Khalil Romeo

Story by Khalil Hines

He’s quiet, mild-mannered, and soft-spoken, like the town he’s from. Don’t let any of that fool you though, Khalil Romeo will be heard. The Eugene, Oregon native has a passion for music and wants it to be his voice.

Khalil Romeo, which if I do say so myself, is a dope name, started making beats his sophomore year of high school. Soon after, he started laying down his own vocals and beginning his path as an artist. He credits Drake and Childish Gambino as heavy influences for the type of music he wants to make because of their genre bending styles. However, Romeo is a “Hip Hop head at heart,” and being from Eugene, he has found the music scene to be a difficult maneuver.

“Definitely towards the end of high school, there was a reality check of the fact that there isn’t really anything musically going on in this area… It’s definitely hard being from a place that’s so small and that’s not like a music-based place, but at the same time, it makes it so when you make the connections here, you can take advantage,” Romeo said.

Fortunately, Khalil Romeo has made those connections. He has linked with others from Eugene to form Out of Reach, a music collective that puts on shows and events. They have been a part of all of Romeo’s creative ventures including his music and other productions. 

Through the last few years, he has been able to track his progress as an artist through his path in life, and that process of growing up and trying to figure things out. “I feel like my growth as an artist has been along the same trajectory as my growth as a person.” He credits his continued journey as allowing him to become more confident in what type of music he wants to make. 

Romeo uses a more of a melodic flow, and his most recent releases “November,” and “Worst Thoughts” show his ability to style himself to a slower, melodic tone. On upbeat tracks, such as the 2021 release “What Happened,” Romeo pushes his bars euphonically, and rides smoothly over the beat. His work on his remixes of Baby Keem’s “Family Ties”, and Drake’s “Fear” made me step back and further respect his pen and ability to catch flows.

As of now, Khalil Romeo is working on his first full-length project that will be released in the first half of 2022 with Out of Reach. Romeo wants to use music as a gateway to further grow his creative desires and become a household name. We’re looking forward to seeing what he has in store with his upcoming project, as well as other ventures. 

Khalil Romeo can be found on Instagram, YouTube, and of course all streaming platforms.