess of “Motion” and “Better,” both from his 2018 EP Suncity, set us down a path that would eventually take us through the different eras of Khalid, from pop, R&B, to EDM.
By his next song “8TEEN,” Khalid and a crew of four talented female dancers flaunted some upbeat choreography. It was natural, the kind that didn’t look overly rehearsed and allowed for the star of the show to let his swagger and charm shine through.
Watch the official music video for “out of body” by Khalid on YouTube:
While it’s easy to get caught up in the vibes of his earlier discography, he certainly didn’t skimp on his more recent releases. Tension-charged and oftentimes sensual, the songs from his album after the sun goes down (2025) reflected a maturation of theme and sound, such as “out of body,” “please don’t call (333),” and “rendezvous,” to name a few. The intimate “Please Don’t Fall In Love With Me” and “Adore U” from Sincere (2024) felt like his truest self being presented to the audience, pushing beyond the youthfulness and carefreeness of American Teen (2017).
Every show element felt specifically designed to make this as much of a personal experience as possible. During a dance break, we got to learn each dancer’s name and their hometown through a thoughtful, big screen introduction that I had never seen done at other shows. Perhaps the most touching moment of the concert was when he brought a couple of fans onstage to chat. When asked what his music meant to them, one fan emotionally described his creative works as “healing” in her own life journey. It was a sentiment that echoed resoundingly in a room of thousands just like her.
What sets Khalid apart from other artists of this era is that his music defines a certain stage of life for his listeners – so much so that it becomes memory itself, especially for those who’ve grown up with his music. To express heartbreak as a teen or yearn for the good old days as an adult, and everything in between, Khalid captures it exceptionally.
Watch the official music video for “Better” by Khalid on YouTube:
Of course, it wouldn’t be a Khalid concert without crowd pleasers like “Location,” “Talk,” and “lovely” with Billie Eilish, where I could barely hear my own voice over my neighbors’. Fans were pleasantly surprised by a mid-show guitar cover of Simply Red’s “Holding Back The Years” and Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car,” a welcome breather between his higher-energy songs. “OTW” and “Eleven” took us on a moody ride down nostalgia lane, immediately followed by EDM collabs “Silence” with Marshmello and “Rollin” with Calvin Harris. Towards the end of the show, his dancers, now sporting sea-blue jerseys, shuffled rhythmically around a beer pong table while he bounced about in a relaxed, college-esque fit of his own. The set was very fitting for his encore, the catchy pop anthem “Young Dumb & Broke,” which had everyone singing along to its titular chorus.
One of the things I noticed post-concert was how stacked the setlist was. It’s a true testament of Khalid’s legacy as one of the greatest contemporary artists to not only have such an impressive range of hits, but also be able to connect meaningfully to thousands of fans who belted the lyrics to nearly every song on there, myself included.
That is to say, the wait was worth it.
Here are some photos of Khalid performing live at The Anthem on May 31, 2026. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Thuy Nguyen.
