Khalid Joins Singer-Songwriter Watts on Tender Tune ‘Feels’

Khalid has joined rising singer-songwriter Watts for a new take on the latter’s 2018 song, “Feels.”

“Feels” is a tender ballad filled with atmospheric synths and warm guitar tones that provides the perfect backdrop for Watts’ and Khalid’s voices. The pair trade off verses, but come together at the end to harmonize the hook, “But can’t fight this feeling/And I don’t want to change/Well I can’t fight this feeling/It’s driving me insane.”

In a statement, Khalid said he was immediately drawn to “Feels” when he first came across it while digging around for new music. “I hit Watts up to tell him how much I loved ‘Feels,’ and we started talking about music and what we were currently listening to and how we were holding up in the pandemic,” Khalid said. “Over a few weeks, we built a really special friendship that evolved into us collaborating on this new version, which I love so much and is so special to me. I’ve always been someone who loves the art of a collaboration — it’s such an amazing way to expand your creativity and open yourself up to new sounds and ideas.”

Watts added of receiving that initial DM from Khalid and crafting their version of “Feels” together: “I was totally shocked, Khalid has been an artist that I have always admired, and to find out he was a fan of mine was incredible. I tried not to get my hopes up to much, but all of the stars aligned and here we are — releasing this new version of the song together. It’s been pretty wild and I am so proud of how it turned out.”

Watts has yet to release a debut album, although he dropped a string of singles last year including “Lie Here With You,” “Right, Alright,” and “Get Up.” Khalid, meanwhile, released his most recent album, Free Spirit, in 2019, while last year he dropped a solo song, “Eleven,” (the remix boasted Summer Walker) plus a few collaborations, including “Know Your Worth” with Disclosure, and “Be Like That” with Kane Brown and Swae Lee.