It’s been a scant five years since the debut album from Khalid hit shelves – the dude is basically everywhere now: following this, he appeared with Billie Eilish in the gorgeous track “Lovely”, released a brilliant follow-up album Free Spirit, hit it big with single “Talk” and appeared on about a million tracks (including one with our own Lorde).

American Teen is a pretty great debut, though feels like two albums – the first half distinct from the second. Both are good though. Single “Young Dumb & Broke” is a good portrayal of being a teenager; Khalid was seventeen when the album came out, so I assume knew what he was talking about. Third track “Location” is a highlight, shifting into R&B mode behind Khalid’s smooth vocals.

The second half of the album is a fairly straight-forward run of love songs; “Winter” is a stand out, showing his deft touch with a piano while putting down another beautiful vocal track.

Khalid has a new album coming out sometime in 2022; if nothing else, listening to American Teen reminds me I should get hyped for it.

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CLTM (Chris Listens To Music) is my attempt to listen to a new album every day; you can follow my efforts on Instagram here (and send recommendations), and if you like what I’m doing, support my efforts by shouting me a cuppa at Buy Me A Coffee.