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  1. Tracks
  2. Khalid
  3. Free Spirit
  4. Twenty One
Twenty One by Khalid

TRACK

Khalid

Twenty One

Release date: 4th April 2019

From Free Spirit
Track 12
3:04
R&B/SoulMusic
Spotify Apple Music More on Khalid

About This Track

Twenty One opens with the blunt fact of its title: someone has just turned twenty-one, and the song watches them reach for alcohol to numb something deeper. Khalid traces the shape of that pain without naming it directly, moving between the voice of an observer and a participant in the same struggle. The song sits in the space between wanting to help and recognising the limits of what one person can do for another. The chorus pivots on a simple admission: "you're in pain / but who's to blame?" It's a question that refuses easy answers. Khalid moves through scenes of avoidance, of hiding, of the small daily failures that come from trying to manage something alone. By the final verse, the perspective has shifted; the pain is his now, and so is the responsibility. The song ends not with resolution but with the harder work of acknowledgement: holding on, staying present, accepting that change has to come from within.

"Twenty One" is a track by Khalid, from the album Free Spirit, released 4th April 2019. The track is 3:04 long. It's filed under R&B/Soul. Full lyrics are available below. Dork has published 3 articles about Khalid.

About the Artist

Khalid

Khalid

Lyrics

Twenty One

You just turned 21
So lately you been drinking
Wasted on alcohol
You chase to fight the feeling
Thinking about letting go
Would that be easy for you then, then?

So lay with me, lay with me
We're underneath the bleachers
Stay or leave, stay or leave
I hope you'll never leave
And all of these memories
Crawling underneath your skin, skin

'Cause you're in pain
But who's to blame?
All our lives
It never ends

Yeah, alright
You gotta hold on tight
Yeah, alright
Alright

Don't believe everything
The shaky life gives you anxiety
But finally I see you smiling
When you say you need privacy
You're only hiding from yourself
You say I'm fine coming home
I see the sun come up and shut the blinds episodes
I know I never take my own advice
When I'm wrong
But I can't do it by myself, no

'Cause you're in pain
But who's to blame?
All our lives, it never ends

Yeah, alright (alright)
You gotta hold on tight
Yeah, alright
You gotta hold on tight

'Cause I'm in pain
But I'm to blame
To end this fight
I have to change

Yeah, alright
Hold on tight
Yeah, alright
Hold on tight

Lyrics provided by LRCLIB

View full lyrics page →

Track details

From Free Spirit

3:042019
Listen
Album
Free Spirit
Free Spirit
Khalid
5th April 2019
Track number
12
Release year
2019
  1. 1Intro
    3:32
  2. 2Bad Luck
    3:52
  3. 3My Bad
    2:44
  4. 4Better
    3:49

More from Khalid

Albums & EPs

after the sun goes down
after the sun goes down
2025
Sincere (Deluxe)
Sincere (Deluxe)
2024
Sincere
Sincere
2024
Scenic Drive (The Tape)
Scenic Drive (The Tape)
2021
Suncity
Suncity
2018
American Teen
American Teen
2017

Explore

More tracks by Khalid

  1. angel boy
    3:00
  2. dumbstruck
    2:40
  3. hurt people
    4:29
  4. impulsive
    2:42
  5. in plain sight
    2:25
  6. instant
    3:52
  7. medicine
    2:55
  8. momentary lovers
    3:25
  9. nah
    2:43
  10. out of body
    2:55

Showing 10 of 50

If you like Khalid

Bazzi

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Chlöe

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5Talk (feat. Disclosure)
3:18
  • 6Right Back
    3:35
  • 7Don't Pretend (feat. SAFE)
    2:46
  • 8Paradise
    2:54
  • 9Hundred
    4:37
  • 10Outta My Head (with John Mayer)
    2:57
  • 11Free Spirit
    3:02
  • 12Twenty One
    3:04
  • 13Bluffin'
    3:19
  • 14Self
    3:50
  • 15Alive
    2:57
  • 16Heaven
    3:33
  • 17Saturday Nights
    3:29
  • —Outta My Head
  • —Talk
  • —Don't Pretend

    • Credits

    Production & Engineering

    Writer
    Charlie Handsome, Digi, Khalid
    Producer
    Charlie Handsome, Digi
    Assistant Recording Engineer
    Ingmar Carlson, Joshua Deguzman, SSJ Mike
    Mastering Engineer
    Dale Becker
    Mixing Engineer
    Denis Kosiak, Jon Castelli
    Recording Engineer
    Denis Kosiak
    Vocal Producer
    Denis Kosiak
    READ MORE ABOUT KHALIDREAD MORE ABOUT KHALIDREAD MORE ABOUT KHALIDREAD MORE ABOUT KHALID
    READ MORE ABOUT KHALIDREAD MORE ABOUT KHALIDREAD MORE ABOUT KHALIDREAD MORE ABOUT KHALID
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    News

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    The 3800-capacity Kensington venue confirms its opening run of live dates.

    19 Mar 2026 • 10:50 am
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    News

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    It's Dove's first release since the 'Girl Like Me' EP.

    10 Feb 2023 • 5:27 pm
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    4 Oct 2022 • 8:42 am